OUR COLUMNISTS The Set of the Soul Decides Its Goal Guest Commentary by Don Wildmon We leaders in the church are responsible for the apathy which exists in our midst. For years our emphasis has been nearly totally on trying to get people to come to church instead of be the Church. Cliché Season In Full Swing Commentary by Brad Locke Humans tend to live by a cliché creed. If what we say can't be simplified into a few trite words, it's not worth our time and effort. But if we don't communicate to each other what we're really feeling and the problems we're dealing with, how can we expect anyone to help us? This is a major obstacle in the faith of many Christians. Stupid Is As Stupid Does: The Second Presentation Commentary by David Sisler Columnist David Sisler announces his second installment of his SIASD Awards, taking aim at a Georgia judge, airport security measures, a school's dress code, and voters lists in Florida and New York. UNC Chapel Hill: High Priests of the New Tolerance Commentary by Mark Creech Traditionally, tolerance values, respects, and accepts the views of others without necessarily approving of or participating in their beliefs or behaviors. But today's tolerance advocates that all truth claims are equally valid.

...The party platform awaiting ratification today at the Republican National Convention doesn't take a firm stand on public display of the Ten Commandments. Delegates from Alabama wanted the platform to endorse a bill that would outlaw court rulings abridging a public "acknowledgment of God." Former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore helped write it after he was removed from office for denying a federal court order requiring him to take a Ten Commandments monument out of the state courthouse. Instead, the GOP platform condemns judicial activism and suggests that the Ten Commandments issue could be an example of where courts have overstepped their authority. Alabama state Senator Bill Armistead says it is a mistake for Republicans to be "compromising and saying we shouldn't take a stand because it offends someone." [AP]

...The GOP convention is under way today in New York City amid the tightest security ever seen for such an event. But a former Republican congressman do not expect much fireworks inside Madison Square Garden. Bob Barr says today's conventions go out of their way to avoid controversy. "It's not really the way the system ought to operate," Barr says. The current approach, he says, places a premium on "going along and getting along, and moderation and middle-of-the-road" as opposed to being a forum to clearly and aggressively express a strong, principled platform for the party. Barr says he misses past conventions where passionate fights over policy and issues were conducted, and when parties took principled stands of which they were not ashamed. [Bill Fancher]

...A media watchdog says to get ready for the major television networks to provide very predictable coverage of this week's Republican National Convention. As Republicans begin their convention in New York City, Tim Graham of the Media Research Center (MRC) says history has shown just what can be expected from the Big Three networks. "They want to tell you how conservative, how conservative, how conservative the Republicans are," Graham says, repeating the phrase for emphasis. "And if they can highlight the scariness of religious conservatives enough, they'll do that also." After studying how the networks covered the Democrats' gathering in Boston, MRC issued guidelines for coverage of the New York GOP convention. Graham says if the networks are going to treat the parties equally, they will have to avoid discussing President Bush's record. "Now that sounds ridiculous -- but the fact of the matter is, they did not talk about John Kerry the senator, what John Kerry voted for, what John Kerry did," he explains. Graham says controversial issues should also be avoided. "They didn't talk about abortion at the Democratic convention; they didn't talk about gay issues at the Democratic convention." To be fair, Graham says, the networks should not bring those issues up either. [Bill Fancher]

...A Christian attorney says his pro-life client was targeted by a Kansas prosecutor because she is pro-life and the district attorney is pro-abortion. Wichita resident Karen Myers was charged with misdemeanor failure to obey and obstruction following an incident in which she was holding a pro-life sign across the street from a coliseum where the singer Cher was performing. Cher is an outspoken abortion supporter. Myers' attorney, Brian Fahling with the American Family Association's Center for Law & Policy, says his client was physically assaulted by a Sedgwick County sheriff's deputy and was unjustly charged. But Fahling says rather than assign a young, inexperienced prosecutor to try the routine dismeanor, Sedgwick County District Attorney Nola Foulston gave the case to her top death penalty lawyer. Fahling says the DA is biased against pro-lifers. "First there was the message being sent by the elected district attorney to pro-lifers that they better not even come out and demonstrate," the attorney says, accusing the DA of taking the attitude "I'm going to pull out our top guns and we're going to go after you." Fahling says his firm's involvement in case should counter that message. "Now hopefully the message being sent [to the DA] is 'go ahead if you want to try it again, we'll knock you down again -- and you're probably going to find yourself in federal court for attempting to violate the civil rights of our clients.'" Myers was found not guilty on all counts. [Rusty Pugh]

...Citing statistics from voting records, a pro-marriage group in Minnesota has concluded that the Democratic Party "has become the party of gay marriage." At a press conference last week, the Minnesota Citizens in Defense of Marriage made its case that Democrats at both the federal and state levels are at fault for stalling efforts to pass marriage protection legislation. The group offers as proof the following facts: Democrats cast 86 percent of the votes cast in the U.S. Senate against the Federal Marriage Amendment, and 91 percent of those cast in the U.S. House against the Marriage Protection Act. Regarding the issue of same-sex marriage in Minnesota, Democrats cast 93 percent of the state House votes in opposition to the Defense of Marriage Amendment -- and 100 percent of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor state senators voted to block that same legislation from even being introduced on the floor of the state Senate. The group contrasts that with data from polls showing that almost two-thirds of Americans oppose same-sex marriage, and that nearly 60 percent of Minnesotans favor a constitutional amendment protecting traditional marriage. Jeff Davis, president of Minnesota Citizens in Defense of Marriage, says "one can only conclude that the Democratic Party has become the party of gay marriage," adding that if those lawmakers had been "sticking to the job of representing their constituents, this legislation would have passed months ago." That is why Davis's group has launched a statewide campaign to inform voters in the North Star State that the future of marriage will likely decided by this year's election. The "Truth Truck" campaign set out on its first trip recently to Anoka, Minnesota, where John Kerry was making a campaign stop. The "Truth Truck" features a billboard-sized banner showing two men kissing and the message: "Want Gay Marriage? Vote Democrat this November." [Jody Brown]

...A group of marriage traditionalists feels it is vital in today's society to honor the union of a man and a woman and is gathering signatures on a petition to promote legislation that would honor marriage with a national holiday. The Traditional Marriage Club says it is not common to hear good news about marriage these days, what with the high incidence of divorce and the coast-to-coast battle over homosexual "marriage" -- so they want to counter that negativity with a celebration of traditional marriage. Lee Wilson, a spokesperson for the Traditional Marriage Club, says the group desires that a husband and wife "feel the embrace and support of society" and that society celebrate and appreciate "the backbone of the family." The group wants "Traditional Marriage Day" to be observed on November 1, beginning this year, and sees observances including opportunities for couples to renew their marriage vows. [Jody Brown]

...A former city official wants to place a monument featuring the Ten Commandments and the Lord's Prayer in a city park in downtown Mitchell, South Dakota. Former city councilman Elmer Taplin says it is important to take a stand for America's heritage. Mitchell Mayor Alice Claggett says she does not see how such a monument could be erected on city property next to the city's landmark Corn Palace. But Taplin says, "It just seems like we're being pushed around by a bunch of goofballs who don't remember that our country was founded on the basis of God." [AP]

...A conservative leaders says the controversial proposal to restructure the Central Intelligence Agency should get the okay just because of the man who proposed it. Kansas Senator Pat Roberts, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, wants to see the CIA broken up into three divisions: operational, analytical, and technical. Democrats are objecting, but Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation says he has faith in the plan simply because of Pat Roberts. "I do have a lot of confidence in Pat Roberts. I have known him for 38 years, and he is a person of real integrity and a person who clearly wants to do the best for the country. There's no doubt in my mind about that." Weyrich says the fact that Democrats are so upset by the proposal is another reason why he thinks it has merit. [Bill Fancher]

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