LifeSiteNews.com - NewsBytes December 31, 2007

---

LifeSiteNews.com NewsBytes

* Disclaimer: The linked items below or the websites at which they are located do not necessarily represent the views of LifeSiteNews.com. They are presented only for your information.

Hundreds of thousands of Spaniards demonstrated in favour of the traditional family in the centre of Madrid on Sunday
http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKL3019948220071230

Pro-abortion, pro-gay New York Mayor Bloomberg seriously moving toward a decision to run for president as an independent in 2008
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Bloomberg_Prepares_to_Run/2007/12/31/60758.html

Longtime San Diego-area abortion clinic closes its doors
http://www.calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=b97e49a4-5272-40f4-a19c-581f8527b925

Abortion Supporter Knocks 69 Yr. Old Pro-Lifer Unconscious, Mainstream Media Silent
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/warner-todd-huston/2007/12/29/abortion-supporter-knocks-69-yr-old-pro-lifer-unconscious-msm-si

Stem Cells and the President — An Inside Account
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/viewarticle.cfm/Stem-Cells-and-the-President-151-br--An-Inside-Account-11024

Polish vicar resists in-vitro insemination
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Top_News/2007/12/26/polish_vicar_resists_in-vitro_insemination/7464/

Judicial Watch Announces List of Washington's "Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians"
http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/1131

Bloomberg Moves Closer to Running for President
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/31/us/politics/31bloomberg.html?ei=5065&en=2da39fd541678920&ex=1199682000&adxnnl=1&partner=MYWAY&pagewanted=print&adxnnlx=1199128447-sJvNnYKD8+Mt/DSSZfMmEA

Peggy Noonan - My 2008 slogan: Reasonable Person for President - Mike Huckabee gets enough demerits to fall into my not-reasonable column. John Edwards is not reasonable. Rudy Giuliani - He is reasonable but not desirable. Hillary Clinton? No, not reasonable.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/

Ann Coulter - Liberals sing 'Huckelujah'- he is on record supporting the Supreme Court's sodomy-is-a-constitutional-right decision - opposes school choice
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/AnnCoulter/2007/12/26/liberals_sing_huckelujah

The Most Interesting Presidential Candidate - by George Will
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/GeorgeWill/2007/12/30/the_most_interesting_presidential_candidate

Ron Paul Supporters Panic Over False News Story
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/john-stephenson/2007/12/30/ron-paul-supporters-panic-over-false-news-story

The Ron Paul attraction
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59421

Republican roller-coaster: Poll ranks McCain No. 1 - Arizona senator finds himself on top for 1st time, Huckabee, Giuliani close
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59443

The Trouble With Mitt Romney's Pro-Life Conversion by Deal W. Hudson
http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2024&Itemid=48

USAT Reporter Caught in Distortion, Portrays Thompson as Unambitious
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tom-blumer/2007/12/30/usat-reporter-caught-distortion-portrays-thompson-unambitious

Governor Huckabee Addresses Anti-Catholicism and Abortion
http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=26312

How Hillary will change your life
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59420

Pope's exorcist squads will wage war on Satan
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=504969&in_page_id=1811&Satan=Santa

Vatican denies exorcist expansion
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Quirks/2007/12/29/vatican_denies_exorcist_expansion/7287/

Why new Catholic Blair has an awful lot of sins to repent
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=504363&in_page_id=1770

Blair Conversion Elicits Groans in England
http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_myblog&Itemid=127

Hindus burn churches in India leaving one dead, 30 hurt: police
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iZ7EGRBQOnByihx-VTnbdmbcv-Ow

For God's sake, reflect - Cardinal George Pell
Religion has been unfairly blamed for conflicts around the world in recent years but Christians should remember the benefits of their devotion, Sydney's Catholic Archbishop George Pell says.
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22967672-662,00.html

God's Continent: Christianity, Islam, and Europe's Religious Crisis is a rather scary book
Author Philip Jenkins' basic thesis is irrefutable: Modern Europe is post-Christian, and the fastest-growing religion is that of Islam. Immigration from Muslim lands – still continuing – and a high Muslim birthrate, coincides with a collapse in the practice of Christianity and massive drop in the native birth rate in across Europe. The future looks distinctly Islamic
http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2040&Itemid=48

Malaysian Catholic weekly allowed to publish using the word 'Allah'
http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=11132&size=A

Mankind is more than the janitor of planet Earth; I am avowedly atheist. But listening to the bishops' drab, eco-pious Christmas sermons, I couldn't help thinking: 'Bring back God!'
http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/article/4217/

Vatican official raps radical environmentalism
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=55667

Climate Optimism: Global Warming Will Wipe Out Conservative States
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2007/12/29/climate-optimism-global-warming-will-wipe-out-conservative-states

Google Claims Conservative Website 'May Harm Your Computer'
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2007/12/28/google-claims-american-spectator-site-may-harm-your-computer

Children of five 'should be given sex lessons' a senior British public health doctor has said.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/31/nsex131.xml

Australian Senator says it will be mandatory for all internet service providers to provide clean feeds, or ISP filtering, to houses and schools that are free of pornography and inappropriate material.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/31/2129471.htm

The Archbishop of Canterbury kept a special communion service for gays so secret that he failed to tell the Bishop of London it was happening in his diocese
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article3111435.ece

Text of Archbishop George Niederauers's homily during Oct. 7 pastoral visit to San Francisco's Most Holy Redeemer parish
http://www.calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=4612da4b-c280-40cc-95f7-a75f5e113ec3

Judge halts Oregon's same-sex partnerships - Challenge claimed petition signers' names improperly rejected by state
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59436

Prison benefits offered same-sex couples, not marrieds
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59384

Profile: The most powerful gay man in British politics
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-6417.html

Benazir Bhutto - Why Al Qaeda Didn't Kill Her And The Pakistani Military Did?
http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/1154

---

(c) Copyright: LifeSiteNews.com, a production of Interim Publishing.
Permission to republish granted but acknowledgement of source (use LifeSiteNews.com) is *REQUIRED*

Donate to LifeSiteNews.com at http://www.lifesitenews.com/contribute/

Mike Huckabee Interview

For Mike Huckabee, Opposing Abortion Isn't Just About His Christian Views

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
December 30, 2007

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Mike Huckabee gave an interview on Sunday in which he said that his opposition to abortion isn't just because he is a Christian. He said he beliefs are based on the Constitution and the idea that human beings have an intrinsic value that government has no right to take away.

Read this story here: LifeNews.com

Out of business

Longtime San Diego-area abortion clinic closes its doors

Hygeia, an abortion clinic in Poway, an affluent suburb of San Diego, has closed. The clinic, located inside a medical building at 15725 Pomerado Road, was operated by Dr. Michael Easter. For more than 20 years it was the site of frequent pro-life protests, public rosaries and sidewalk counseling.

While the exact date Easter's abortion center closed is not available, a phone call to the clinic by California Catholic Daily was answered by a recording referring the caller to Easter's email address and a post office box. No additional information was provided. Pro-lifers in San Diego said the clinic closed "sometime in the last few months."

During a pre-Christmas visit to San Diego, Operation Rescue president Troy Newman congratulated area pro-lifers for the closing of Easter's clinic, a Dec. 20 posting on Operation Rescue's web site reported. "Newman reminded them that San Diego was the first test ground for cutting-edge Operation Rescue tactics," said the web site posting. "In a ten-year time span of pro-life ministry led by Newman in conjunction with local groups, over 40 abortionists quit killing in San Diego County and 18 abortion clinics closed. Today that trend is continuing."

According to the California Medical Board web site, Easter has no current disciplinary proceedings pending against him. He graduated from the University of Texas Medical School, Galveston branch, in 1968 and has held a medical license in California for the last 38 years.

Audio Available Of Stunning UK Abortion Report Including Narration of Late-Abortion

Audio Available Of Stunning UK Abortion Report Including Narration of Late-Abortion December 30, 2007 On October 17, 2007, a television show in the United Kingdom called "Dispatches" aired an investigative report on late-term abortions and the movement there to lower the maximum gestational age at which a pre-born baby can be aborted. The program included footage and shocking narration of an actual late-term abortion. The program touched off a firestorm of debate on the 40th anniversary of abortion liberalization in the UK. Two months after the airing of the show, the station's discussion board is still active, with 28 pages of messages - several times the number of messages posted to their other discussion topics. Currently, the upper limit on abortions in the UK is 24 weeks, the landmark age of viability accepted in the medical community worldwide. Efforts have been made to lower the abortion limit to 20 weeks. Interesting, the Dispatches program interviews women who have had late abortions as well as physicians and abortionists, and nearly all were very uncomfortable with the thought of post-viability abortions. Yet in America, where the survival rate for babies born at 24 weeks is now 85%, with many showing no permanent damage from the prematurity, abortions well past 24 weeks are easily obtained throughout the country in states including California, Colorado, Nebraska, Ohio, Florida, New York, and Kansas, the unlikely but undisputed Late-term Abortion Capital. It says something about our country when a liberal nation like the United Kingdom has more of a conscience about post-viability child-killing than the more conservative and religious United States where medical advances in neonatology are far superior. While every abortion is a heinous act, no matter the gestational age of the baby, we think the discussion about abortions past the first trimester can help people to better understand the horrific tragedy of every abortion. The video footage of this program has been removed from the station's web site, and to our knowledge it is not now available on the Internet. Thanks to our friend Nedd Kareiva of the Stop the ACLU Coalition ( www.stoptheaclu.org), Operation Rescue is making the audio portion of the powerful program available on our web site. Mr. Kareiva will soon be launching a new web site www.closeallabortionclinics.com, and we hope you will check that site for important information when it is available. The program has been divided into three parts and most of the commercials have been edited out. We hope you will take the time to listen to all of this shocking and thought provoking program, and forward the links to your friends. Until we can face the horrific nature of what abortion does to the most vulnerable among us, we can never hope to abolish it. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN ________________________________ About Operation Rescue Operation Rescue is one of the leading pro-life Christian activist organizations in the nation. Operation Rescue recently made headlines when it bought and closed an abortion clinic in Wichita, Kansas and has become the voice of the pro-life activist movement in America. Its activities are on the cutting edge of the abortion issue, taking direct action to restore legal personhood to the pre-born and stop abortion in obedience to biblical mandates. Click here to make a donation. ________________________________ Web site: www.operationrescue.org Changed! E-mail: info@operationrescue.org

Pilgrim Statue of Our Lady of Fatima returning to San Diego

21 churches, 13 schools and a nursing home

The Pilgrim Statue of Our Lady of Fatima will be in San Diego for three weeks from Jan. 4 to Jan. 24, visiting 21 churches, 13 schools and a nursing home.

The statue, last in San Diego 15 years ago, returns again thanks to the initiative of Thomas McKenna, a board member of the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue Foundation who moved to San Diego two years ago.

There are three pilgrim statues throughout the world, but McKenna says this one is unique. "It came here in 1947," said McKenna. "There is a particular grace with this statue because ever since it first came to America, the conversions that have taken place have been exceptional."

McKenna says it is not so much the statue itself but what it represents that is so powerful. "The way the world is today, the Fatima message is more important than ever," he explained. "When we look at the world today, with 1,400 abortions per day in our country, the immorality and things we see, we understand the reality of the Fatima message more than anyone did in 1917."

Read the rest of this story here: California Catholic Daily

PRO-LIFE MAN INJURED

By Michael Whitcraft
At 6:30 am on Saturday, December 22, while most were snug in bed, resting up for Christmas activities, veteran pro-lifer Ed Snell was arriving at Hillcrest Abortion Center, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  He had come with two other activists to persuade women entering the clinic not to abort their pre-born children.

The group customarily meets at the clinic and has saved many lives.  In fact, they have been so effective, that the clinic erected a 7-foot privacy fence to cut off all communication between the women and the pro-lifers.  However, their efforts were scuttled, when the activists began bringing ladders so they could speak over the fence.

Mr. Snell, age 69, preferred to stand on a more solid foundation, so he constructed a plywood platform on the roof of his car to elevate him above the fence.

"This platform gives him a real steady base and a commanding view," said fellow activist and eyewitness John McTernan.  As Ed stood on his platform that morning, a man and woman exited a car in the parking lot and proceeded towards that door of the abortion mill. 

When Mr. Snell tried to counsel the woman, his words were cut short when the man became furious, jumped the fence and, in the words of Mr. McTernan, "leaped on the vehicle with Ed and catapulted him off of the vehicle and onto the ground." Mr. Snell hit his back and head on the pavement and was knocked unconscious.

His medical report outlines the extent of his injuries: "multiple trauma, right subarachnoid hemorrhage (bleeding in the area between the brain and the tissues that cover the brain), compression fractures of four vertebrae (T3, T4, T5 and T10), right scapula fracture and fracture of the fourth and fifth ribs."  Before doctors were able to stop the bleeding in his head, they even feared Mr. Snell would die.

When asked on the phone about the vicious attack, the receptionist at Hillcrest Abortion Clinic refused to give a recorded statement and angrily shouted: "He got what he deserved!  He earned what he got!"  She then hung up the phone.

Immediately after the attack, Mr. McTernan ran over to Ed and was frightened to see that he was unconscious and breathing irregularly.  He reported the attack to "911" and then shouted to the assailant: "You assaulted him and he is unconscious."  Agitated, the man replied: "I did not assault him, I just pushed him," with an aggressiveness that made Mr. McTernan fearful for his own safety.

Ed was taken away in an ambulance and three police officers arrived to investigate.  They went into the clinic, where the assailant was waiting.  After a few moments, the assailant and his companion left the clinic freely, got into their car and drove away.

Shocked, Mr. McTernan shouted to the police: "What are you doing?  That's him!  That's the assailant!" 

One cop replied: "It is none of your business!" 

Mr. McTernan: "I am making it my business, Ed Snell is my good friend!"

The officer then threatened to arrest Mr. McTernan for interfering with a criminal investigation.  Mr. Mcternan replied: "Go ahead and arrest me, I am not afraid.  I want to know why the assailant walked away from this scene where an elderly man was left unconscious.  We have excellent attorneys and we will sue you if you do not do your job."

She angrily responded: "Don't threaten me or I will arrest you!"  She then returned to the police car and drove away.  At the time this article was written, the Harrisburg Police Department had not returned a phone call requesting a statement on the incident.

Once the extent of Mr. Snell's injuries were discovered, the assailant was arrested.  Nevertheless, as Mr. McTernan put it: "I cannot imagine me [as a pro-lifer], striking someone connected with Hillcrest [Abortion Center], knocking them unconscious, the police coming, the injured person being taken away in an ambulance and the police letting me go.  There is something wrong with that."

There is also something wrong with the lack of media coverage of the incident.  At the time this article was written, a google search about the attack returned no results.

Ed returned home just in time to celebrate Christmas with his family.  He was released from the hospital on Christmas Eve, just a couple of hours before Bishop Kevin Rhodes of Harrisburg arrived to pay him a visit.

Doctors expect him to make a full recovery, although it will take a long time.  "Ed is very sore," said Mrs. Snell in a telephone interview, "he is black and blue and the doctor said that it will be a full eight weeks before his bones heal completely."

Mrs. Snell is thankful for the prayers that Ed has received and hopes these will continue. She feels confident that, supported by these prayers, he will recover well. 

As for Mr. Snell, he is not yet accepting telephone calls, but feels humbled by all the prayers and attention he has received. A man of faith, he feels called to his work and remains undaunted.  As Mrs. Snell aptly put it: "I know that the Devil is busy and that he does not like the work that Ed does, but if that is the case, then Ed is doing the right job."

Please keep Mr. and Mrs. Snell in your prayers and, due to the lack of press coverage, please email this article to all your friends.

"A Form of Genocide"

"Over 1,400 African-American babies are aborted every day"

New foundation will address human life issues in African-American community

A new organization based out of Union City has been formed to provide pro-life resources for African-American leaders, and to help curtail abortions among African-American women, which a press release announcing the founding of the organization calls "a form of genocide."

Read this article here: California Catholic Daily

HLI Newsletter

Spirit & Life®
"The words I spoke to you are spirit and life." (Jn 6:63)

Human Life International e-NewsletterVolume 01, Number 98

Friday, December 28, 2007
..................................................................................
www.hli.org

Note: Human Life International wishes each and every one of our Spirit and Life readers a truly blessed Christmas season full of grace and mercy.

This week's feature writer is Mr. Joseph Meaney, HLI Director of International Coordination, who has visited more than 50 countries of the world in a decade of service to the cause of life. He writes today on a terrible modern version of the Massacre of the Innocents.

King Herod Revisited
The Church gives us this disturbing feast of the martyrdom of the innocent children of Bethlehem and its surrounding region, only three days after Christmas. Pro-lifers naturally connect the feast day with the modern-day massacre of the pre-born innocents. One aspect of the account that is seldom mentioned in modern parallels, however, is the selective nature of the killing. Out of fear of a rival king, Herod ordered the deaths of baby boys just as in earlier times Pharaoh told the midwives to kill all Hebrew sons at birth to ensure their continued enslavement in Egypt.

The pagan Roman writer Macrobius says that Caesar Augustus, on receiving news of the massacre of boys under the age of two and the killing of Herod's own son, exclaimed "I'd rather be Herod's sow than Herod's son." History records that Herod the Great did not spare his own family in the many murders he ordered. Three of his sons were executed, and the last one, Antipater, was killed only after his father received permission to do so from the emperor Augustus shortly before the birth of Christ. The most horrifying fact in abortion is that the baby is condemned to death by his or her own parents. When the Bible seeks to express the infinite love of God for us, it uses the analogy of a mother's tender love. What culture can survive when children are not protected by their own parents?

Today, thanks to prenatal testing and ultrasounds, parents often discover the sex of the child they are expecting. Worldwide this has led to the phenomenon experts refer to as sex-selection abortion. Since the 1970s a significant component within the larger abortion holocaust is the over 50 million girls "missing" at birth in China, a further 10 million in India, and huge numbers more from other nations on all continents. How strange it is that precisely in the decades since the rise of radical feminism, our contemporary Herods eliminate girls rather than boys. Feminists do not shrink from criminal hypocrisy when they strive to block resolutions at the United Nations condemning sex-selection abortion!

History shows that the mighty and the educated are generally those behind great crimes. People who seek to dismiss the horror of sex-selection abortion do not realize that it is a growing trend and mistakenly believe it only happens among the uneducated. They are then confounded by the evidence that birthrates are most skewed in favor of boys in the richest provinces of India and China and among the most literate and educated classes. Even several nations in Europe are implicated in the killing of baby girls.

Vox in Rama audita est: ploratus et ululatus multus; Rachel plorans filios suos, et noluit consolari, quia non sunt. A voice was heard in Rama, weeping and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be comforted, because they are no more. (Mt 2:18) "

Because they are no more" follows immediately upon the slaughter of the Innocents in the Gospel of Matthew and reflects the immense grief the death of a baby causes. They were the inspiration for Project Rachel, the life-transforming apostolate of post-abortion healing that started in the USA and spread worldwide. The Divine Mercy of God experienced in this ministry offers the hope post-abortive mothers need to find peace and the courage to be "Silent No More."
To overcome the grief of losing a child we must follow the Way, the Truth and the Life. The tyrant's wrath was impotent against the Christ Child and ultimately even against his infant victims who were taken up to Heaven. Despite the reign of modern Herods and the current massacre of innocents, we are sustained in our faith, hope and love during this Christmas season as we pray for the rapid return of Christ the King.

LifeSiteNews.com NewsBytes

* Disclaimer: The linked items below or the websites at which they are located do not necessarily represent the views of LifeSiteNews.com. They are presented only for your information.

Room for God - National Post Main Editorial; It did not please God to save his people by means of logic. Rather, he sent his son
http://www.nationalpost.com/todays_paper/story.html?id=194921

Christmastime in the city - Lorne Gunter, National Post
http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/story.html?id=effe69e2-bf2b-4df5-9626-d04f17dcad51&k=5172

Christmas Gift by David Warren
http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2010&Itemid=48

Crazy Christmas Lights
http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1154&Itemid=10

'In God We Trust' to Resume Prominent Place on $1 Coin
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000006185.cfm

Family Lost in the Snow Relied on God to Survive
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000006181.cfm

Wal-Mart Donates $200,000 to The Salvation Army
http://www.citizenlink.org/CLBriefs/A000006182.cfm

What the Christmas story says about our bodies and our bioethics debates - Christianity Today
http://www.eppc.org/publications/pubID.3206/pub_detail.asp

Rooting for Ron Paul - Comment: Republicans would do well to listen to the Texas congressman
http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/story.html?id=191721

Ron Paul: The Good
http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/story.html?id=194957

Ron Paul: The bad
http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/story.html?id=194956

Daniel Cere responds to Colby Cosh on the meaning of Bruker v. Marcovitz
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2007/12/23/daniel-cere-responds-to-colby-cosh-on-the-meaning-of-bruker-v-marcovitz.aspx

"I realized that I had killed two of my own kids" - International conference on how abortion affects men held in San Francisco
http://www.calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=433ba596-b36e-4356-aa57-0933c31963d5

Huckabee Making Money on the Campaign Trail
http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_myblog&Itemid=127

A brief but excellent explanation of how the birth control pill acts as an abortifacient.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiCU46_lWeE

Senate confirms Mary Ann Glendon as U.S. ambassador to Vatican
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0707294.htm

How to Vote Catholic/Christian 2007
http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/images/stories/vote_catholic.pdf

Diocese of San Diego shelves plans for new Catholic high school, will use money instead toward sexual abuse settlement
http://www.calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=180ea1cf-6dd9-4652-97a2-95f1b71b20a3

Rush Limbaugh Goes Off About Huckablunder- If you're now a top contender for the GOP nomination, the last man you want to alienate is Rush Limbaugh.
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/john-stephenson/2007/12/22/rush-limbaugh-goes-about-huckablunder

Mitt Romney - Governor Huckabee's record is more liberal than our nation needs right now,"
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20071223/D8TN8AA00.html

Huckabee angers some Catholics
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN2326769820071223?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&rpc=22&sp=true

Surprising Ron Paul Sparks A Movement - GOP Presidential Hopeful Has Fervent Followers And A Message Whose Resonance Surprises Even Him
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/21/eveningnews/main3640041.shtml?source=mostpop_story

Year of global cooling - Record low temperatures are being set all over the world
http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071219/COMMENTARY/10575140

All I want for Christmas is the dismantling of the CBC.
http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/columnists/story.html?id=301e2430-ed42-418b-b0b8-cfcebf7ff110

10 Reasons Why Pastors Avoid the Culture War
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/DougGiles/2007/12/22/10_reasons_why_pastors_avoid_the_culture_war

Various thoughts on Henry David Thoreau and other things having something to do with Christmas
http://www.calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=6c609709-5bd6-48de-a742-3f9f58093d5e

Has global warming stopped? 'The fact is that the global temperature of 2007 is statistically the same as 2006 and every year since 2001'
http://www.newstatesman.com/200712190004

Hundreds of scientists reject global warming - Basing policy on carbon dioxide levels 'potentially disastrous economic folly'
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59319

AIDS Won't Overtake World, Global AIDS Expert Says - Political correctness has shaped how the world has reacted to it.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=/Culture/archive/200712/CUL20071221b.html ;

BLESSED CHRISTMAS TO ALL MY READERS

John McCain is pulled out of a Hanoi lake by a mix of North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and Vietnamese citizens in this October, 1967 file photo. McCain, currently a Republican presidential candidate, was shot down by a Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) and had broken both arms and his right knee upon ejection, losing consciousness until he hit the water. (Photo courtesy of Senator McCain's office / February 23, 2000)

LifeSiteNews.com

Monday December 24, 2007

My Christmas Story - By Senator John McCain

As a POW, my captors would tie my arms behind my back and then loop the rope around my neck and ankles so that my head was pulled down between my knees. I was often left like that throughout the night.

One night, a guard came into my cell. He put his finger to his lips signalling for me to be quiet and then loosened my ropes to relieve my pain. The next morning, when his shift ended, the guard returned and retightened the ropes, never saying a word to me.

A month or so later, on Christmas Day, I was standing in the dirt courtyard, when I saw that same guard approach me. He walked up and stood silently next to me, not looking or smiling at me.

After a few moments had passed, he rather nonchalantly used his sandalled foot to draw a cross in the dirt. We stood wordlessly looking at the cross, remembering the true light of Christmas, even in the darkness of a Vietnamese prison camp. After a minute or two, he rubbed it out and walked away.

That guard was my Good Samaritan. I will never forget that man and I will never forget that moment. And I will never forget that, no matter where you are, no matter how difficult the circumstances, there will always be someone who will pick you up and carry you.

A New Writer Reflects on Writing for LifeSiteNews at Christmas Time

By  Thaddeus M. Baklinski

Truth, Faith, Family, Respect for Life, the Need for Courage, Stepping out into the Deep, Loving our Neighbor, Loving our Enemies, all of these things are presented daily to our LifeSiteNews readers and grappled with daily by the LifeSiteNews staff.

When I was asked not long ago to write for LifeSiteNews I was not a little intimidated by the prospect of dealing with the sometimes painful, sometimes sordid, sometimes exhilarating realities that are part of the work we do.

Having subscribed to the e-mail newsletter for many years, I was aware of the important work the LifeSiteNews staff were doing and deeply appreciative of the knowledge and insights I gained from the articles covering areas of our culture that are so extremely important to an understanding of where we are and where we are going.

Now that I am on the "inside" so to speak, I find the opportunity of contributing to this river of truth and understanding, that has been flowing for so many years, something that challenges me but also gives me a deep satisfaction that I am adding my little bit to the culture of life.

My other little contribution to the culture of life is, of course, the fourteen children that my wife and I have been blessed with, along with five beautiful daughters-in-law and ten grandchildren.

From our small farm in the forested fastness of northeastern Ontario we wish all our LifeSiteNews readers the peace and joy that is the profound yearning of the human heart, and a Very Merry Christmas.

Thaddeus M. Baklinski and Family

International conference on how abortion affects men held in San Francisco

"I realized that I had killed two of my own kids"

"Abortion is a woman's right." "Keep your rosaries off my ovaries."

For decades, the policies and passions concerning abortion have centered on women. Although males are biologically and relationally half of the baby-making equation, abortion's impact on men has been socially invisible.

Read this article here: California Catholic Daily

A Blessing and Miracle for Christmas

Woman wakes after six weeks in a coma - to discover she's given birth to a baby boy

Read this story here: MIRACLE BABY

Ottawa Sun Reporter "Taken Aback" by Post-Abortion Pain

Expected to be bombarded with responses from pro-lifers but instead most responses were from men and women hurt by abortion

By Hilary White

OTTAWA, December 21, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - An Ottawa Sun writer admitted she was "taken aback" to discover that abortion hurts survivors, both women and men, and that it seems there are some subjects that even "open and tolerant" Canada does not want to discuss. Some readers have responded with hostility to the series of articles run by Sun Media newspapers leading up to the 20th anniversary of the 1988 Supreme Court of Canada decision that swept away any legal restrictions on abortion.

Ann Marie McQueen wrote in the Ottawa Sun Thursday that there are some subjects that even the open and liberal society of Canada does not want talked about in public. But pro-life advocates and educators are only too familiar with the phenomenon of people who support the unlimited freedom to kill children in the womb not wanting to talk about abortion or its consequences.

"I will tell you why no one is interested in talking about this: It is categorically none of their business, that is why. Whether to have an abortion or not is a private matter between a woman and her conscience and her doctor - period," wrote one of McQueen's readers who went on to say "no one has the right, especially men, to tell women what they can and cannot do with their bodies."

The Sun's abortion series ran from Saturday to Tuesday this week and covered the issue from every angle, interviewing both pro-life advocates and abortionists and their supporters. McQueen quoted women who had had abortions and examined the various changes in attitudes towards abortion in its portrayal in film and television.

McQueen wrote Thursday that the Ottawa Sun had expected to be "bombarded" with responses from pro-life people and groups, but that she was "taken aback" that most of the letters "were letters from people who have deeply suffered from their abortions."

"From women, yes, but men too. I didn't expect to have people pour out their hearts full of pain to me, a stranger reminding them of the very procedure which scarred them so." McQueen admitted that she had failed to consider the damage done by abortion to men. "It is not just about the woman," one reader wrote.

Another said, "It seems that men are left out at this stage ... as if we did not exist. Only after the child is born are expectations and responsibilities placed on us. I would have done anything to have kept my son or daughter."

McQueen admits that "pro-lifers get a bad rap in this country, and below the border as well".

McQueen is unable to square the circle, however, between two incompatible views. Although pro-life people "believe a person is a person from the moment he or she is conceived" and have the right to hold that opinion in a free and democratic society, a woman "should be able to decide -- freely, without restrictions or hurdles or much in the way of limits -- what to do with one growing in her belly".

Ultimately, McQueen places herself in the category of the pro-abortion "us", the majority of Canadians she says are opposed to the pro-life position, writing, "It's so easy to discount the 'other side' of anything as ignorant or crazy, or weird, or uneducated, or Neanderthals. Some of them are, sure. But most are just like us, with a different point of view."

Read related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Abortion Featured on Front Page of Saturday Sun Newspapers Across Canada
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/dec/07121705.html

(c) Copyright: LifeSiteNews.com, a production of Interim Publishing.
Permission to republish granted but acknowledgement of source (use LifeSiteNews.com) is *REQUIRED*

Donate to LifeSiteNews.com at http://www.lifesitenews.com/contribute/

LifeSiteNews.com - NewsBytes

* Disclaimer: The linked items below or the websites at which they are located do not necessarily represent the views of LifeSiteNews.com. They are presented only for your information.

You can't take Christ out of Christmas - Roland S. Martin on CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/20/roland.martin/index.html

A Christless Christmas Is Senseless, Says Pope; Without God-Made-Man, It's an "Empty Holiday"
http://www.zenit.org/article-21341?l=english

Waiting for Christmas With Hilaire Belloc
http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1985&Itemid=48

China plays role of Scrooge for Chinese Christians
http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/1050

The Hillary Who Stole Christmas
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=OWEwNDQ0MmI2NTM0MTBmNGZiYTZlYzU0NGFlNGJhYjM=

Sydney, Australia Catholic grant awarded to adult-stem cell research team
http://au.christiantoday.com/article/catholic-grant-awarded-to-adult-stem-cell-research-team/3603.htm

Oakland won't enforce "bubble ordinance" after pro-lifer challenges law in federal court
http://calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=10959064-d5af-44d8-9a8b-bd151baa5764

Has global warming stopped? 'The fact is that the global temperature of 2007 is statistically the same as 2006 and every year since 2001'
http://www.newstatesman.com/200712190004

Hundreds of scientists reject global warming - Basing policy on carbon dioxide levels 'potentially disastrous economic folly'
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59319

AIDS Won't Overtake World, Global AIDS Expert Says - Political correctness has shaped how the world has reacted to it.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=/Culture/archive/200712/CUL20071221b.html

'Moral judgments have no place in court' - U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/20/nlaw120.xml

Law and Moral Purpose by Robert P. George
http://www.firstthings.com/article.php3?id_article=6101

High school sophomore sues history teacher for "hostility toward Christianity" in the classroom
http://calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=31e34f4d-0569-47c0-8eea-9a3d40c71930

Who would revive society if everything collapsed? Homeschoolers, says a prominent educationalist.
http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/the_homers_got_it_right_a_futuristic_fantasy/

Mike Huckabee preaches to the choir, but not everyone's singing along - Peggy Noonan
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=110011019

Canadian Prime Minister Harper has the means, but is he too mean?
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=187666

New Canadian newborn adoption support service launched
http://www.adoptionviverecanada.com

BREAKING NEWS: Giuliani Campaign Targeted by Pro-Life Activists, 11 Arrested

By Randy Sly
12/20/2007

Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

Randall Terry, Founder of Operation Rescue, is organizing protests of the Rudy Giuliani's presidential candidacy in every primary state between now and February 5. Eleven protesters were arrested the first day of the demonstration. Click here for the full story and interview: Catholic Online

Oakland won’t enforce “bubble ordinance” after pro-lifer challenges law in federal court

"Unco nstitutional on its face"

Just two days after the Oakland City Council adopted a so-called "bubble ordinance" that would have kept pro-life sidewalk counselors at least eight feet away from clients outside abortion clinics, the city has agreed, at least temporarily, not to enforce the new law.

Read this story here: California Catholic Daily

Operation Rescue's Top Ten Stories of 2007

Operation Rescue's Top Ten Stories of 2007 December 21, 2007 - As the Operation Rescue Staff prepares to take a well-earned break over Christmas week, we leave you with our Top Ten Stories from a very eventful 2007, which we nicknamed the "Year of Justice." Please join us in praying that 2008 will become, by God's grace, a Year of Victory in our efforts to protect the innocent pre-born! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! -Operation Rescue Staff P.S. Please Click Here to include Operation Rescue in your Christmas/End of the Year giving. _______________________ 2007's Top Ten Stories from Operation Rescue 10. Operation Rescue Makes Wichita the Epicenter of Prayer Events in 2007 Operation Rescue hosted four prayer awesome events in 2007 that were attended by pro-lifers from around the nation. The Wichita Awakening drew over 500 young people from The Cause, and was attended by an estimated 1,000 people over 3 days. Cry For Justice Pray In May Wichita Awakening 40 Days For Life 9. The Battle to Stop Opening of Deceptive Planned Parenthood in Aurora, Illinois At the invitation of pro-life hero Joseph Scheidler, Operation Rescue joined the battle to expose the opening of a Planned Parenthood mega-mill that was built under a false business name. The effort was successful in delaying the opening two weeks. Legal efforts are still underway to halt abortion business at that building because permits were falsely obtained. OR Joins Massive Effort to Stop Aurora, IL Planned Parenthood 8. Abortion Mills Close/Abortionists Disciplined The national trend of abortionists closing their mills and/or being disciplined by Medical Boards continues. Operation Rescue filed complaints against abortionist for violating the standard of care and other laws. Some of those cases are still pending. Complaint Filed Against KS Abortionist For Concealing Child Rape Two Abortion Mill Operators Arrested, Jailed on Felony Counts Abortionist Levich Lets Alabama License Lapse Abortion Mill Closed Temporarily After Botched Abortion Another Alabama Abortion Mill Closed Filthy New Jersey Abortion Mill Surrenders License, Moves Out Poway, CA Abortion Mill Closes 7. OR Exposes Abortion Injuries/Deaths "Have nothing to do with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather, expose them." Eph. 5:11. Operation Rescue exposed a number of abortion tragedies in 2007, and continues to work to bring those responsible to justice. 12 Death Expose Deception Of NAF Standards Two More Women Injured At NJ Abortion Mill Come Forward Ambulance Takes Planned Parenthood Victim To Hospital CA Woman Dies As Result Of Abortion Trouble Continues To Plague Two Abortion Mills Botched Abortion Victim Sues Planned Parenthood Abortionist Abortion Death Reported In Massachusetts 6. Pro-lifers Attacked/Unjustly Arrested Operation Rescue reported a number of incidents where peaceful pro-lifers were attacked or wrongfully attested throughout the nation, including an incident near Atlanta where Operation Rescue Truth Truck Driver was tossed in jail for four days and the Truth Truck impounded. Operation Rescue continues to pursue legal remedies in order to protect the rights of pro-lifers to speak without fear of reprisals on behalf of the pre-born in the public forum. Abortionist Who Killed Christin Gilbert Attacks Man With Car Omaha Courts Become Abortion Battleground Pro-lifers Charged Again in Nebraska KS Legislator Guilty of Battery On Abortion Cockroach Protester Minister Arrested For Reading Verse At Abortionist's Church Police Attack Pro-lifers In Shocking Display of Abuse Georgia Cops Impound Anti-Abortion Billboard Truck, Jail Driver Pro-Lifer Attacked With Club, Threatened With Arrest During Clinton Protest 5. Operation Rescue Works Through KS Legislature To Charge Tiller Once abortion supporter Paul Morrison took over as Attorney General, it became obvious that he would keep his campaign promise to derail honest criminal investigations against Kansas abortion clinics. Operation Rescue helped lead efforts to compel the Legislature to order Morrison to enforce the law, which unexpectedly exposed duplicity on the part of some politicians who claimed to be pro-life. Public pressure helped the Legislature hold interim hearings investigating late-term abortions and George Tiller. KS AG a ?No Show? At Hearing As Pro-lifers Rally In Support Of Tiller Resolution Former ?Roe? Joins Battle To Reinstate Tiller Charges As KS House Falters KS Legislature Squanders Opportunity To Charge Tiller KS Legislator Resigns Committee In Protest Of Abortion Cover-Up Neufeld Declares Efforts To Charge Tiller A "Witch Hunt," Attacks Pro-life Legislators and Operation Rescue KS Legislators Call For AG To "Enforce The Rule Of Law" In Late Abortion Case Newman Will Testify Before Kansas Legislative Committee Investigating Late-term Abortions 4. Witnesses Against Tiller Come Forward: Dr. McHugh, Michelle Armesto-Berg Operation Rescue was privileged to have been a part of publicizing the stunning public testimony of Dr. Paul McHugh, one of the nation?s most respected experts in the field of psychiatry. Dr. McHugh told of how he believes, after reviewing medical records at the request of then Attorney General Phill Kline, that Tiller is misusing psychiatry to break the Kansas ban on post-viability abortions. Then, during the Legislative hearings investigating late-abortions, Michelle Armesto came forward and told of her coerced abortion at Tiller's abortion mill, which was begin before her consent was given. Operation Rescue filed a number of complaints on behalf of Mrs. Armesto in an attempt to bring Tiller and his abortion cohorts to justice. Expert Witness in Criminal Abortion Case Drops Bombshell Testimony Morrison Threatens Expert Witness With Arrest, Orders Him To Stop Talking To Operation Rescue Full 44-Min. Video Interview of Dr. Paul McHugh and Transcript Former Tiller Patient Drops Bombshell Testimony Of Illegal, Coerced Abortion on Legislative Committee Tiller's License At Stake As KSBHA Launches New Abortion Investigation 3. Campaign to Bring Planned Parenthood to Justice Operation Rescue joined with Concerned Women for America and Women Influencing the Nation to form the L.I.F. E. Coalition, which worked to convene a grand jury through the citizen petition process to investigate allegations of criminal conduct on the part of a Kansas Planned Parenthood. That Grand Jury convened on December 10. In the meantime, District Attorney Phill Kline filed 107 criminal charges of his own against Planned Parenthood, after Attorney General Paul Morrison "cleared" the abortion business in June. Operation Rescue published many articles (not listed below) that questioned Morrison?s judgment, integrity, and his ability to honestly prosecute abortionists. KS AG Morrison Clears Planned Parenthood In Abortion Records Investigation 107 Criminal Charges Filed Against Kansas Planned Parenthood Operation Rescue Calls For Nationwide Suspension Of Planned Parenthood's Federal Funding In Light Of Kansas Criminal Charges Sixty Groups Ask Congress To Block Planned Parenthood Funding Coalition Submits Petition For Grand Jury Investigation of Planned Parenthood Thirteen Senators Join Call To Stop Abortion Funding 2. Kansas Attorney General Resigns Amid Sex/Corruption Scandal Operation Rescue immediately called renewed its call for Morrison's resignation once the story of Morrison's illicit sexual affair and attempts to influence abortion cases broke in the Kansas media. Operation Rescue was the first to denounce Tiller cronies as possible replacements to Morrison, and continues to work to insure that the new Attorney General will be untainted by abortion blood money. OR Calls For Morrison Resignation Amid Sex/Abortion Corruption Scandal Morrison Resigns Amid Intense Public Pressure Over Sex/Corruption Scandal Can A New Kansas AG Be Found Without Ties To Abortion Blood Money? 1. Tiller's Troubles! Infamous Abortionist Charged! Also Faces Grand Jury and a Myriad of Other Problems Operation Rescue's Number One Story for 2007 is a huge one! Abortionist Tiller faces 19 counts of criminal late-term abortion, a grand jury investigation slated to begin January 8, two inquiries with the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts, and even a small claims action. Operation Rescue's ground-breaking work contrbuted to bringing these cases this far. In 2008, we should see the results of each of these legal challenges to Tiller's abortion empire. Operation Rescue continues to exhaust every legal option to bring Tiller to justice! TILLER CHARGED WITH 19 CRIMINAL COUNTS 38 Abortion-Free Days In Nation's Abortion Capital KS Supreme Court Blocks Tiller Grand Jury Operation Rescue Files To Intervene In Abortion Grand Jury Case Victory! KS Supreme Court Orders Abortion Grand Jury To Proceed Tiller's License At Stake As KSBHA Launches New Abortion Investigation Tiller Sued In Small Claims; TV's Judge Judy and Judge Brown Want The Case ________________________________ About Operation Rescue Operation Rescue is one of the leading pro-life Christian activist organizations in the nation. Operation Rescue recently made headlines when it bought and closed an abortion clinic in Wichita, Kansas and has become the voice of the pro-life activist movement in America. Its activities are on the cutting edge of the abortion issue, taking direct action to restore legal personhood to the pre-born and stop abortion in obedience to biblical mandates. Click here to make a donation. ________________________________ Web site: www.operationrescue.org Changed! E-mail: info@operationrescue.org

LifeSiteNews.com NewsBytes

* Disclaimer: The linked items below or the websites at which they are located do not necessarily represent the views of LifeSiteNews.com. They are presented only for your information.

Think tank warns Atlantic Canada will become the Third World of the 21st century unless provincial governments immediately get to work on population growth
http://www.canadaeast.com/news/article/162865

Numerous Nativity Scenes Vandalized Nationwide in US
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewCulture.asp?Page=/Culture/archive/200712/CUL20071220a.html

Archbishop of Canterbury says nativity 'a legend'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=JHPSTTVO4EG5FQFIQMGCFGGAVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2007/12/20/nwise120.xml

The only people who seem bothered by Christmas are those overly sensitive post-Christian liberals proposing its banishment and a few antagonistic atheists who from time to time file human rights complaints. It's Christmas. Enjoy the merriment, the wishes for peace, the traditions - National Post main editorial
http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/story.html?id=184731

Southwestern Oklahoma State University Bans The Word "Christmas"
http://www.lc.org/index.cfm?PID=14102&AlertID=785

Michigan United Way denies Planned Parenthood grant
http://www.citizenlink.org/fnif/A000006169.cfm

Time Magazine poll finds Americans oppose almost every kind of abortion
http://www.citizenlink.org/fnif/A000006167.cfm

Abortion Protesters Target Contractor Of Planned Parenthood Site
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/14868744/detail.html

Schoolgirls can get morning after pill without uttering a word by flashing 'modesty' card
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=502989&in_page_id=1770

Rasmussen: 'The Huckaboom may have crested'
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59301

Language of religion has in fact become a key element of Hillary Clinton campaign
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1220/p01s02-uspo.html

Ron Paul Tied With Rudy Giuliani in Iowa
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=/Politics/archive/200712/POL20071220c.html

'Muhammad boys' prove 'Islam will enter every house in Europe'
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59289

In Defense of Free Speech--And Mark Steyn - By David Warren
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2007/12/in_defense_of_free_speechand_m.html

Death for Refusing Burka and the Deceptive Muslim Denials
http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/1033

Free Steyn - National Review
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=M2E3ZTVhNjhlMDY0MzM2NjNlYTE3YzQ3MzU0ODZjYjY=

DiversityInc. Magazine Equates Christians to Slave Owners
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/14404/CFI/misc/index.htm

Senate Report: Over 400 Scientists Dispute Manmade Global Warming
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2007/12/20/senate-report-over-400-scientists-dispute-manmade-global-warming

Exercise Significantly Lowers Risk of Dementia
http://www.newsmax.com/health/exercise_lowers_dementia/2007/12/20/58564.html

A "Gay Man" Trapped in a Woman's Body and Other Nonsense
http://www.cwfa.org/articles/14405/CFI/family/index.htm

---

(c) Copyright: LifeSiteNews.com, a production of Interim Publishing.
Permission to republish granted but acknowledgement of source (use LifeSiteNews.com) is *REQUIRED*

Donate to LifeSiteNews.com at http://www.lifesitenews.com/contribute/

"HUCKABOOM"

"Huckaboom" Has Pro-life Republican Mike Huckabee in Dead Heat with Front-Runner Pro-abortion Giuliani
However, trails far behind Romney, Giuliani and McCain in important New Hampshire primary delegates poll

By Peter J. Smith

WASHINGTON, D.C. December 20, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Former Arkansas Governor and pro-life candidate Mike Huckabee has soared to the top in the Republican presidential primary putting him in a dead-heat with former New York mayor and long-time front-runner Rudy Giuliani in the latest Zogby/Reuters poll.

The Reuters/Zogby poll has placed Mike Huckabee in a dead heat with front-runner Rudy Giuliani in the national 2008 Republican presidential race. Huckabee has cleared an 18-point deficit in one month, putting him within one point of Giuliani, 23 percent to 22 percent, a figure well within the 4.8 percent margin of error.

"Huckabee is on a roll, he has gotten an enormous amount of publicity and he is doing very well with conservatives, who at least for now appear to have found a candidate," said pollster John Zogby according to Reuters.

Huckabee moved ahead of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who was in third place at 16 percent, former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson at 13 percent, Arizona Sen. John McCain at 12 percent and Texas Rep. Ron Paul at 4 percent.

An NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll released on Wednesday shows Huckabee in third place striking distance behind Giuliani and Romney. Both are tied at 20 percent after Giuliani's lead dropped in the last month from a solid lead of 33 percent. Behind the top three were Arizona Sen. John McCain at 14 percent and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson at 11 percent.

Huckabee has also closed the distance or overtaken front-runners Giuliani and Romney in a number of key early state primaries, with New Hampshire as a notable exception.

A just released CNN-Opinion Research poll shows Huckabee dominating in Iowa, where the voting kicks off January 3, with 33 percent support among likely Republican voters followed by Romney with 25 percent, and Giuliani in third at 11 percent.

The poll reveals that part of Huckabee's strength is that he is the most trusted candidate on abortion and has strong support from evangelical Christians.

With South Carolina's Jan. 19 primary a month away, a new CBS News poll finds Huckabee leading Romney there by eight points among likely Republican primary voters with 28 percent support to Romney's 20 percent. Giuliani lags behind at 12 percent, while McCain has 11 percent and Thompson has 10 percent.

Huckabee also has made huge inroads in California, closing a large gap behind leader Rudy Giuliani according to a Field Poll conducted December 10-17. Giuliani still leads with 25 percent support, a figure unchanged from October, but Huckabee's support has skyrocketed to 17 percent from 4 percent over the same two months in California, the biggest prize of all the primaries and a state with a more liberal GOP.

Californians go to the polls on February 5 or "Super Tuesday," the day when more than 20 states will also hold primaries. California will select about one-fifth of the delegates needed to choose the Republican candidate at the GOP convention.

A poll by the Chicago Tribune and WGN-TV taken December 9-13 among 500 likely Republican voters in Illinois, showed Giuliani with 23 percent support among Republican voters in that state with Huckabee again very close behind at 21 percent. The margin of error was 4.4 percentage points. Romney held third at 14 percent, followed by McCain at 12 percent, and Thompson with at 11 percent.

In New Hampshire, whose primary is held January 8, Romney leads in the latest Mason-Dixon poll taken between December 3-6, with 25 percent support, followed by 17 percent for Giuliani, 16 percent for McCain, 11 percent for Huckabee, 6 percent for Thompson and 5 percent for Ron Paul.

Huckabee has had difficulty selling his message to voters in New Hampshire, where residents do not pay either state income or sales tax. Voters there have looked askance at his "FAIR tax" plan, which would replace federal income and investment taxes with a 23 percent federal sales tax and rebate taxes equal to sales taxes paid on essential goods and services.

Huckabee's stellar rise from single percentage points to now jostling for lead position among the Republican contenders has astonished analysts who have termed it the "Huckaboom." For now it seems that Huckabee, the winner of the Values Voter Debate in which neither Giuliani, Romney, McCain, or Thompson participated has garnered the tentative confidence of religious conservatives and pro-life and pro-family advocates.

Most political analysts, however, seem to agree that the race is still too fluid at this stage to determine whether Republican voters strongly identify with the candidates, and that the numbers could easily change in the weeks leading up to Iowa and New Hampshire.

See related coverage by LifeSiteNews.com:

Major Republican Candidates Skip Family Values Debate
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/sep/07091903.html

Mike Huckabee: Pro-Life, Pro-Family Republican Candidate
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/nov/07111606.html

Huckabee Stands by Comments Against Homosexuality and AIDS
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/dec/07121008.html

Britney Spears' 16-Year-Old Sister Jamie Lynn Decides Against Abortion

By John-Henry Westen

HOLLYWOOD, December 20, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Jamie Lynn Spears the 16-year-old younger sister of Britney Spears announced her pregnancy in an interview with OK! Magazine. The younger Spears, also a star in her own right acting in the show 'Zoey 101', told the celebrity magazine: "I can't say it was something I was planning to do right now. But now that it's in my lap and that it's something I have to deal with, I'm looking forward to being the best mom I can be."

As for her decision to keep the baby, Spears told OK! "I think my whole life I would have to live with knowing what I did or what I didn't do."

Spears discouraged sex before marriage saying, "I definitely don't think it's something you should do; it's better to wait. But I can't be judgmental because it's a position I put myself in."

But, she is ready to live up to the consequences of her actions. "I'm the one who has to live with it for the rest of my life," she says. "I put myself in this position, an adult position, so I have to act like an adult and take responsibility for what I did."

Spears' mother Lynne Spears told the magazine she was supportive and ready and willing to help.

Georgette Forney, director of Silent No More, an organization of women speaking out on the pain of abortion commented to LifeSiteNews.com about the news. "I'm grateful that Jamie Lynn and her parents were able to recognize that the issue of premarital sex needs to be separated from the issue of a pregnancy, the result of premarital sex," said Forney.

Forney explained, "In my situation, when I was sixteen I didn't want people to know I was having premarital sex so I had an abortion to cover up that sin. And I have regretted that every day of my life."

Forney added, "I applaud this young lady for having the courage to face the reality of what often happens in premarital sex and allow herself the joy of celebrating the pregnancy even under the circumstances that are less than perfect. It doesn't make the child conceived less than perfect. I celebrate with the Spears' the fact that there will be a new family member."

The Silent No More leader concluded, "Hopefully Jamie Lynn's experience will help other families use this opportunity to talk to their sons and daughters about the consequences of premarital sex. I'd like to see this used as an opportunity for further discussion and an opportunity to teach our young people about abstaining in the beginning."

Messages can be sent to Jamie Lynn Spears through Nick.com here:
http://www.nick.com/mynick/write_nick/mail.jhtml