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Monthly Archives: December 2012

Obama Gets Involved After Illinois Democrats Waver Over SSM

December 31, 2012 – 11:00 am

Gay marriage is not a done deal in Illinois, that's why President Obama is getting involved to tip the scales among wavering Democrats who know their constituents do not support redefining marriage -- this is another reason why it is so important for you to take action and contact your lawmakers if you live in Illinois:

President Barack Obama is urging the Illinois General Assembly to legalize gay marriage in his home state as lawmakers are poised to take up the measure as early as this week in Springfield.

... The lead sponsors of the "Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act," state Sen. Heather Steans (D-Chicago) and state Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago), intend to put the measure up for a vote during the upcoming January lame-duck session.

The toughest challenge for gay marriage backers will be winning passage in the Illinois House. Prospects for approval in the Illinois Senate--where Obama once served--are brighter.

The practical impact of Obama urging his home state to legalize gay marriage is to prod--and give political cover to--reluctant Democrats from conservative suburban and Downstate districts. -- The Chicago Sun-Times

By NOM Staff | Posted in Illinois, Marriage, President Obama, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (8)

We Only Have One More Day!

December 31, 2012 – 10:15 am

National Organization for Marriage

Dear Marriage Supporter,

Today is the last day to take advantage of our $500,000 matching challenge.

Please make a year-end donation IMMEDIATELY to help us reach our goal and enter the New Year with the resources we need to counter the assault on marriage that is being organized RIGHT NOW by same-sex marriage radicals.

Remember, your donation will be matched dollar-for-dollar by a generous supporter, doubling the impact of your gift!

We have a plan. Several states are being targeted by our opponents for advancing same-sex marriage legislation . . . and NOM will be making sure that the voters in those states know what their legislators are doing, and that those legislators know how their constituents feel.

But we need funds to counter the other side's onslaught of deception and lies.

In November, we were outspent by almost $23 million in the four states where marriage was on the ballot. We CANNOT allow ourselves to be overwhelmed again by such a drastic financial disparity.

Your immediate contribution will help us mobilize defenders of marriage at the grassroots level to send a message to legislators around the country: your constituents are watching, and they will remember how you vote on same-sex marriage come election time!

We have a ways to go to reach our goal of raising $500,000 for marriage, so please make a donation right away.

Follow this link to make an urgent donation of $50, $100, $500 or more—and every dollar you give for marriage will be doubled to fund our grassroots campaign.

Can I count on your help in this critical hour?

By Brian Brown | Posted in Same Sex Marriage | Comments (27)

Roger Scruton: Because of Intimidation, “Shallow Reasoning” Behind Gay Marriage Push

December 29, 2012 – 10:00 am

English philosopher Roger Scruton writes in the UK Times in devastating fashion against the push to redefine marriage:

If we ask ourselves how it is that the advocacy of gay marriage has become an orthodoxy to which all our political leaders subscribe, we must surely acknowledge that intimidation has some part to play in the matter. Express the slightest hesitation on this score and someone will accuse you of “homophobia”, while others will organise to ensure that, even if nothing else is known about your views, this at least will be notorious. Only someone with nothing to lose can venture to discuss the issue with the measure of circumspection that it invites, and politicians do not figure among the class of people with nothing to lose.

Yet it is unlikely that the ordinary conscience will find itself entirely at ease with a change that overthrows social norms on which people have depended throughout recorded history. In this, as in so many things, people of conservative temperament look around for the person who will speak for them and find only an embarrassed silence. Strident minorities, acting on the growing disposition to censor their opponents, ensure that the deeper the question, the more likely it is to be settled by shallow arguments.

By NOM Staff | Posted in Civility, Culture, Debating Marriage, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage, United Kingdom | Comments (20)

Immediate Action Needed to Block SSM in Delaware!

December 28, 2012 – 4:15 pm

National Organization for Marriage

Dear Marriage Supporter,

Same-sex marriage advocates in Delaware are very publicly planning a push for a new law to redefine marriage when the Legislature reconvenes for its new session in just over a week. Governor Markell claims that the passage of same-sex marriage in The First State is "inevitable."

But you and I both know that that's a lie!

The inevitability of SSM isn't a fact—it's an argument same-sex marriage advocates use over and over in an attempt to get the American people to give up the fight for what we know is true about marriage:

Marriage is a good for both individuals and society.

Marriage unites men and women, and protects children.

This is the truth. And we need the law to uphold that truth, not undermine it.

Please click here to send a message to your state lawmakers today. Let them know the people of Delaware are watching, and will hold them accountable for their vote on the marriage issue when election time rolls around.

Send your Lawmakers a Message!

The consequences of these politicians' votes will impact Delawareans from all walks of life, but people of faith will bear the brunt of it.

Activists know the American people—even those who support same-sex marriage—don't want to force religious groups to go against their beliefs. And yet, everywhere same-sex marriage becomes law, it is religious believers who become the law's first targets.

Across the country, Catholic Charities is being forced to abandon adoption and foster care services as a result of same-sex marriage being enacted in various states.

Reception halls, inns, and bed-and-breakfasts face lawsuits for declining to host same-sex wedding ceremonies or receptions.

And schools across the country are facing increasing pressures to teach elementary students about "Prince & Prince," or "Heather's Two Mommies."

Send your lawmakers a message: Don't Mess with Marriage!

Please use this link to email your state senator and representative today, urging them to reject same-sex marriage in the upcoming legislative session.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Success or failure may well hinge on the outpouring of opposition to this bill that politicians receive over the next couple of weeks. After you take action, PLEASE IMMEDIATELY FORWARD this email to all your friends and family in Delaware, or use the social networking buttons below to post to Facebook or Twitter.

Facebook ThisTweet ThisEmail This

Thank you.

By Brian Brown | Posted in Delaware, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (23)

Uruguay Senate Postpones Vote on Gay Marriage in Face of Renewed Resistance

December 28, 2012 – 1:30 pm

Gay marriage is always inevitable -- until it isn't:

Uruguay's Senate has delayed until April a vote on a bill that would legalise gay marriage, amid calls for further analysis of the proposal.

The Marriage Equality Law, approved on 11 December by the lower house, was backed by the governing coalition.

But faced with demands for more discussion, senators opted to postpone the vote until after the summer recess.

If passed, the law would make Uruguay the second Latin American nation after Argentina to allow gay marriage.

... "out of respect for the parliamentary minorities", the draft law would be sent for discussion by a commission, the statement said.

The move highlights the controversy the proposed law has generated among some sectors of society in Uruguay. -- BBC

By NOM Staff | Posted in Marriage, Same Sex Marriage, South America | Comments (3)

"Iconic" Annapolis, Maryland Trolley Forced to Shut Down Because of SSM

December 28, 2012 – 11:00 am

The Baltimore Sun:

An Annapolis company whose old-fashioned trolleys are iconic in the city's wedding scene has abandoned the nuptial industry rather than serve same-sex couples.

The owner of Discover Annapolis Tours said he decided to walk away from $50,000 in annual revenue instead of compromising his Christian convictions when same-sex marriages become legal in Maryland in less than a week. And he has urged prospective clients to lobby state lawmakers for a religious exemption for wedding vendors.

... Wedding vendors elsewhere who refused to accommodate same-sex couples have faced discrimination lawsuits — and lost. Legal experts said Discover Annapolis Tours sidesteps legal trouble by avoiding all weddings.

... The trolley company's decision, publicized by a straight groom offended by what he called "repressive bigotry," offers a snapshot of a local business navigating a new landscape in Maryland's wedding industry, and leaving it behind for a competitor to swoop in.

The head of the Maryland Wedding Professionals Association said the trolley company is the second vendor to refuse business over the state's same-sex marriage law, which voters upheld in November. The Maryland clergyman who led opposition to same-sex marriage called the trolley company's choice to abandon profits on principle "gutsy" and predicted that more businesses would quietly follow suit.

... Frank Schubert, the political strategist who ran campaigns against same-sex marriage in Maryland and three other states this year, said opponents predicted collateral damage from legalizing same-sex unions.

"This is exactly what happens," Schubert said, adding that religious liberty is "right in the cross hairs of this debate. … The law doesn't protect people of faith. It simply doesn't."

Schubert pointed to a handful of other examples publicized in news reports across the country of wedding vendors sued for refusing to accommodate a same-sex ceremony: a pair of Vermont innkeepers, a New Jersey church group and a New Mexico wedding photographer.

By NOM Staff | Posted in Economics, Marriage, MarriageADA, Maryland, Religious Liberty, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (34)

Gay Dem Barney Frank: Gay Marriage at Supreme Court "Premature", a "Mistake"

December 28, 2012 – 9:00 am

The HuffingtonPost:

Regarding the Supreme Court’s decision to hear the Prop 8 case, [Rep. Barney] Frank is less jazzed.

“I was critical of the decision to take Prop 8 to court,” he said. “I don’t the think the five-member Supreme Court majority that we have is ready to declare that there is a constitutional right to marry everywhere. To bring a lawsuit when you’re not likely to win it, prematurely, is a mistake. So I was very critical of those people in California who were doing that. When the Supreme Court decides the Prop 8 case, what I believe is likely to happen is that they will accept the decision by of the circuit court in the west coast [ the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which had narrowed the decision to apply only to California]. It’s people being rescued from themselves. Some of them are still trying to push the broader case, which I think is a mistake.”

By NOM Staff | Posted in DOMA, Law, Marriage, Prop 8, Same Sex Marriage, Supreme Court | Comments (5)

Immediate Action Needed to Block SSM in Minnesota!

December 27, 2012 – 4:15 pm

National Organization for Marriage

Dear Marriage Supporter,

Just over a month ago, same-sex marriage activists were falling all over themselves to promise voters that a vote against the marriage amendment would NOT bring same-sex marriage to the state. . . .

And now, just a few weeks later, those very same activists are pushing for same-sex marriage when the Minnesota Legislature reconvenes on January 8th. State Senator John Marty, now part of a new DFL majority in St. Paul, is planning to introduce a bill during the first week of the new session and is already predicting quick passage out of committee in both the House and Senate.

Please click here to send a message to your state lawmakers today. Let them know the people of Minnesota are watching, and will hold them accountable for their vote on marriage.

Send your Lawmakers a Message!

In November, Minnesotans voted to maintain the status quo on marriage, as Minnesota statutes already recognize marriage as the union of a husband and wife. Now gay marriage activists are trying to force a whole new battle on the state.

But the people of Minnesota know as well as you and I do what negative consequences would follow in the wake of same-sex marriage becoming law.

Activists know the American people—even those who support same-sex marriage—don't want to force religious groups to go against their beliefs. And yet everywhere same-sex marriage becomes law, it is people of faith who become the law's first targets.

Across the country, Catholic Charities is being forced to drop their adoption and foster care services wherever same-sex marriage is enacted. Reception halls, inns, and bed and breakfasts are being sued if they decline to host same-sex wedding ceremonies or receptions. And schools across the country are facing increasing pressures to teach elementary students about "Prince & Prince," or "Heather's Two Mommies."

Send your lawmakers a message: Don't Mess with Marriage!

Please use this link to email your state senator and representative today, urging them to reject same-sex marriage in the upcoming legislative session.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Success or failure may well hinge on the outpouring of opposition to this bill that politicians receive over the next couple of weeks. After you take action, PLEASE IMMEDIATELY FORWARD this email to all your friends and family in Minnesota, or use the social networking buttons below to post to Facebook or Twitter.

Facebook ThisTweet ThisEmail This

Thank you.

By Brian Brown | Posted in Minnesota, Same Sex Marriage | Comments (12)

Immediate Action Needed to Block SSM in Illinois!

December 27, 2012 – 4:00 pm

National Organization for Marriage

Dear Marriage Supporter,

A week from today, the Illinois General Assembly will be back in Springfield to begin their lame duck session . . . one in which gay marriage advocates hope to pass a same-sex marriage bill.

The vote is expected to be close, particularly in the House, and activists are counting on votes from several retiring lawmakers to help pass the bill.

Please click here to send a message to your state lawmakers today. Let them know the people of Illinois are watching, and will hold them accountable for their vote on marriage.

Send your Lawmakers a Message!

The broken promises from Springfield keep stacking up.

It's only been 2 years since activists passed a civil union law, claiming it would provide much-needed equal rights for same-sex couples . . . now many of these same groups are claiming the very law they helped pass is discriminatory and demeaning to same-sex couples.

When the civil union law was being debated, the bill's sponsor explicitly promised that bill would not "impede the rights religious organizations have to carry out their duties and religious activities." Gay marriage activists even claimed that "the Act would not impact faith-based adoption agencies or adoption procedures."

Yet within months, Catholic Charities of Illinois, whose adoption agencies served 2,500 children, was forced out of adoption and foster care services when it became clear the state of Illinois' new law required them to place children with same-sex couples in violation of their religious convictions.

And they're not the only ones. Smaller businesses and organizations have been hit hard, too. The owners of Timber Creek Bed and Breakfast have spent the better part of two years defending themselves against a lawsuit for refusing to rent their privately-owned and family-run business for a civil union ceremony and reception. Other private businesses in the state have faced similar threats.

Please use this link to email your state senator and representative today, urging them to give the people of Illinois the right to decide the issue—instead of ramming a radical, unpopular bill redefining marriage through in a lame duck session.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Success or failure will likely hinge on the outpouring of opposition to this bill that politicians receive over the next week. After you take action, PLEASE IMMEDIATELY FORWARD this email to all your friends and family in Illinois, or use the social networking buttons below to post to Facebook or Twitter.

Facebook ThisTweet ThisEmail This

Thank you.

By Brian Brown | Posted in Illinois, Same Sex Marriage | Comments Off on Immediate Action Needed to Block SSM in Illinois!

Study: Marriage is the Safest Place for Pregnant Women

December 27, 2012 – 9:00 am

LifeSiteNews:

A new study of Canadian women finds that pregnant women who are married suffer less partner abuse, substance abuse, and post-partum depression than women who are cohabitating or single.

Dr. Marcelo Urquia, an epidemiologist at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, found that about one in 10 married women (10.6 per cent) suffered partner abuse, substance abuse, or post-partum depression. However, 20 per cent of women who were cohabitating but not married suffered from at least one of those three conditions.

The figure rose to 35 per cent for single women who had never married—and to 67 per cent for those who separated or divorced in the year before birth.

“We did not see that pattern among married women, who experienced less psychosocial problems, regardless of the length of time they lived together with their spouses,” Dr. Urquia said.

Dr. Urquia said understanding the differences in abuse and depression between married and cohabitating partners was important as the number of children born outside marriages rises.

The study was based on data from the 2006-7 Canadian Maternity Experiences Survey, a national survey of 6,421 childbearing women compiled by the Public Health Agency of Canada.

By NOM Staff | Posted in Children, Pro-Life, Research/Study, Women | Comments (2)

Leftists Lurking in the Land of Lincoln!

December 26, 2012 – 2:00 pm

Dear Marriage Supporter,

As you prepare to celebrate Christmas, getting that last-minute shopping done and wrapping things up at work to take off for the holiday, I wonder if you can spare a moment and a few dollars to help support the promotion and defense of marriage?

Your year-end donation to NOM of $25, $50, $100, $500 or more will help us ramp up our efforts to stop the imminent assault against marriage that the gay marriage lobby is gearing up for in the new year.

And remember, your gift today will be matched dollar-for-dollar by a generous supporter!

Earlier this week, I told you in an email about how gay marriage activists are mobilizing to rush same-sex marriage bills through the legislatures of Rhode Island, Delaware and Illinois as early as next month. As just one example of what we're up against, let's look briefly at Illinois...

Activists in the Land of Lincoln are trying to push a gay marriage bill through the General Assembly early in January, and they have hired the firm founded by David Axelrod to help them spin their message and impose gay marriage on the voters of Illinois. Axelrod's former firm is the “go-to” firm for major public battles in Illinois and adds their influence to that of Chicago Mayor (and President Obama's former Chief of Staff) Rahm Emanuel, who is also pushing for the passage of the bill.

The same old arguments predominate in Illinois: voters are being assured gay marriage won't affect their marriage or liberty. But we know better.


Back in 2010, when Illinois passed its Religious Freedom Protection Act and Civil Union law, State Senator and bill sponsor David Koehler (D-Peoria) explicitly assured people that it would not “impede the rights religious organizations have to carry out their duties and religious activities.”

Well, the Walder family, who run the Timber Creek Bed and Breakfast, beg to differ-they are now being sued for refusing to rent their privately-owned and family-run business for a civil union ceremony and reception.

And then there's Catholic Charities of Illinois, whose adoption agencies served 2,500 children, but were closed down because the organization did “not intend to comply” with the law.

And our old friend, the ACLU—which lobbied heavily for the civil union bill in 2010—just this year filed a lawsuit on behalf of homosexual activists, claiming that the very same lawthey had fought for made gays and lesbians second-class citizens, and urged the court to grant them the right to marry!

Marriage Supporter, we need your support today. We have a fantastic opportunity with our year-end matching gift challenge, which will double whatever you are able to give-but you must act fast! If you donate today...

Please click here to make your urgently-needed, year-end gift and your investment in the future of marriage will be immediately matched!

Supporters like you, now more than ever, are our greatest asset in this fight, and we need you to step up and help us today for prepare for the pending same-sex marriage onslaught.

I'll be blunt—we were outspent by $23 MILLION last election cycle in the four states with marriage on the ballot. We can't ever again be so outmatched that our ability to defend marriage against the other side's lies and deceptions can't reach the people who need to hear it most.

It's essential that we rally people at the grassroots level to fight hard for the truth of marriage. So, please help us take advantage of the opportunities before us. We can use these multiple state fights in Illinois and elsewhere early in the new year to deliver a clear message to the Supreme Court before they hear the Prop 8 and DOMA cases: that the American people still believe firmly in marriage as the union of one man and one woman. That's the opportunity that your donation to NOM will help us capture-so please don't let it slip away!

P.S. I know it's tough at the end of the year to find room in our Christmas spending to support the causes we care about-but it couldn't be more important to dig deep and find the means today. An investment in NOM is an investment in the future of marriage, and a gift to our children's and grandchildren's generations. Please prayerfully consider whether you can give this all-important gift today!

By NOM Staff | Posted in Same Sex Marriage | Comments (5)

UK Survey: A 'Dad' is 10th Most Popular Christmas List Request for Children (A 'Mom' is 23rd)

December 26, 2012 – 9:00 am

The UK Telegraph:

When it comes to Christmas, it might be safe to assume children will ask Santa for an extensive list of toys, games and treats.

But a survey of their typical lists for Father Christmas has shown many have more serious concerns, requesting "a dad" instead.

... Despite their material requests, the tenth most popular Christmas wish on the list was a "Dad".

... A request for a "mum" reached number 23 on the list.
By NOM Staff | Posted in Children, Culture, Marriage, United Kingdom | Comments (7)

Merry Christmas!

December 24, 2012 – 8:00 am

Merry Christmas from NOM

By Brian Brown | Posted in Same Sex Marriage | Comments (42)

French Organizers of Marriage Marchers Expect Crowds of 350,000; Have Already Rallied Far More Than Opposition

December 23, 2012 – 9:00 am

LifeSiteNews on the next wave of major national demonstrations in France in favor of protecting marriage:

Organizers of the first nationwide demonstration against same-sex “marriage” in Paris on January 13th say they hope to bring together over 350,000 people. If they succeed, it would make the event one of the most important rallies in the French capital since a giant march in favor of freedom of education in 1984 mobilized over a million people. 

But controversy has broken out in more traditional quarters against the general tone of the “Manif pour tous,” the “demonstration for all.” “Marriage for all” is the slogan French president François Hollande is using to promote the draft same-sex “marriage” law.

So far, pro-marriage demonstrations in France have outnumbered pro-SSM demonstrations by about 209,800 to 178,000.

See the image below -- when they are two numbers, the lower # is from the official police estimate and the higher # is from the organizers:

By NOM Staff | Posted in Events, France, Marriage, Same Sex Marriage, United for Marriage | Comments (19)

Video: BBC News Coverage of PM Cameron's Unpopular "Divisive" SSM Push

December 22, 2012 – 10:00 am

From the YouTube description by the UK Coalition for Marriage:

Jeremy Paxman hosts a debate with Tim Montgomerie, of the Conservative Home blog, Anne McIntosh MP and the President of a local Conservative association.

Anne McIntosh warns redefining marriage is "very divisive", "ill thought-out" and could have unintended consequences.

Others interviewed by the programme also tell of the damaging effects of the same-sex marriage plans:

There is a particularly good exchange at 12:40 between a man in favor of redefined marriage and a woman in favor of protecting it:

Pro-SSM man: "For me marriage is an incredibly important institution, it doesn't just join two people together it joins the two, couples, loved ones, friends and family together as well. And I think it's right that such an important institution, an incredibly conservative institution doesn't exclude anyone in society and, actually, by introducing equal marriage we broaden and popularize an institution and make it more central to society."

Pro-marriage woman: "But men and women are different. As a one-time divorce lawyer I know that part of the reason that marriage has succeeded as well as it has was for the protection of women and children. And if you actually change the ground rules there are going to be some very confused people out there in the church, in the schools, in society at large..."

Moderator interrupts: "What are they confused about?"

Pro-marriage woman: "About what the implications are..."

Moderator interrupts again: "The commitment of two people..."

Pro- marriage woman: "But we've got that in civil partnerships already. So why is the need to change at this pace?"

By NOM Staff | Posted in Culture, Marriage, Politics, Same Sex Marriage, United Kingdom | Comments (9)
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