ReligiousLiberty.TV / Founders' First Freedom® – News and Updates on Religious Liberty and Freedom

Month: April 2022

  • Biden admin announces “Disinformation Governance Board”

    Biden admin announces “Disinformation Governance Board”

    Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. – First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

    [dc]O[/dc]n April 27, 2022, two days after Elon Musk announced his plan to purchase 100% of Twitter, the Biden administration announced the formation of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security “Disinformation Governance Board.”

    Speaking of Musk’s effort to acquire Twitter, the Board’s head, Nina Jankowicz, said in an interview with NPR, “I shudder to think about if free speech absolutists were taking over more platforms, what that would look like for marginalized communities.”

    Understandably, detractors immediately compared the ominous-sounding “Disinformation Governance Board” to George Orwell’s “Ministry of Truth” in his fictional yet predictive book, 1984. The book’s protagonist, Winston, works for the Ministry of Truth. His job is to modify historic documents to reflect the government in the best light and destroy anything that would prove that the government has said anything false. The Ministry is also involved in creating the “Newspeak” language that would make it difficult to express dissent without running afoul of social conventions.

    The name “Disinformation Governance Board” brings to mind a government program that would determine what speech and topics can be expressed online and what is prohibited. According to the DHS, the Board will “protect privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties,” but it is not clear how that will work if freedom of speech is censored or limited. Despite the announcement, perhaps rushed out because of the Musk Twitter announcement, the government has not given clear information about how it will operate. We don’t know even know how the Department of Homeland Security defines the “disinformation” it intends to stop.

    It is hard to believe that those who communicate information that violates the official narrative will find DHS officers on their doorstep. Still, the Board may encourage private communication companies to limit their speech. So far, it has worked with major providers, including Facebook and pre-Musk Twitter. Whenever people complained that their social media companies violated their freedom of speech, censors argued that “these are private forums, not government actors.” But as the government continues to pull the strings by asking private companies to curtail freedom of speech, that does not otherwise violate obscenity and existing criminal laws, it increasingly becomes an actor in unconstitutionally curtailing freedom of speech.

  • Supreme Court hears argument in football coach post-game prayer case

    Supreme Court hears argument in football coach post-game prayer case

    On April 25, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments involving a part-time high school football coach who lost his contract because he would pray at the 50-yard line after games. Inspired by the 2006 movie, Facing the Giants, Joseph Kennedy would “face the scoreboard, take a knee, thank God, and walk off.” Then some players started to join him. The school district told him to stop and when he kept doing it, they terminated his contract.

    Kennedy v. Bremerton School Dist. first went to the Supreme Court in 2018, but the Court returned the matter to the 9th Circuit to resolve whether the case was about Kennedy’s free speech rights or the school district’s claim that allowing the prayers would infringe on the Establishment Clause. The case bounced around for a couple more years. The 9th Circuit decided that it looked like Kennedy was acting as an employee during a time when the First Amendment did not protect his speech and that a reasonable person might think the school was endorsing religion in violation of the Establishment Clause.

    So this now becomes an issue of what freedom of speech teachers have at school. Since it was on school time, it would be government speech. But this speech was after a game when coaches could speak freely to family and friends, and the district was just upset that he wanted to talk to God instead. Of course, hugging one’s spouse after a game would probably not be questioned but lifting one’s hands to God invites a higher level of scrutiny.

    And then there’s the fact that he left Washington state and moved to Florida two years ago, so the district says it’s a “moot” issue since part of what he’s asking for is reinstatement, and he’s not likely to move back to Washington. But Kennedy says that he’ll go right back to his job at Bremerton High School if he wins. The Court should throw out the mootness argument. People who are discriminated against need to find alternate work, even if it requires them to move. That Kennedy was able to “mitigate damages” by obtaining employment should not invalidate his claim. Plaintiffs in wrongful termination cases are usually required to seek other jobs –they cannot sit back accruing lost wages and interest. In contrast, their cases go through the system and then expect a massive payout from the defendant employer when it’s over. This means they need to diligently seek comparable work in the same field and document these efforts.

    It isn’t uncommon for people in sports to have little rituals, like baptizing each other with coolers of ice or doing something else in the OCD vein to appease the spirits of the football field, and we’re not going to judge Kennedy’s sports ritual. It seems like he was doing it on his own and that he wasn’t coercing other students to do it. It was also apparently swift. It wasn’t a regular church ritual, like participating in the Eucharist on the 50-yard line. we can expect a very narrowly worded ruling when it comes out this summer that preserves the free speech rights of teachers but does not give carte blanche authority for teachers to hold church services on the field.

    Most likely, the Supreme Court will find that the coach’s interest in free speech and free exercise of religion outweighs the joinder of church and state that the Establishment Clause was enacted to prevent.

  • CA bill would make it illegal to investigate deaths of newborns

    CA bill would make it illegal to investigate deaths of newborns

    A group of pastors and their congregations will assemble at the California Capitol on April 19, 2022, to ask legislators to vote against a bill that could effectively legalize infanticide in California.

    Tomorrow, the Assembly Health Committee will be holding a hearing to consider AB 2223, preventing county coroners from determining the circumstances, manner, and cause of violent, sudden, or unusual deaths after more than 20 weeks of gestation.

    If a physician is not present, law enforcement could not use statements by coroners about “unattended” fetal deaths to establish or support a criminal prosecution or civil cause of damages against any person.  In most cases, this effectively means that the murder of newborns will not be prosecuted.

    The bill initially said that it would apply to any perinatal death but has been amended to read “perinatal death due to a pregnancy-related cause.”

    In the current reading of the bill, a mother would be able to sue any law enforcement agency for investigating or threatening to investigate the death. According to the California Family Council, “if someone finds a dead newborn in a dumpster, law enforcement is expected to ask no questions or look further into the matter if they suspect the child died after a failed abortion or from any ‘pregnancy-related cause.’”

    While it is unfortunate but not uncommon for children to die soon after birth for major unavoidable health reasons, a good society should be willing to investigate what caused the death.

    The legalization and eventual justification of intentionally causing the deaths of infants should be enough to shock the conscience of those who consider themselves “pro-choice” when it comes to the abortion debate. The lines of the legally unprotected life will move from beyond the womb to the early days of childhood.  This is the time to speak up.

     

     

    Photo: DepositPhotos.com

  • What it Means if Roe v. Wade is Overturned

    What it Means if Roe v. Wade is Overturned

    7 HEALTH BENEFITS OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

    1. Insomnia Relief

    Insomnia can be caused by many different reasons; cannabis thankfully can assist by tackling the source. If you feel constantly tired throughout the day and day-napping shorts your desire to sleep at night, Sativa strains will help to keep you energized and going, restoring your sleep cycle in the process. Indica strains may be better for those who have a hard time calming down before sleeping. Indica strains induce a peaceful state that helps insomniacs to relax and stay asleep. Cannabinol (CBN) has a sedating effect that can also vastly improve sleep habits. Visit tea burn site.

    2. Helps a lacking appetite

    The feeling of hunger is important because it incentivizes us to keep our bodies well fueled, however many suffering from chronic pain, HIV, and cancer lack appetites due to medicine, physical condition, and pain. Medicines used to treat illness and pain can cause leptin levels, an appetite suppressant, to increase which in turn causes patients to be disinterested in food. Marijuana helps to restore appetite with THC, which once introduced to the body, inhibits the production of leptin. Marijuana also helps cancer patients manage the side effects of chemo that cause nausea and pain. These are the best appetite suppressant pills reviews.

    3. Cancer Fighting

    According to the American Association for Cancer Research, pure THC combined with pure CBD work to dramatically reduce tumor volumes when both are used with irradiation practices. AACR states that taken together these cannabinoids can produce a better radiation treatment response. Cannabinoids are also known to inhibit growth of aggressive cancer and neutralize tumor development.

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    A 2014 study found THC to be a treatment option for Alzheimer’s disease.  Amyloid proteins, Alzheimer’s main contributor to the development of the disease, slowed in production in response to a low dosage of THC.  In 2006, research on the prevention of Alzheimer’s found conclusive evidence that THC prevents production of the disease-causing enzymes. Check out these Best semen enhancers articles.

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