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TABLE OF CONTENTS (part 3)

 

10. BOOK REVIEWS (part 2)
11. NEWS AND NOTES

 

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10. BOOK REVIEWS (part 2)

 

Howard Zinn's Revisionist History Text
By Bettina Esser

 

     My husband and I first became aware of revisionist history in the early 1990s through an English class. My oldest son came home with The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and I was delighted. After all, so many schools wouldn't touch that book with a ten-foot pole. What a great time in one's life to read a wonderful coming-of-age book!  I had visions of us discussing the symbolism of the river and the raft, freedom versus responsibility; but that was not how the teacher planned to present this book. This book was to be critically read only in the context of racism in America. This book was not to be discussed with anyone outside of class, and the only outside materials that the students were allowed to read were in a packet consisting of newspaper clippings and articles related to the racism of Huck Finn. The most fair and balanced among those articles was one by Clarence Page. [Editor's note:  What a great argument for homeschooling!  WSW.]

 

     That same year, my 5th-grade son came home with a new history textbook. It was beautiful — lots of color pictures, timelines, and even a CD-ROM. When I perused it, I noticed that there were many oral history entries, even though oral history is one of the least reliable sources of historical information. There was a chapter on the Seneca Falls Convention and the woman's movement, but no mention of Thomas Edison or the Wright Brothers. The new President, Bill Clinton, got his own page as "The Man from Hope," but George H. W. Bush was not mentioned; nor was Tiananmen Square or the fall of the Berlin Wall. Richard Nixon got two pages: one for Watergate and one for losing the Vietnam War. My husband and I realized that our children were being taught with a post-feminist, multicultural curriculum. We wanted them to learn reading, writing, and Western civ. We first became aware of Howard Zinn when my eldest son was a junior in high school taking American history. Who is Howard Zinn? He is the author of A People's History of the United States, 1492-Present. This book is the #2 bestseller on the Social History list of Amazon's American History section. First published in 1980, the book has sold over 1.5 million copies, which ironically has made Zinn, one of American capitalism's most vicious critics, quite wealthy.

 

     It is not a bestseller because it has blazed new trails in historical research. In fact, Zinn gives no primary sources in this book. The book intersperses secondary sources, without individual citation, with Zinn's own stream-of-consciousness commentary. It is not a bestseller because it covers history in breadth and/or depth. In fact, it only covers 25 historical events and movements in finite time-spans. Often, in spite of its 680+ pages, we are left to wonder how the story ended.

 

     It is not a bestseller because it best supports one of the traditional approaches to America's story, such as the "Great Man" or "Great Idea" theories. In fact, the book's overarching thesis could best be summarized in this way: "America is not a republic but an empire controlled by white men, but only certain white men, and its heroes are anti-establishment protestors and those in the trenches of class warfare."

 

     This book is a bestseller because it is required reading in most colleges and an increasing number of high schools. Because this is the only book on American history that many students will read, Howard Zinn has become one of the most dangerous men in America. Most insidiously, the power of this man's thinking will only expand, because new versions of his book have come out in comic-book form (which is great for teens who have limited critical reading skills or limited attention spans), as well as a multi-volume set rewritten for upper-elementary and middle-school students.

 

     Howard Zinn was born in 1922 in Brooklyn, the son of Russian immigrants, and much of his attitude to American history was shaped by the time and place in which he grew up. He was one of four sons, one of whom died before Zinn's birth while the family was on a "cheap vacation in the country." The child died of spinal meningitis on the trip, forcing the parents to ride home holding their deceased child. Although he did not know this brother, Zinn retells the story often, and its importance in shaping his attitude toward their poverty cannot be underestimated.

 

     Zinn's parents were poor, but he remarks on how much he was loved. In fact, he reflects that no child who is loved ever feels poor. During the Depression, his father, a factory worker, saved 25 cents to get Howard a complete set of the works of Charles Dickens. He was a voracious reader, but from reading his later work, one would think that the 19th-century British world of rigid class structure and static economic conditions still dominates 21st-century America.

 

     Zinn was an avid basketball player in high school and it was on the public courts that he met a group of young communists who helped form his worldview. This worldview crystallized when Zinn participated in an anti-Hitler march and was hit on the head by a policeman. He writes, "I woke up, perhaps half-an-hour later, with a painful lump on my head. From that moment on, I was no longer a liberal - a believer in the self-correcting character of democracy. I was a radical, believing something was fundamentally wrong with this country."

 

     Zinn's attitude toward class struggle is also traceable to a New Year's Eve when he helped his father as a waiter in the restaurant where his father worked. About the job, he writes, "I hated it. All his life [my father] worked hard for very little. I've always resented statements of politicians, media commentators, [and] corporate executives who talked of how, in America, if you worked hard you would become rich. The meaning of that was, if you were poor, it was because you hadn't worked hard enough. I knew it was a lie, about my father and millions of others, men and women who worked harder than anyone, harder than financiers and politicians, harder than anybody if you accept that when you work at an unpleasant job, that makes it very hard work indeed."

 

     Fans of Howard Zinn believe that his military service during World War II gives his anti-war sentiments credibility. Zinn enlisted and became a bombardier, riding in the nose cone of the B-17 Flying Fortress and operating the Norden Bombsight. At this time, Zinn met a tail gunner who convinced him that World War II was a war for empire, not a war against totalitarianism. When he asked the tail gunner why he was there if he felt that way, the tail gunner replied that he was there to "talk to guys like you." Two weeks later, the tail gunner was killed in action. Zinn's war experience contributed to his opinions that "U.S. policy is rarely, if ever, driven by anything other than corporate interests," and that politicians use war as a way to distract citizens from domestic problems.

 

     After the war, using the G.I. Bill, Zinn received his B.A. from New York University, and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Columbia. He was a post-doctoral fellow in East Asian Studies at Harvard. Spellman University dismissed him from his first professorship when he became involved in creating student dissent. From Spellman, Zinn moved to Boston University, with which he has been affiliated since 1964. He was involved in the civil rights movement while at Spellman and the anti-war movement during Vietnam. He counted among his friends Noam Chomsky, as well as the Berrigan brothers and Daniel Ellsburg, with whom he went to Hanoi to escort three returning POWs. The North Vietnamese wanted liberal sympathizers to be the escorts, and Zinn received official approval from the U.S. enemy.

 

     Zinn is bipartisan in his criticism, but his essays stop abruptly, never telling the reader how the rest of the story turned out. In the world of Zinn, things never evolve, economies don't recover, victims never overcome adversity, and white men are always to blame. Once a person is labeled as "evil," there is no personal redemption. "Robber barons" are not recognized for their own personal achievements or the risks and losses they endured, but only for their manipulation of people and money. In Zinn's economic view, where everybody is out for the most he can get, there is no room for voluntarism, charity, or philanthropy.

 

     Zinn could never explain sacrifice for a greater cause if it involved a traditional definition of "patriotism." He could never justify a volunteer military, nor acknowledge that many copies of his book probably are on the shelves of libraries that bear the name "Carnegie." His writing style is not necessarily chronological, which can be problematic for the reader. Worst of all, he interjects unrelated phrases or ideas, forcing the reader to assume connections that might not be there. For example, when discussing the Pullman strike, he takes time to explain that the workers lived in houses and shopped at stores owned by the company. At the end of the unit, he writes, "A century later this would be called the Race To The Bottom and it would also become the business model for Wal-Mart." Neither of these comments is exactly true, and Zinn gives no further explanation. These "buzz phrases" could become distractions in any discussion with an ill-informed, Zinn-educated student.

 

     Zinn's new books for an even younger and more vulnerable audience are frightening. The comic-book format is used specifically to create the same primal reaction created by cave drawings as they "lend themselves best to storytelling," particularly when paired with shocking photographs and other drawings of the period. Furthermore, Zinn makes no apologies about his intention in presenting history exactly as he does. Of the new junior reader, he writes,

 

     Is it right to take down the traditional heroes of the nation, like Christopher Columbus, Andrew Jackson, Theodore Roosevelt? Is it unpatriotic to emphasize slavery and racism, the massacres of Indians, the exploitation of the working people? . . . It seems to me it is wrong to treat young readers as if they are not mature enough to look at their nation's policies honestly. . . . Why should we think it heroic to do as Columbus did, arrive in this hemisphere and carry on a rampage of violence, in order to find gold? Why should we think it heroic for Andrew Jackson to drive Indians out of their land? Why should we think of Theodore Roosevelt as a hero because he fought in the Spanish-American war, driving Spain out of Cuba, but also paving the way for the United States to take control of Cuba?

 

     In the world of Zinn, these were the only things that Columbus, Jackson, or Roosevelt ever did, and no other actions in their lives could compensate for their sins. In his chronology, the reader goes from one unpleasant climactic event to the next, and nothing good happens in the interim.

 

     Perhaps the most lasting "achievement" of Zinn's writing is to deprive young readers the opportunity to feel that they are part of the greater continuing story of American exceptionalism. His book inspires guilt, and forces the reader to feel that success must come only through exploitation. Zinn denies historical process and negates hope for the future. He belittles patriotism and never allows pride of person or place.

 

     I have no problem with students reading Zinn, as long as they have the time and equal support to read other material. One doesn't have to read the entire book to get the picture, and one should not be required to buy it and dissect it like a homiletic text. There are other books on the market that offer alternative points of view and create balance.

 

     Zinn told one interviewer that he had set "quiet revolution" as his goal for writing A People's History. "Not a revolution in the classical sense of a seizure of power, but rather from people beginning to take power from within the institutions. In the workplace, the workers would take power to control the conditions of their lives." Perhaps it is we who should begin a quiet revolution of our own, and take back the power that Howard Zinn has to tell America's story.

 

     ---taken from the Eagle Forum Education Reporter, April, 2009.  Bettina Esser is the mother of four children, ages 19 to 28. Her children attended both public and private schools in St. Louis County, Missouri. 

 

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     The Old Schoolhouse Magazine:  The Spring, 2009, issue of this wonderful quarterly homeschooling magazine ( www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com ) contains a wealth of interesting and useful information, as is true of every issue.  Just some of the items that caught my eye are Ed Dunlop's "Guarding the Castle," Pat Marcum's "Followers of the World or Followers of Christ?", Heidi St. John's "Churches and Homeschooling Families: A Powerful Partnership for a New Generation," Emil Messimer's "Homeschool Beginning," Bruce Shortt's "Homeschool Co-ops," Christine Hindle's "Homeschooling Grandma," Amelia Harper's "The New Apologia," two articles by and an interview with Dr. Carl Wieland of Creation Ministries International, Marcia Somerville's "History is HIS-tory," several articles on homeschool organization, Inge Cannon's "Mastering the Grading Process," and much more.  You just "gotta" get it!

 

     Other good reading:  The latest issue of Home Educator's Family Times ( www.homeeducator.com/FamilyTimes ) has homeschool related articles by Shirley M. R. Minster, Lisa Russell, Judy Aron, Barbara Frank, Ann Lloyd (on finding books your child will read), Deborah Stevenson (on Obama's GIVE act recently passed by Congress), the late Dave Marks, and others.  The Mar./Apr., 2009, issue of The Home School Court Report ( www.hslda.org ) has articles on the truth about the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child by Michael Farris and William Estrada, an article on homeschool record keeping by Andrea Longbottom, and one on college entrance exams by Lee Ann Bisulca, along with the usual features.  The May/June, 2009, issue of Home School Enrichment ( www.HomeSchoolEnrichment ) has several articles related to mothers, interesting material about leaving traditional college behind for distance learning, and an article by Rachael Varblow "Are We Overprotecting Our Children?" (not what you may think at first)--you can even learn from the ads.  Did you know that radio host Dave Ramsey has a homeschool curriculum "Foundations in Personal Finance"?

 

     Note about a book:  The 7/03 issue of this newsletter contained my review of Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor.  In part I wrote, "The language leaves a little to be desired....While I do not condone this kind of language in any book, it is absolutely unconscionable to use it in children's literature, even if there are people who talk that way.  There are also references to...tobacco and drinking beer.  Even worse is the underlying message of the book.  Marty does a lot of lying while trying to keep Shiloh hidden, and while it bothers his conscience, he never reaches the conclusion that it is wrong but rather views it as necessary to accomplish his aim of saving Shiloh....So the end, getting the dog, justifies the means."  Therefore, I was interested in an article in the latest issue of Home Educator's Family Times by Ann Lloyd on finding books your child will read and noticed her observation.  "When my daughter Kathryn, an avid animal lover, was eight she read Shiloh by Phyllis Naylor.  The book is a Newbery Award winner, yet Kathryn was so upset by the story that she refused to read anything for a month.  Associating reading with the somewhat depressing story, she simply didn't want to read any more."  My own reaction was similar to that of Ann's daughter, though perhaps not as visceral.  I thought that the book was depressing too.  While I don't believe that all children's books should be "happy and gay," I do believe that children should be given hope and uplifting by the books that they read, and much of what euphemistically passes for modern "children's literature" is depressing.

 

      California Students Learn "Meditation":  According to the April, 2009, Education Reporter from Eagle Forum, nineteen schools in central California have adopted "meditation" as part of their curricula for elementary school students as young as kindergarten. 4,600 children have learned meditation techniques through the program in the past two years.   An unapologetically enthusiastic article in the Sacramento Bee hailed the teacher-directed meditation training as the welcome alternative to "graduating another generation of workaholic, road-raged adults." The feature described one instructor, Oren Sofer, as he led a class of 3rd-graders in various meditation techniques. The children greeted Sofer upon his entrance to the classroom with a unison chant: "Mind-ful-ness. Mind-ful-ness." The Sacramento Bee defined "mindfulness" as "the ability to be aware of what is happening in the present moment without judgment."   In pursuit of "mindfulness," Sofer rang a Tibetan singing bowl and asked the students to listen quietly to the bell's echoes. The Tibetan singing bowl is a bell used in the context of Buddhism to facilitate prayer, meditation, and trance induction. After playing the bell, Sofer led the class in rhythmic breathing exercises and meditation.   "Not only are kids managing their stress and getting along better with others, they're using mindfulness to enhance their drawing, acting, running and sleeping," raved reporter April Dembosky.   The meditation courses take place in 15-minute increments, three times a week for five weeks. The Oakland-based Community Partnership for Mindfulness in Education developed the program and pays its instructors (Sacramento Bee, 2-9-09).  Note--This kind of "meditation" is part and parcel of the Buddhist religion, yet it is taught and practiced in America's public school without much protest.  But just let someone suggest that students in public schools be given time to pray--or even to meditate on the word of God (Psalm 119:97)--and hear the howl that is raised.  Bible believing parents who want to raise godly children need to take their children out of such anti-Christian indoctrination centers and give them their education at home.

 

     Massachusetts lawmakers push for 'gay'-friendly school programs:  Pete Chagnon of OneNewsNow reported on 5/1/2009 that since $850,000 in school funding for "gay"-friendly programs has been potentially cut from the 2010 Massachusetts budget, lawmakers -- at the behest of homosexual activists -- are looking for ways to get the funding reinstated.  Due to the economic recession, Massachusetts is facing a billion-dollar budget shortfall. Many government-funded programs are facing the chopping block if funds cannot be secured, namely the $850,000 for homosexual-friendly school programs. But now lawmakers are considering raising the state sales tax to cover the budget shortfall.  Kris Mineau is with the Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI). "It appears that public sentiment is against raising the sales tax. But you see, we have a one-party dictatorship here in the people's republic of Massachusetts," he notes. "And until that's broken, this legislature...pays very little attention to the public sentiment because they believe they are invincible."  Mineau says, fortunately, people do pay attention when their pocketbooks are affected. The bill for the increased sales tax has been passed in the House, but MFI hopes to have it overturned in the Senate.  Currently the sales tax in Massachusetts stands at 5.3 percent, and plans are to raise it to 6.25 percent. The governor has promised to veto any tax increase.  [Editor's note:  So the radical homosexual rights advocates not only want to hijack the schools to serve their agenda (no news there), they want YOU (the taxpayer) to foot the bill with increased sales taxes!  Yes, the item is about the "people's republic of Massachusets" as Mineau says, but the radical homosexual rights advocates will not stop there; if they are successful in one state, they will try the same things in others.  WSW.]

 

     More about the so-called "hate-crimes" (actually "thought-control") legislation:  As I prepare this newsletter, the "hate-crimes" bill that has been the subject of several notes in this newsletter recently, appears to be sailing through Congress.  The more we read about it, the more ugly it becomes.  In an item headlined "'Bestiality, pedophilia ... pick your poison': New 'hate-crimes' legislation 'shocks the conscience,'" WorldNetDaily reported on May 5, 2009 that the House of Representatives had passed legislation the previous week to add sexual orientation and gender to the list of categories covered by federal "hate-crimes" laws.   "Pedophilia is one of the scores of sexual orientations that are included, that are protected, that are granted special preferred status under this legislation to the exclusion of other classifications of people," says Matt Barber of Liberty Counsel.   Republican opponents of the legislation claim Democrat supporters of the measure are not being clear about who exactly will receive special protections under the bill.   Democrat Sens. Edward Kennedy and Patrick Leahy have produced matching legislation in the U.S. Senate, and President Obama supports the measure.  A similar piece of legislation now in the House threatens fines and jail time for what it calls "cyberbullying" – communications that include e-mails and text messages that "cause substantial emotional distress."  The vague generalities are included in H.R. 1966 by California Democrat Linda Sanchez and about a dozen co-sponsors.   At Wired.com, in a report labeled "Threat Level," writer David Kravets criticized the plan to demand "up to two years in prison for those whose electronic speech is meant to 'coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress.'" The plan is labeled the Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act, after the 13-year-old Meier, whose suicide last year reportedly was prompted by a woman who utilized the MySpace social networking site to send the teen critical messages. However, "Sanchez's bill goes way beyond cyberbullying and comes close to making it a federal offense to log onto the Internet or use the telephone," Kravets wrote. "The methods of communication where hostile speech is banned include e-mail, instant messaging, blogs, websites, telephones and text messages."  So, to prevent "bullying," the Democrats are ready to deny first-amendment rights.  By the way, I wonder if the hate-crimes bill passes, will the rest of us be able to use it against homosexuals who perpetrate crimes against "straight" people?

 

     However, no one seems to be concerned about this bullying:  In an item headlined "Lesbians look to boot Boy Scouts from own facilities: Ruling threatens faith-based groups trying to help in their communities," on May 6, 2009, Bob Unruh of WorldNetDaily reported that with work ramping up in Washington on a "hate crimes" bill that would create special rights for homosexuals, a case that addresses a related issue – claims by same-sex couples they have the right not to be "offended" by "straight' morality – has been presented to the U.S. Supreme Court.  The case involves a series of projects by the Boy Scouts of America in San Diego. The private organization has provided millions of dollars in improvements to public facilities in exchange for their use but faces being banned because homosexuals and lesbians who never even were exposed to the work claimed their feelings were hurt.  The organization has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the decision from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.  At issue in the case are leases from the city of San Diego allowing the San Diego Boy Scouts to build and operate campgrounds and an aquatic center on city property for their use and the public's.   Lesbian and agnostic couples who had never visited the facilities sued the Scouts on a claim that they felt offended by the fact that the city leases the public property to a 'morally straight' organization such as the Boy Scouts.  There were no religious symbols at the facilities.  A three-judge panel at the 9th Circuit dismissed the complaint filed by the team of agnostics and lesbians, determining the individuals lacked standing to sue because "offended observers" have sustained no injury.  But the decision was reversed by the full 9th Circuit panel. The Boy Scouts since 1957 have leased a 16-acre parcel at San Diego's Balboa Park. In exchange for paying a nominal fee to the city, the Scouts were allowed to lease the park and make numerous improvements to the property, including a public campground. Hundreds of other groups have similar arrangements with the city.   In 1987, the city leased another half-acre parcel to the Scouts at Mission Bay Park. The Scouts again spent millions of dollars to build an aquatic center, which is open to the entire community on a first-come, first-served basis.  The organization confirmed it agreed to spend more than $1.7 million of its funds improving Camp Balboa and $2.5 million on the aquatics center at Mission Bay Park under its latest leases. The facilities and equipment "are available for use by any youth group."  But the big bad bully lesbians and agnostics are "offended" by the Scouts, so no stone is left unturned to harass and persecute an organization that has done so much good through the years.  Meanwhile, the "hate-crimes" bill would provide a special protection to homosexuals and others with alternative sexual lifestyle choices, apparently including pedophiles, against anything that they perceive could hurt or insult them.  It's not a "mad, mad world"--it's a "sick, sick world."

 

     More evidence of anti-Christian bias in public schools:  This is the third such case that I have read reports about in the last few months.  In an item headlined "Free speech 'gutted' in valedictorian speech case," Charlie Butts of OneNewsNow reported on 5/7/2009 that the Rutherford Institute is suing a Billings, Montana, school over a graduation decision.  John Whitehead, founder of the Institute, says many people were scheduled to speak at the 2008 Butte High School graduation. Some chose serious subjects, others humor, he says.  "Renee Griffith, who is a Christian, wanted to mention Christ once and mention God once in one of her very short remarks, and the school said she couldn't do it," he explains. "She [insisted she] wanted to do it, so then they actually removed her from the graduation ceremony and did not allow her to speak."  According to a Rutherford press release, the co-valedictorian was ordered to replace two phrases in her speech -- "sharing Christ" and "lived with a purpose from God with a passionate love for Him" -- with the following phrases: "sharing my faith" and "lived with a purpose, a purpose derived from my faith and based on a love of mankind."  Whitehead explains he has seen many incidents of constitutional rights violated in graduation ceremonies, and has won several such cases. But Griffith's case -- which he describes as "pure censorship" -- is the worst he has seen, he says.  "Society seems to be going another direction," observes the attorney. "But the scary thing is, even these students who just want the right to freely speak like other students about what they believe in [are] being denied their rights. So what's happening is we're gutting the free-speech clause [in the Constitution]."  Whitehead maintains that students have constitutional rights -- but warns that "if we don't begin protecting the right to free speech in the schools, we are going to lose the right to speak entirely."

 

     But maybe, just maybe, all is not completely and hopelessly lost:  In an item headlined "Teacher comes up short in student-filed lawsuit," Pete Chagnon of OneNewsNow reported, also on 5/7/2009, that a federal court has ruled in favor of a Christian student in California in a lawsuit filed in response to a history teacher's remarks concerning creationism.  About two years ago Chad Farnan, who was then a high school sophomore, filed a lawsuit against Capistrano Valley High School teacher James Corbett for making hostile remarks against Christians and religion in general. Now a federal district court in California has ruled that Corbett's remarks "constitute improper disapproval of religion in violation of the Establishment Clause."  Robert Tyler, general counsel with Advocates for Faith & Freedom, describes the teacher's comments.  "He made numerous statements over and over again," says the attorney, "and one statement is an example...that in purportedly quoting Mark Twain he said 'Religion was invented when the con man met the first fool.' [He made] many statements along those lines."  Tyler says there is also an ironic aspect to the case. Corbett, he says, actually sued a fellow teacher in the 1990s because the teacher was discussing creationism in the classroom. Corbett won that case -- but he lost this one, says Tyler, due to a criticism he leveled while making fun of that teacher in Farnan's class.  "The remark that the court hung its hat on was the remark that when addressing creationism, he said creationism is 'superstitious nonsense,'" Tyler explains.  Although the Farnan won the case, no damages were sought. However, Corbett is liable for attorney's fees.  This is one reason why we homeschool--students in public schools should not have to sue to protect themselves against teachers who degrade their religion!

 

     Film featuring homeschoolers to be shown theaters across the country:  The Bracelet of Bordeaux will be in theaters starting May, 18th. Five Texas homeschoolers were involved with the production of this film. Two are major characters and three were in the crew. Here is some information on the movie and a link to show times and locations.  Monterey Media is delighted to announce the acquisition of The Bracelet of Bordeaux a Papillon Production from Eakin Films. This exciting family film has already received the KIDS FIRST! Endorsement as well as approval from The Dove Foundation.  The Bracelet of Bordeaux takes you on a rip-roaring adventure to Chem City , Texas where someone is dognapping the canine citizens! Two tween girls overcome danger and conspiracies as they set out to solve the crime and administer justice with the help of a magical bracelet. As the girls battle the Mob, a punk gang and a crooked cop, they learn something about friendship, courage and the importance of hanging with the right crowd. Directed by Casey Kelly and written by Frank Eakin, the film stars Ally Claire Carson, Kelsey Edwards, Shane Kelly and Shane Savage.  "Looking for some fun and engaging entertainment for the whole family? The Bracelet of Bordeaux is your ticket. This film has all the elements of a mystery drama, plus chuckles aplenty for both kids and their parents. Bracelet is likely to become a family favorite for years to come" (Voice of America).  The Bracelet of Bordeaux captivates audiences with nonstop excitement and intrigue as an Official Selection at the American Film Institute (Dallas), Zlin European Fest for Children, San Diego International Children's Film Festival, Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival and Austin Film Festival.  ThePeoplesCritic.com proclaims "The magical adventures of young Helen, her adorable dog, Rufus, and her best friend Marie, comprise an amusing and mysterious tale that is promising to captivate both young and old. Brace yourself for BRACELET fun!!!"  For a list of the theaters and showtimes, see:  http://www.montereymedia.com/theatrical/contracts/bracelet/contracts/bracelet_locations. php .

 

     To all the folks who voted for Obama--Is this the kind of "change" you voted for?:  Every day, day after day, we hear more and more scary things coming out of the Obama administration, those associated with it, and/or its comrades in Congress.  A Louisiana driver was stopped and detained for having a "Don't Tread on Me" bumper sticker on his vehicle and warned by a police officer about the "subversive" message it sent, according to the driver's relative. The situation developed in the small town of Ball, La., and followed by only a few weeks the release of a Department of Homeland Security report, "Right-wing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment", which prompted outrage from legislators and a campaign calling for the resignation of DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano. The report, which cites individuals who sport certain bumper stickers on their vehicles as suspect, was delivered to tens of thousands of local law enforcement officers across the nation.   Of course, the Obama administration is fully backing the so-called "Hate Crimes" legislation in Congress (now being called the "Pedophile Protection Act" because Democrats in the House refused to accept wording that would exclude pedophiles from its "protections").   The plan would "break" the U.S. Constitution if adopted and enforced, according to Arizona congressman Trent Franks, R-Ariz.  And citizens are expressing their concern by dispatching hundreds of thousands of letters to senators.  "They have to necessarily break the Constitution for this bill to have any effect," Franks said. An analysis by Shawn D. Akers, policy analyst with Liberty Counsel, said the proposal, formally known as H.R. 1913, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act bill in the House and S. 909 in the Senate shows that foremost, the bill simply ignores the 14th Amendment requirements that all citizens be protected equally, providing special protections for homosexuals and others with alternative sexual lifestyle choices, he said.  And, of course, Mr. Obama promised us in his campaign that he would work to remove the federal Defense of Marriage Act (and talk about the audacity of mendacity--World Net Daily reported that this promise, which was featured prominently on the White House website, has now been taken down, probably NOT because Obama has changed his mind but because of all the objections that lodged), thus paving the way for homosexual marriage.  Now, just since his taking office Maine has become the fifth state in the U.S. to legalize same-sex marriage when Democrat Gov. John Baldacci signed the bill less than an hour after it cleared the legislature.   "They've overreached in Maine," said Brian Brown, executive director at the National Organization for Marriage.   Brown describes the barrage of legislation as the work of "gay" millionaire activists and says you have to "follow the money" to understand why even lawmakers who have previously expressed opposition to same-sex marriage are now onboard.  "A lot of these more conservative Democrats ... this is going to be a test ... if they actually believe that marriage is the union of a man and a woman then they need to step up now," said Brown.

 

   Just another reason for Christian parents to keep their kids out of public schools:  In an item headline "Teachers cite 'clergy' privilege to hide lesbian teaching: Turned math, science classes over to visiting 'minister,'" on May 8, 2009, Bob Unruh of WorldNetDaily reported that parents of students at Castro Valley High School in Castro Valley, Calif., have filed a lawsuit against the educational institution after teachers there summoned a lesbian minister to speak to math and science classes, then tried to keep that information hidden from parents, according to officials with the Pacific Justice Institute.   The public interest law firm said nearly two dozen parents signed onto the lawsuit that was filed yesterday against the school and its supervising district organization because the school required their children to undergo whatever indoctrination the lesbian provided, but then refused to tell them what happened.  In fact, when school officials were asked about the lesbian's presentation to the school's math and science classes, the school flatly refused to provide any documentation on the event, the law firm said.   "To the astonishment of PJI attorneys, the district invoked the clergy-penitent privilege – ordinarily used to shield ministers from testifying in court about confessions made to them in private," PJI reported.   "It's a mystery to use why the district chose to take such a hard-line approach with these parents who simply wanted all the information they are entitled to about this minister's visit," said Kevin Snider, the chief counsel for PJI. "But the parents have a strong right under California law to examine the curriculum and materials associated with in-class presentations, and we intend to vindicate that right."   The organization said it has filed a writ petition in Alameda Superior Court to compel release of all records pertaining to the lesbian's visit to the public school and her teaching there.   Students had reported that the lesbian spoke about her lesbian "wedding" and similar events under the subject of "Out for Good." Pacific Justice had asked on behalf of the parents for all records related to the minister's presentations, as well as any records demonstrating the connection between the minister's discussion and the math and science curriculums used in the school.   "Parents are the first and foremost educators of their own children," said Brad Dacus, president of the Pacific Justice Institute. "Castro Valley's refusal to honor these parents' request for basic information reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of the school's proper role as helping – not replacing – parents."   A receptionist in the school's administration office today confirmed to WND the special message to students about the lesbian lifestyle was part of the school's "Day of Diversity," but she declined to answer further questions. A WND message left for the school's curriculum supervisor was not returned.

 

    And just one more reason for Christian parents, especially in California, to keep their children out of public schools:  In an item headlined "Calif. school day would honor homosexual pioneer," Charlie Butts and Jody Brown of OneNewsNow reported on 5/11/2009, that the California State Senate is poised to vote on a bill making an official "homosexual day" in every public school.  It would be called "Harvey Milk Day" in honor of the openly homosexual San Francisco Board of Supervisors member who was shot and killed in 1978 along with the city's mayor, George Moscone. S.B. 572, which was approved 7-to-2 out of committee last week, says observances conducted on May 22 should recognize Milk's "accomplishments as well as the contributions he made to this state" -- and that "all public schools and educational institutions are encouraged to observe...and...conduct suitable commemorative exercises."  Randy Thomasson of SaveCalifornia.com says the legislation designates just another day to indoctrinate children in the tenets of homosexuality. "That's why we've called California parents to get their kids out of the government schools and into the sanctuary of homeschooling or a good church-schooling instead," he shares.  According to Thomasson, parental permission for children to participate in any related activities would not be required under S.B. 572, effectively trampling on parents' rights. He also contends the measure would "encourage public schools to positively portray to children any and all facets of homosexuality, bisexuality, and trans-sexuality -- and anything else that's 'in the closet.'"  Harvey Milk was assassinated after only 11 months as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. OneNewsNow asked Thomasson if the New York native did anything of significance while in public office.  "No. He was in office a short time and he used it to basically hold meetings and do homosexual pride parades and do activist work on behalf of the homosexual agenda," Thomasson explains. "Harvey Milk thought organized religion was dangerous. He thought doors of sexual experimentation must be opened."  In addition, he supported homosexual "marriage," adds the California family advocate.  That legacy, Thomasson says, is what public school children would be honoring, should the bill become law.

 

     More of that wonderful "tolerance" on the part of the left:  A flood of harsh criticism has been unleashed on President Obama following last weekend's White House Correspondent's Dinner, where one entertainer suggested death for talk radio icon Rush Limbaugh by stating, "I hope his kidneys fail." Wanda Sykes said to the audience, which included the president and first lady, "Rush Limbaugh said he hope this administration fails. So you're saying, 'I hope America fails.' He just wants the country to fail. To me, that's treason. He's not saying anything different than what Osama Bin Laden is saying. You know, you might want to look into this, sir, because I think maybe Rush Limbaugh was the 20th hijacker but he was just so strung out on OxyContin he missed his flight."  I heard what Rush said.  He did NOT mean that he wants the country to fail but that he wants Obama to fail in turning this nation into a socialist society.  "Rush Limbaugh? 'I hope the country fails,'" continued Sykes. "I hope his kidneys fail, how about that? He needs a little waterboarding. That's what he needs." Well, not everyone thinks that it is so funny, including Eric Golub at Big Hollywood. "Calling somebody a murderer and wishing for their kidneys to fail, even in the context of a joke, is evil. Yet I don't want Wanda Sykes to die. I don't want her kidneys to fail. I want her to become a better human being. For now, the world will be a better place if Wanda Sykes has one thing fail…her vocal cords," he wrote.  World Net Daily founder and editor Joseph Farah said, "Accusing people of treason, terrorism and wishing they would be tortured and die – that's what passed for high comedy at the White House Press Correspondents Dinner Saturday.   I'm glad I saved $200 per ticket and the cleaning bill that would have followed – not for the tux, mind you, but for the disinfectant I would have needed after rubbing shoulders with those yucking it up over 'jokes' in such bad taste."  And Tony Harnden, U.S. editor for the London Telegraph, said, "What was Wanda Sykes thinking? Perhaps more to the point, what was President Barack Obama thinking when he laughed and smiled as the comedienne wished Rush Limbaugh dead?"   He called Sykes' presentation a "hateful and disgusting diatribe.  I was at the dinner and I began by laughing at Sykes's gentle teases about the press loving Obama so much they never capture him on film smoking but often seem to get him on the beach. It was amusing when she quipped that Obama trying so hard to be all things to all men that the next thing is he'll be seen mowing the White House lawn." He continued, "But the speech took a very ugly turn when she laid into Limbaugh.   She called Limbaugh a terrorist and a traitor, suggested that he be tortured and wished him dead. … What was his crime? Hoping that Obama's policies – which he views as socialist – will fail. That's way, way beyond reasoned debate or comedy and Obama's reaction to it was astonishing," he said. "Imagine if a comedian 'joked' that Obama was a terrorist who was guilty of treason and should be tortured and allowed to die. There would justifiably be an outcry.   But when the 'joke' comes from a liberal, Obama-supporting comedienne and the target is a right-winger then the likes of Hilary Rosen and Donna Brazile are on CNN saying it's just comedy and Limbaugh is 'fair game," he said.   Wanda Sykes is a black, female, lesbian, liberal. Rush Limbaugh is a white, male, heterosexual, conservative. Therefore, his criticism of Barack Obama's policies are considered hate speech, while her calling Rush a murderer who she wished death upon is considered comedy," he concluded.   White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said today the subject was not appropriate for a comedy routine.  I should think so.  Maybe Mr. Obama had better be more careful whom he invites to dinner next time!

 

     Response:  When I posted the above item on my homeschooling blog ( www.homeschoolblogger.com/wswalker310 ), I received an anonymous comment.  "People who get upset about comedians mystify me. They're joking. If you don't find the joke funny, that's OK. Some of the jokes are going to fall flat. But they're jokes. There are also dead baby jokes and a whole host of other jokes, that nobody intends as literal truth. Whether you find them funny or not is up to you. But complaining about them? That's just silly."   I replied, "Yet, if someone were to tell jokes like that about Barak Obama, he would be savaged by the media as a racist, probably homophobic, Neanderthal, and all other conservatives would be tarred and feathered with the same brush.  In fact, it would probably be labeled 'hate speech' and possibly be considered criminal under the new so-called 'hate crimes act' being considered in Congress is someone said that he committed a crime because of it.  Why is it that only liberals get a free pass when they tell such jokes?"

 

     If it happens here in Illinois, it's likely to happen in your state too:  In an "Urgent message to all Mark T. Skinner Elementary School Parents and Concerned Taxpayers," Laurie Higgins, Director of Illinois Family Institute's Division of School Advocacy, reported that according to a recent article in the Washington Blade (a "gay" publication), Lambda Legal has an annual budget of more than $20 million and 99 full time employees.  At the April 21, 2009 meeting of the Mark T. Skinner Local School Council, Principal Deborah Clark made the stunning announcement that a representative from the homosexual activist organization, Lambda Legal, would be making a presentation to 7th and 8th graders on May 13, 2009, on the topics of gender identity and sexual orientation sensitivity training. This is manipulative rhetoric meaning that Lambda Legal will be coming to Skinner to indoctrinate middle school students with the utterly fallacious and calamitous ideas that gender identity disorder is not a disorder; that cross-dressing and homosexual behaviors are moral behaviors; and that homosexuality and gender identity disorder are analogous to race.  Lambda Legal is committed to using the legislative and judicial systems to impose their unproven, radical, and subversive moral views of homosexuality and cross-dressing on American society. According to their website:  "Lambda Legal is the oldest national organization pursuing high-impact litigation, public education and advocacy on behalf of equality and civil rights for lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender people and people with HIV. The work we do has impact on the way we live -- we change laws, policies and ideas."  And now activists within the public education system are aiding and abetting Lambda Legal's pernicious agenda.  Here are just a few of Lambda Legal's dubious actions plucked from their twenty pages of news releases:   Lambda Legal successfully sued the state of Iowa to compel the state to legalize same-sex marriage.  Lambda Legal successfully sued the Indian River Central School District in New York to compel it to allow a gay-straight alliance.  Lambda Legal sent an "advocacy" letter to South Medford High School in Oregon expressing opposition to the school's requirement that the gay-straight alliance get administrative approval for their announcements and activities.  Lambda Legal filed a legal challenge to California's Proposition 8 ballot initiative.  Allowing Skinner parents to opt their children out is woefully insufficient: The Lambda Legal presentation should be cancelled. Parents and all concerned taxpayers should voice their vociferous and unambiguous opposition to the school District's foolish and inappropriate decision to invite Lambda Legal to advocate views that are unproven and highly controversial.  Parents and concerned taxpayers must demand to know the name of the District employee who proposed this invitation and hold him or her publicly accountable.   And if the District refuses to cancel this event, the public should demand that the District bring in a speaker to present an alternative view of the nature and morality of homosexuality and "transgenderism" (e.g. IFI's Division of School Advocacy). If they refuse to present an alternative view, the Skinner community will have further proof that the District is more invested in indoctrination than they are in critical thinking and the exploration of ideas.   Illinois Family Institute is urging parents and other concerned taxpayers to act now.  Just one more reason to keep your kids at home and give them a godly education yourself.

 

     Response:  When I posted the above item on my homeschooling blog ( www.homeschoolblogger.com/wswalker310 ), kathryn777 left the following comment.  It is time for parents to make a mass exodus from government schools. Unfortunately, public education is no longer about training and educating via the former sound method of a good liberal arts education, but instead has been replaced with the "liberalizing" of children's minds away from parents and their beliefs.   When my children were in public school many years ago, my then 2nd grader was placed in a "gifted and talented" course without my consent; I didn't find out about it for a month after the placing. During a parent teacher conference I was given this information by his teacher. I tried to keep my calm at their obvious lack of respect to notify me earlier and asked why she picked my son, Jackson, for this class. I will never forget what her response was, "Jackson believes too much in facts... He needs to think outside the box so I've sent him to a class that will give him extra critical thinking skills."  For starters, true critical thinking requires the gathering of all the facts on any topic. I knew then and there this teachers definition (she was considered a 'master teacher' by the school) of critical thinking was not the same as mine.   I followed up my visit with her by researching the schools gifted and talented program finding it was an experimental project out of the University of Connecticut by a Dr. Rezuli titled the "houndstooth" project. Upon this new information it was found that the houndstooth model was using eastern mysticism.   To make a long story a little shorter, I confronted Jackson's gifted and talented teacher and, bless her Christian heart, was aware of this but to keep her job was having to teach this as the gifted teacher. She promised me she was not 'teaching to the test'.  All of these programs, whether steeped in mysticism, the remaking of our history, anti-Christianity, fuzzy math, or the homosexual agenda via multiculturalism, the truth is we need an exodus from this corrupt, spiritually violent system meant to imprison the hearts and souls of our nations most precious people.   Thank you for posting this piece. As home educators we need to be reminded that though we have removed our children from the enemies grip our nation is still hanging in the balance as millions of children remain victims of a system gone bad.  (Amen to that!)

 

     Another response:  In last month's newsletter, I had a news item "YouTube community tells kid to kill himself" in which Drew Zahn of WorldNetDaily reported that a self-described Christian 12-year-old boy, using the YouTube member name ChristianU2uber, who dared post his views on homosexuality and same-sex marriage on the popular Internet video site, YouTube, has since been ridiculed and insulted by tens of thousands of comments that attack the boy, his sexuality, and his faith. "Kill Christianity, and then kill yourself," responded a YouTube community member identified as greenacidfusion.  I asked, "Where is all that wonderful 'tolerance' that the leftists and liberals keep telling conservatives that we need to have?"  When I posted the above item on my homeschooling blog ( www.homeschoolblogger.com/wswalker310 ), I received the following anonymous comment.  "'Where is all that wonderful "tolerance" that the leftists and liberals keep telling conservatives that we need to have?'  I doubt there were many sincere leftists and liberals among those who heaped abuse on ChristianU2uber. They were just bullies, pure and simple. On the other hand, several gay liberal bloggers denounced the bullies and spoke out for the kid's welfare."   I replied, "The anonymous commenter is entitled to his opinion. Yes, I know that 'several gay liberal bloggers denounced the bullies and spoke out for the kid's welfare.' I included that information in the blog. However, all I know is what I read, and I have to conclude that the vast majority of those 'bullies, pure and simple' would boast about how 'tolerant' they are and how 'intolerant' conservatives are."

 

     This has nothing to do with homeschooling, but I have to comment anyway because it's scary:  In an Associated Press article on 5/14/09 headlined "House Democrats consider aid for health insurance," Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar and Erica Werner reported, "House Democrats are looking at big health care changes, including federal aid to help families earning up to $88,000 pay for insurance and a requirement that all must carry coverage.  A document obtained by The Associated Press shows the plan being written by the House Energy and Commerce Committee would also require employers to offer coverage to their full-time workers, or pay a percentage of their payroll to the government."  Later the article continued, "The Energy and Commerce plan broadly tracks with the health care proposals that Obama outlined during the campaign. But in several areas, it goes further than what the Senate is likely to approve. For example, while there appears to be support in the Senate for requiring individuals to get coverage, an employer requirement might not get through....The Energy and Commerce plan would build on the current system in which employers, government and individuals share responsibility for the cost of health insurance. But it would make major changes in the way Americans get and pay for coverage. Workers and employers would have new obligations to obtain coverage" (emphasis mine, WSW).  Shades of "Hillary Care" all over again.  If it was a bad idea then, why is it a good idea now?  Unfortunately, the health care industry has brought on the possibility of government-run and government-enforced health care by its own actions.  But what will happen if this passes?  I wonder if we might have the specter of the "insurance Nazis" goose-stepping acrossing the countryside and checking the cards in our billfolds or purses to make sure that each one of us has adequate health insurance--or else!  What ever happened to the legacy of freedom and individual choice upon which this country was founded?  The left wants women to have the choice to kill their unborn babies but does NOT want the American people to have a choice whether to buy health insurance or not!

 

     Home schoolers get 'A' from marketing exec:  Pete Chagnon of OneNewsNow reported the following on 5/14/2009.  The chief operating officer of a marketing and networking firm is lauding the achievements of home schoolers.  Josephine Nicholas is the CEO of Published Daily, a firm started by her brother and run with the help of two other siblings. All four were home-schooled. Josephine says, according to research, home schoolers typically score higher and are more ambitious than their peers.  "Once they're graduating -- and many of them are actually graduating younger than their peers -- and as they graduate they're moving into society in general," she notes. "Whether it's going and getting a job and really being productive in the work force, or actually many of them are creating their own jobs and creating jobs for others by starting their own businesses."  Another area Josephine says home schoolers are very well-respected is in the area of public service. "...[T]hey are very interested in actively contributing to community service activities," she points out. "So rather than being very self[-focused] -- you know, looking at themselves and finding what they can do for themselves -- they're actually giving back to their communities."  She adds that their peers who are not home-schooled tend to be more complacent in this area.

 

     Now another reason to keep your child out of public school kindergarten!:  In an item headlined "Parents fight homosexual indoctrination of kindergarteners" Charlie Butts of OneNewsNow on 5/16/2009 reported that a California school district seems intent on teaching pre-school children to accept the homosexual lifestyle.  The Alameda Unified School District announced it was considering a supplemental curriculum to eradicate "homophobia" in kindergarten children. Brad Dacus, founder of the Pacific Justice Institute (PJI), said the meeting room for the public session earlier this week was overcrowded with angry parents.  "Nowhere at anytime did it give any protection for children being bullied because of their faith, their religion, their size, their race, ethnicity," he points out. "It is only going to give this special anti-bullying protection for homosexuals and transsexuals."  Dacus said an attorney from PJI spoke before the board meeting. "And [the attorney] made it very clear that this is an abridgement and an affront to the neutral role that school districts are supposed to play in respecting the rights of parents and not to engage in such overt and open indoctrination and mandatory acceptance of such controversial, immoral lifestyles," he concludes.  Parents cannot opt out their children from the curriculum. Dacus says it is important to remember that the children are kindergarten age, and many cannot even write their names -- yet they are being taught that homosexuality is an acceptable lifestyle.  And if they try it in California, they will probably try it elsewhere too.

 

     How old does the earth look?:   Insisting that the earth and the universe are young, only 6,000 years old or so, does not make the biblical view popular in today’s enlightened “scientific” culture. It would be so easy just to go along with the view believed and followed by the overwhelming majority of scientists—and taught in nearly all universities and museums around the world—that the universe is 13–14 billion years old and the earth 4.5 billion years old.  After all, many Christians and most scientists who are Christians believe in such a vast antiquity for the earth and universe. Consequently, they even insist the days in Genesis 1 were not literal days, but were countless millions of years long. Also, they claim the Genesis account of creation by God is just poetic and/or figurative, so it is not meant to be read as history.  Of course, the reason for insisting on a young earth and universe is because other biblical authors took Genesis as literal history and an eyewitness account provided and guaranteed accurate by the Creator Himself (2 Timothy 3:16a; 2 Peter 1:21). Jesus also took Genesis as literal history (Mark 10:6–9; Matthew 19:4–5; Luke 17:27). So, the outcome of letting Scripture interpret Scripture is a young earth and universe.  (You can continue reading expert geologist Andrew Snelling’s review in How Old Does the Earth Look? at http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2009/05/12/how-old-does-earth-look .)

 

     Allow me to be completely political for just a moment:  According to an Associated Press item headlined "Obama to announce auto mileage, emissions standards" on Tue., 5/19/09 by Ken Thomas and Philip Elliot, "President Barack Obama's new fuel and emission standards for cars and trucks will save billions of barrels of oil but are expected to cost consumers an extra $1,300 per vehicle by the time the plan is complete in 2016."  Yes, you can mark it down as a universal truth that when the Democrats are in control, WATCH YOUR POCKETBOOK because you will be paying more and more and more through the nose for their projects.

 

     Something you may be interested in:  I received the following e-mail notice on Tue., 5/19/09.  "Hello, www.toytheater.com is a PreK through Grade 5 educational site for children. Please visit when you have a chance to see if it can help in your classroom.  Thanks, learning@... ."  I did check out the site, and those with younger children may find it useful.

 

     And something that you may want your public school officials to see:  In an item headlined "Abstinence ed 'outperforms' comprehensive sex ed," Pete Chagnon of OneNewsNow reported on 5/19/2009 that according to a research analyst, comprehensive sex education does not outperform abstinence education.  Irene Ericksen of the Institute for Research and Evaluation says that media reports continually claim that abstinence education is a failure and that comprehensive sex ed is the only way to reduce teen pregnancies and promote safe-sex practices. She adds that they continually site a federal study that is riddled with myths and did not find abstinence education effective.  "These same people aren't aware that there are 16 studies of comprehensive sex education programs in the schools," Ericksen points out. "Actually 64 percent of the studies that have been done of comprehensive sex ed in the schools have found that they have not been effective at increasing teen condom use."  Ericksen notes that promoting condom use has not only proved to be ineffective, it also has adverse health effects.  "Even when teens use condoms consistently and correctly, they don't provide complete protection from STDs," she adds. "And there also is evidence that there is emotional harm that is occurring with teens when they're having sex at this young age -- that it's not developmentally healthy for them."  According to Ericksen, sexual activity is not appropriate for teenagers and they should be told in very strong terms to avoid such activity.

 

     Be careful with your children at the library:  A Tuesday, Apr.  24, item headlined "Teenage Boys Discover Sex Book in Library," reported that a father in Bentonville, Arkansas, wants the city to pay him $20,000 after his two teenage sons stumbled onto a copy of Felice Newman's The Whole Lesbian Sex Book and "looked at the book while the 14-year-old was browsing for material on military academies." As the father told Bentonville's mayor, "My sons were greatly disturbed by viewing this material and this matter has caused many sleepless nights in our house."  The library's advisory board has voted to "remove the book from circulation and find a similar resource book, if possible"—hoping to find what one board member describes as "a more sensitive, more clinical approach to the same material."   So what does Newman have to say for all the sleepless nights she's caused? "Boys have been poring over sexually explicit materials in libraries since—well, since there have been libraries," she says. "Why was a copy of my book in the military section? Well, sometimes young people browsing the library shelves will tuck away a favorite book where they can find it later. These two young guys are the very reason libraries must be uncensored, and librarians must be free to order the books they feel will benefit the public."  My response to Newman--you've got to be kidding!  "These two young guys are the very reason" that parents must be careful with their children at the library (except, perhaps, to a mind that's already been perverted by sinful lust).  At least the library seemed somewhat responsible in their actions.

 

      Missing link found?:  Recently, every mainstream news outlet that is carried by the various home pages that I use on my computer was heralding the fact that scientists had just unveiled the fossil of a 47 million-year-old primate, Darwinius masillae, as the final missing link to prove evolution, and you have probably heard about it by now.  Many carried a story by Samantha Strong and Rich Schapiro, New York Daily News writers, which began, "A team of researchers Tuesday unveiled an almost perfectly intact fossil of a 47 million-year-old primate they say represents the long-sought missing link between humans and apes. Officially known as Darwinius masillae, the fossil of the lemur-like creature dubbed Ida shows it had opposable thumbs like humans and fingernails instead of claws. Scientists say the cat-sized animal's hind legs offer evidence of evolutionary changes that led to primates standing upright - a breakthrough that could finally confirm Charles Darwin's theory of evolution."  Of course, no one explains how they know beyond doubt that it is 47 million years old. One scientist said, "It is the scientific equivalent of the Holy Grail. This fossil will probably be the one that will be pictured in all textbooks for the next 100 years."  Yea, like the Piltdown Man was for many years?  Well, not everyone is blinded by all the hype.   Drew Zahn of  WorldNetDaily reported that Jonathan Wells, author and biologist at the Seattle-based  Discovery Institute's Center for Science and Culture, helped WND take a closer look at the science vs. hype debate.  "I have in front of me the technical paper published about the specimen, a fossil primate that looks a lot like a lemur," Wells told WND. "Some of the people who analyzed this also claim [Ida] is not in the subgroup that includes lemurs, but is in the subgroup from which humans theoretically evolved.  There are many primatologists who already disagree with that interpretation and see this as a lemur," Wells explained to WND. "That's a controversy within the scientific community that has nothing to do with evolution, simply classification of the specimen."   When WND asked Wells if this creature could have traits of both lemurs and apes, the biologist explained that even a combination of the two groups' anatomy doesn't necessarily mean that evolution used the animal as a "bridge" to cross from one to other. Similarity in animal traits, he explained, even in a theoretical "missing link," doesn't prove evolution. And Allie Martin of OneNewsNow reported that Ken Ham, president of the apologetics ministry Answers in Genesis, finds it ironic that the same scientists who initially unveiled the fossil, in a research paper detailing their findings, toned down their pronouncements after pressure from colleagues in the scientific community.  "One of those reviewers said that...whether nor not it's going to be a transitional form, or missing link, is a judgment for the scientific community," Ham states. "And he's quoted as saying that [issue] will be sorted out, or at least debated extensively in the community for years, once the paper is published."  Ham says the fossil is similar to a modern lemur, and in no way resembles a human skeleton.   The ministry has stated: "Because the fossil is similar to a modern lemur (a small, tailed, tree-climbing primate), it's unlikely that creationists need any interpretation of the 'missing link' other than that it was a small, tailed, probably tree-climbing, and now extinct primate -- from a kind created on Day 6 of Creation Week."  In fact, other news reports, citing Britain's nature television star Sir David Attenborough's announcement that "Ida," a lemur-like fossil that has been studied in secret for years, "is going to show us our connection with the rest of the mammals. This is the one that connects us directly with them," say that the scientific report on the Ida findings – published in the online journal Public Library of Science One – countered the bold claims made by Attenborough and others in the news.   "[The species] could represent a stem group from which later anthropoid primates evolved [the line leading to humans]," states the report, "but we are not advocating this here."  The British newspaper Guardian also reports that scientific reviewers of the research asked that others "tone down" claims that the fossil was on the human evolutionary line.  So, don't believe everything you hear in the mainstream media!

 

     More news about Ida (is she "sweet as apple cider?) from Answers in Genesis:  Q: Ida: the Missing Link at Last?  A:  For all the headlines and proclamations, this “missing link” story includes an amazing amount of hot air.  A story we first previewed on May 16 has since rocketed to the heights of media hype as a team of scientists reveals “Ida,” the latest and greatest supposed missing link. But does Ida actually support “the evolution of early primates, and, ultimately, modern human beings,” as one news outlet reported?  Another reporter raved, “The search for a direct connection between humans and the rest of the animal kingdom has taken 200 years—but it was presented to the world today at a special news conference in New York.”  Formally identified as Darwinius masillae (in honor of Charles Darwin), the fossil originated in Germany and is purportedly 47 million years old. One scientist gave the find the nickname Ida (after his daughter).  As for a more level-headed explanation of the evolutionary excitement, the Wall Street Journal reports:  Anthropologists have long believed that humans evolved from ancient ape-like ancestors. Some 50 million years ago, two ape-like groups walked the Earth. One is known as the tarsidae, a precursor of the tarsier, a tiny, large-eyed creature that lives in Asia. Another group is known as the adapidae, a precursor of today's lemurs in Madagascar.  Based on previously limited fossil evidence, one big debate had been whether the tarsidae or adapidae group gave rise to monkeys, apes, and humans. The latest discovery bolsters the less common position that our ancient ape-like ancestor was an adapid, the believed precursor of lemurs.  You can continue reading Answers in Genesis's response to the news at Ida: the Missing Link at Last? and Ida: the Real Story of this “Scientific Breakthrough”.
http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2009/05/19/ida-missing-link .
http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2009/05/21/ida-real-story .
There is also a related item in News to Note, http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2--9/05/23/news-to-note-05232009#one .  By the way, to answer a previous question, the "scientists" know that the fossil is 47 million years old because it was found in 47 million year old rock.  Then, when you ask them how they know the rock is 47 million years old, the answer is often that it has to be because it contains a 47 million year old fossil!
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