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Morality and Decency Conference Speakers
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Newsletter Updates
July 29, 2008
Invest in America
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AND SHE LOVES THE BAD GUYS Before the incidents with Bale's mother and sister filing criminal charges, "In the movie, Batman starts beating The Joker and realizes that this is not your ordinary foe. The more I beat him, the more he enjoys it; and Heath was kinda egging me on, going, 'Go on, go on, go on!' But he was slamming himself around, and there were tiled walls inside of that set which were cracked and dented. His commitment was total." And how does this information bother you? Eight years of marriage, to former model and make-up artist Sibi Blazic, has done little to soften Bale's intensity, although he allows himself a brief indulgence in discussing his youngest fan, three-year-old daughter Emmaline: "She loves the bad guys. Darth Vader is her absolute all-time favourite, although The Joker is fast becoming another. She even quotes him to me: 'Hit me!' and then looks all serious when she says, 'Daddy, I like the bad guys.' Now, she knows that I play Batman; what I don't know is if she truly understands I am just pretending to be Batman. I'm not looking forward to the day when she realizes I'm just an actor who pretends to do that and, even worse, that stuntmen do the really dangerous stuff for me. I'm loving this age of absolute belief in me as a hero." What is wrong with this guy? says CfD. Christian Bale: Dark Knight laid bare |
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 For the first time since the "don't ask, don't tell" law was enacted in 1993 by President Clinton, the House Armed Services Committee has scheduled hearings to review it. The law disqualifies gays from serving in the military. Individuals are deemed gay, according to this ruling, if they publicly state so. However, the military is prohibited from asking. Thus, "don't ask, don't tell." Activists are now pushing for change to allow gays to serve openly. We can anticipate a technical discussion. Does the presence of openly gay soldiers undermine cohesiveness of units, morale, and discipline? How would retention rates of troops or enlistments be affected? We can be sure, though, that a discussion about the general moral implications of such a policy will not take place. Early last year, then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Peter Pace called homosexuality "immoral." More fire and brimstone rained down on him than fell on the residents of Sodom and Gomorra for engaging in this behavior. Rebukes came from Democrats and Republicans alike. GOP Sen. John Warner, a former chairman of the Senate Armed Services committee, writing his own scripture, challenged Pace's view that homosexuality is immoral. Although a recent Zobgy poll of military personnel shows more opposed to allowing gays to serve openly than favoring (37 percent to 26 percent), the direction of polling of the general public favors the pro-gay forces. When "don't ask, don't tell" was enacted in 1993, an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll showed 52 percent opposed to homosexuals serving openly and 43 percent in favor. By 2004, Gallup polling indicated 63 percent in favor of allowing homosexuals to serve against 32 percent opposed. Read On |
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About two months ago, Dr. Kevin Antario Brown was hobnobbing with guests at a celebrity of porn poker tournament |
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Every summer, I suspect that those who work at garden supply stores are inundated by people looking for advice on how to fight back against invasive vines and weeds that creep into their yards. Suggestions might include hacking back the trespassers, ripping them out by the roots, or even dousing them with powerful herbicides. But the truth is, no matter how much sweat, time and money they invest into this effort, there’s a good chance they’ll just grow back. A similar lesson holds true for trying to contain the growth and threat to our economy of the plaintiffs’ trial bar: no matter how much work we put into bringing balance to the U.S. legal system, there’s a good chance plaintiffs’ lawyers will regroup and look for new ways to sue. Unfortunately, those of us in the nation’s capitol have seen first-hand what happens when the trial bar is reinvigorated and on offense. During this legislative session, the trial lawyer lobby initiated a stealth campaign to convince Congress to pass legislation giving lawyers many more opportunities to file lawsuits. In fact, over the past two years, the Institute for Legal Reform (ILR) has identified 48 trial lawyer ‘earmarks’—vehicles giving them greater opportunity to sue—tucked into a wide variety of bills now before Congress. Exposing Trial Lawyer Earmarks Growing in Congress |
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Family Concerns |
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Opinions expressed in 'Perspectives' columns published by CentersForDecency.org are the sole responsibility of the article's author(s), or of the person(s) or organization(s) quoted therein, and do not necessarily represent those of the staff or management of, or advertisers who support the CfD. If you wish to contact CfD - call 713-266-2715 or write: 1415 South Voss Road, #110-393, Houston, Texas 77057. We also enjoy your Comments@CentersForDecency. |
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For the second time this year, a federal court has ruled against Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and ruled in favor of shattering every barrier of decency on television. A few months ago, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York ruled in favor of fleeting profanities thrown carelessly on network TV. Given that Hollywood could defend all profanities as "fleeting," that ruling opens the door for F-bombs galore, any time, anywhere. Now, the Third Circuit in Philadelphia has ruled the same for fleeting nudity. Nothing is sacred on television -- except the profane. The FCC's $550,000 fine against 27 CBS-owned stations for the infamous and deliberate Janet Jackson breast-baring during the halftime show of the 2004 Super Bowl is now reversed. The court found that the FCC deviated from its nearly 30-year practice of fining indecent broadcast programming only when it was so "pervasive as to amount to 'shock treatment' for the audience." That finding is beyond preposterous. What was not shocking about sudden nudity on the most watched television broadcast of the year, in front of an audience stuffed with millions of children? 
at the Playboy Mansion, his disaster-relief medical charity the beneficiary of the lavish event. Hugh Hefner was there, of course. So was Brown's father, the leader of the Bermudan government. Now the 37-year-old doctor is in a Los Angeles jail cell, charged with molesting eight patients, one of them only 15 years old. Investigators are also looking into Brown's finances and several other sexual allegations, some dating back about a decade. The case has blindsided Brown's friends and family, who adamantly deny the charges. They point to Brown's reputation in the community and his charitable work in some of the world's worst disaster zones as a testament to his character. "Kevin is an excellent father, husband and physician, and I along with his family and friends stand behind him," Brown's wife, Chanel, told The Associated Press. "I trust him and I believe in his innocence." Brown was arrested July 8 at his home a few miles west of downtown Los Angeles. He initially was charged with sexual battery and exploiting his position as a doctor in incidents involving a female patient and a female undercover police officer posing as a patient.
