http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060121/NEWS01/601210306/1002
DNA taken from Laurel councilman
By Nikki Davis Maute
| LAUREL - The DNA results of blood taken Friday from jailed Laurel City Councilman Joseph Glenn Jones should be in prosecutors' hands within a couple of weeks. Jones was taken to an Ellisville clinic Friday morning where the blood sample was taken. Law enforcement officers then drove the blood sample to ReliaGene Laboratories in New Orleans for testing, said Assistant Jones County District Attorney J. Ronald Parrish. |
Jones is being held without bond in the Jones County Jail on sexual battery charges. He is accused of impregnating two girls, a 13-year-old in 1999 and a 14-year-old in 1995.
He was arrested in November after DNA test results from the deceased baby of the 13-year-old showed he was the father.
Jones County Circuit Court Judge Billy Joe Landrum ordered the jailed councilman on Wednesday to comply with a search warrant prosecutors filed in November seeking the blood sample.
That came after Jones' attorney, Robert Smith of Jackson, questioned the validity of DNA testing that led to Jones' arrest in November.
Landrum handed down a court order requiring Jones to submit to a blood test. Jones wrote on the order that giving blood would violate his religious beliefs.
While Jones' attorney agreed during a Wednesday hearing that Jones would submit to the test, Jones wrote on the court order: "I am a Jehovah Witness since birth. I will consent to anything the law requires. I will obey any law and court order. It is against my religious belief to give or receive blood. This is not a refusal. I am just making those involved aware of my lifelong religious belief and practice."
Parrish would not comment on Jones' written statement.
Despite being in jail, Jones remains a member of the city council and continues to draw his $16,000 annual salary. He can only be removed from office if he is convicted of a felony.
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http://www.phxnews.com/fullstory.php?article=30987 Pledging allegiance to the flag . . . and the socialism for which it stands. Posted by markyannone on Sunday January 22, 2006 at 7:43 pm MST [ Send Story to Friend ]
Link to story: http://www.sonorannews.com/headline5.html
Pledging allegiance to the flag
By Linda Bentley
January 22, 2006
Fredonia (Wis.) public school teacher B.J. Cigrand is believed to have held the first unofficial Flag Day celebration on June 14, 1885, in honor of the 108th anniversary of the official adoption of the Stars and Stripes. It was a tradition he continued to carry on in years that followed.
Five years later, Col. George Balch, a New York City kindergarten teacher, planned a Flag Day ceremony for students at his school, in which a simple statement of devotion was included: “We give our heads and our hearts to God and our country; one country, one language, one flag.” As Flag Day was catching on across the nation, Edward Bellamy had become a bestselling author with “Looking Backward,” selling 100,000 copies its first year.
Published in 1888, “Looking Backward” depicted the United States as a socialist utopian society in the year 2000, where every citizen was considered a shareholder of a giant enterprise with equal salaries. Bellamy’s book became the third best-selling fictional work of the 19th century, outranked only by “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” and “Ben Hur.” With its portrayal of a peaceful and gradual transition from capitalistic monopolies to complete ownership by the government, Bellamy’s book was considered one of the two most influential books on economics of the time; the other being Karl Marx’s “Das Kapital.” Bellamy Clubs, subsequently named Nationalist Clubs, sprouted up across the nation to promote Bellamy’s vision.
The first Boston Nationalist Club was formed in December 1888. Its charter members included Bellamy’s cousin Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, and W.D.P. Bliss of the Protestant Episcopal Church. The two formed an auxiliary club the following year called the Society of Christian Socialists, with Bliss as president and Francis Bellamy as vice president of education. Their purpose was to promote the compatibility of Christianity and socialism.
Francis Bellamy’s sermons, such as, “Jesus the Socialist,” profoundly laced with his cousin’s socialist agenda, were not embraced by the church and Bellamy was urged to leave.
In 1888, the Youth’s Companion, a popular family magazine that boasted a circulation of approximately 500,000, began an advertising campaign to sell American flags to public schools through its premium department.
Daniel Ford, a supportive member of Francis Bellamy’s church congregation, who co-owned the Youth’s Companion with his nephew James Upham, hired Bellamy in 1891.
In 1892, Bellamy, who also chaired a committee with the National Education Association (NEA), was preparing a program for public schools to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day.
Meanwhile, Upham was able to persuade President Benjamin Harrison to issue a proclamation to make the public school flag ceremony the centerpiece of the national Columbus Day festivities that October.
And, in August 1892, Francis Bellamy was asked to draft what he and Upham decided would be a Pledge of Allegiance for the occasion.
Bellamy’s original Pledge read: “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” Although he considered including the word “equality,” Bellamy was aware many serving on his NEA committee did not agree with equal rights for women and minorities.
Bellamy’s Pledge was published in the September 8th edition of the Youth’s Companion.
The official program for the Columbus Day event detailed how the flag was to be saluted during the Pledge’s recitation. “. . . right hand lifted, palm downward, to a line with the forehead and close to it. Standing thus, all repeat together, the Pledge. At the words, 'to my flag,' the right hand is extended gracefully, palm upward, toward the Flag and remains in this gesture until the end of the affirmation; whereupon all hands immediately drop to the side.”
The Youth’s Companion premium department, which was headed by Upham, just happened to sell flags. And, Upham often placed ads in the magazine to promote flag sales.
His most successful campaign had students write in to the magazine to request 100 cards stating: “This Certificate entitles the holder thereof to one share in the patriotic influence of a Flag over the schoolhouse,” to be sold for 10 cents apiece. When all the cards were sold, it was enough to purchase a flag from the premium department.
His campaign resulted in the sale of 25,000 American flags to schools in 1891 alone.
The school flag movement soon gained the endorsement of the NEA as well as the federal government.
The magazine continued to promote mandatory flag laws and Upham’s advertising campaigns provided a multitude of reasons why all public schools should fly the flag.
In 1895, the Massachusetts Legislature passed the first such law, requiring all school committees to provide a flag and flagpole for each school house.
Harrison officially declared Columbus Day a national holiday in 1892 and urged all schools to adopt the Pledge of Allegiance.
The first change to the Pledge was made that month with the addition of the word “to” (and to the Republic for which it stands).
The next change was in 1923 after the first National Flag Conference in Washington, D.C. voted to change the words “my flag” to “the Flag of the United States of America,” so there would be no misunderstanding as to which flag citizens were pledging their allegiance.
The Pledge stood its first constitutional test in 1940 when William and Lillian Gobitis were expelled from a Pennsylvania public school for refusing to salute the flag and recite the Pledge. Because they were Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Gobitis family sued, citing saluting the flag constituted idolatry, prohibited by their religion.
The case made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled 8-1 the free exercise of religion under the First Amendment did not protect the children and Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter wrote, “National unity is the basis of national security. The flag is a symbol of our national unity.” While the Pledge was officially recognized by Congress in 1942, the disturbing resemblance of the straightarmed salute to the Nazi salute prompted the change to the current palm over the heart salute.
The following year, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned its 1940 decision in Gobitis and ruled public school students could not be forced to recite the Pledge.
On Flag Day, June 14, 1954, President Eisenhower signed a bill adding the words “under God” to the Pledge.
But the Pledge was still under scrutiny, and during the 1988 presidential election, Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis was criticized by George H.W. Bush for attempting to veto a bill that would fine teachers $5 per day for each day they did not require the Pledge to be recited.
Although the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled the phrase “under God” violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the Constitution, the Supreme Court reversed that opinion on a technicality, citing Michael Newdow, who brought the suit on behalf of his daughter, lacked standing to sue, since his daughter lived with her mother, who opposed the suit. Their opinion was issued on Flag Day, June 14, 2004.
A few months later, the House passed the Pledge Protection Act of 2004, by a vote of 247 to 173 to strip federal courts, including the Supreme Court, from hearing or deciding any question pertaining to the Pledge’s interpretation, its validity under the Constitution, or its recitation.
Meanwhile, Dr. Rex Curry, a libertarian lawyer who has done vast research on the Pledge’s socialist roots, provides pro bono services nationwide to educate students and teachers about “the right to reject robotic ritualism.” The history of the Pledge simply proves Upham and Ford were able to capitalize on the promotion of Bellamy’s socialist agenda, and it’s not over yet.
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http://www.arminfo.am/news_200106_1.shtml
THE EX-OMBUDSMAN OF ARMENIA CONSIDERS THE "HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH" ESTIMATE ON THE SITUATION ON ARMENIA MORE CRITICAL THAN IN THE PREVIOUS YEARS
She noted that such estimate can be found in the reports of not only this but also other organizations. Armenian authorities had the opportunity to improve the situation in 2005 but they missed it. Nevertheless Ms. Alaverdian said that there is certain progress in treatment with arrested and detained citizens.
The ex-Ombudsman also commented on the problem of alternative military service for the "Witnesses of Jehovah", saying that it is a matter on internal policy and should be solved in accord with geopolitical interests of Armenia. She added that she expected more considered estimate.
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http://www.magicvalley.com/articles/2006/01/21/weeklyfeatures_saturday/features_saturday.1.txt
|
Times-News correspondent |
TWIN FALLS -- For Stephen and Brenda Partridge, Monday mornings are not about waking up to another week of drudgery at some job they have to endure to get a paycheck.
This couple, married 31 years, views Mondays as another grand opportunity to join others in their calling to spread God's word.
First they gather with fellow members of their Jehovah's Witness congregation to discuss the message of the day, as dictated by their church, and then they take to the streets to knock on doors and tell people what they think the Bible means.
"It's fun," Stephen Partridge said. "Twin Falls is a nice place, and most of the time people are friendly."
Some 6 million Jehovah's Witnesses consider going door to door to proselytize as their most important job. It is the only way the church adds to its membership, Elder James Shaw says.
One-on-one proselytizing is a tradition that spans Christianity. Many denominations consider Matthew 28:19-20 -- sometimes called "The Great Commission" -- to be their marching orders.
"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father, and of the son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you ..."
The Partridges have been working the door-to-door ministry as long as they have been married. These days they have committed to spending 70 hours a month to knocking on doors.
For the Jehovah's Witnesses, the method of door-to-door proselytizing seems to work. Shaw says when he came to the Magic Valley 30 years ago, there were only 60 members in the congregation. These days there are around 260, and another 100 or so who are not yet baptized but attending services regularly.
"Jesus gave the command to spread the word, and Paul made the point that no one can hear the message if there is no one to preach," Shaw said. "Proselytizing is what they did in the early Christian congregations."
But though the idea of going door-to-door might seem forbidding to some, the Partridges say that ongoing training takes the fear out of the process. Being properly trained also helps Jehovah's Witnesses know how to individualize their ministry to the people who invite them into their homes.
"We try to personalize it," he said.
Making a personal connection is the best way to bring new people into a congregation, says Dr. Brad Hobbs, a Twin Falls ophthalmologist who is president of the Twin Falls Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Known for its clean-cut young missionaries clad in dark pants or skirts and white shirts, the LDS church is the other major U.S. faith that sends people door-to-door. In fact, there are now about 56,000 missionaries spread across the planet in the congregation of 12 million.
But Hobbs is quick to point out that the best recruiting tool the Mormon Church has is making a personal connection.
"There are many, many approaches to bringing people to Jesus Christ," Hobbs said. "But the majority of people who are taught are not found going door to door. They come into the church with the help of friends who are already in the church.''
Over the past year, the Twin Falls LDS Stake has doubled it baptisms from the year before, and most of those came as a result of friendships, he says.
Nonetheless, the Mormon Church's edict from the beginning was to send out missionaries, and members continue with that mission, he says.
"The people they teach are blessed, and they are blessed through teaching," he said.
Other religious leaders agree that the personal approach is the best.
Mike Stocklin, general manager of the Calvary Satellite Network, says rather than going door to door the Calvary Chapel congregation spreads Christ's message by whatever means that seems natural.
"We encourage people to share their beliefs in Christianity with other people and to do it in a gentle manner, as Jesus did," Stocklin said.
He acknowledged that some people, especially those new to the faith, can sometimes be overly zealous. But it is out of friendship that they do this, Stocklin says.
"That's what we call 'being filled with the spirit,'" he said. "They are so filled with energy that they want to share this to the point that commonplace, everyday conversation may no longer be of importance to them."
He said because it is Christ's command to spread the word that "there's more danger in not to telling people how you feel."
The Rev. Lynn Schaal of Amazing Grace Fellowship says members of his congregation believe in proselytizing informally through friendship.
"In our understanding, it is key to build relationships," Schaal said. "You don't hit people over the head or come up against their belief systems. If you have built a meaningful relationship with a person on a friendship level, then taking the admonition of Jesus to preach the gospel is simply an outflow."
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http://www.herald-mail.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=129397&format=html
Sunday January 22, 2006
Five receive awards at Black Achievers Gala
James Thomas Jr.Recognized by First Data
James Thomas, Jr. has served for the past seven years as a minister at Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses in Martinsburg, W.Va., and is furthering his education as a minister.
In addition, he donates 70 hours of volunteer service every month to the ministry and participates with volunteer contributions through the Watch Tower Society of New York.
Before serving in the ministry, Thomas spent 24 years in the Army as an administrative NCO.
He has worked for First Data for more than two years. He is a member of the Merchant Activation Group, which is responsible for assisting new merchants during the activation process.
His contact with merchants is their first impression of First Data.
Compiled from information provided by State Farm Insurance and First Data.
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http://cbs4.com/topstories/local_story_019231859.html
Man Strikes Couple Flees Scene
Dave Malkoff
Reporting
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(CBS4 News) NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE A driver that struck and critically injured a couple that was leaving a Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Hall Thursday night is being sought by Florida Highway Patrol.
The accident happened in front of the house of worship by Northwest 169th Terrace and 29th Avenue, when a car carrying a husband and wife, plus a third woman was struck by an unknown white car.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue transported husband and wife to Jackson Memorial Hospital in critical condition. The wife was reported to be in very critical condition. The second woman who was in the car was not hurt and was on scene talking to officers.
Police do not have a complete description of the car that struck them but do know it is a white car with front end damage.
If you have any information that might help FHP catch the driver of the car, call Miami-Dade Crimestoppers at 305-471-TIPS.FHP has not released the names of the victims involved.