Bits 'n' Pieces

Canada

The Canadian Press reports that "a part-time job counselling United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is almost a certainty" for Jean Chretien once he steps down as prime minister ... The National Post reports that one-world advocate and depopulation extremist Maurice Strong, currently a special adviser to Annan, will become a senior adviser for international and environmental issues to Paul Martin if he wins the Liberal leadership in November ... Martin accepts so-called same-sex marriage: "We can't discriminate between Canadians, it's a question of rights ... If it's a question of rights, it's settled" ... The Nova Scotia provincial election is to be held Aug. 5 ... The Toronto Star reports that an Ontario election will likely be held Sept. 18 ... Citizen's Centre Report, formerly Alberta Report, ceases publication after providing Canada with a distinct, socially and populist conservative voice. Founding editor Ted Byfield is one of Canada's foremost pro-life journalists.

United States

William Schneider, a political analyst for CNN, writes in the National Journal that, "What defines the parties more than anything else these days is social issues: abortion, gay rights, affirmative action" ... Commenting on the Supreme Court Lawrence v. Texas decision declaring sodomy a constitutional right, syndicated columnist Joseph Sobran says the court "can defy the Constitution, tradition and public opinion with impunity." On the court's judicial activism, Dallas Morning News' Rod Dreher says, "The court has suspended the democratic process for the sake of the sexual revolution." The National Journal's Stuart Taylor Jr. says the court "appears to be a bit left of centre" of the public on homosexuality and abortion. He also says that the court's rulings protecting abortion "are also broader than most Americans would like" ... Noting that state law prohibits sex with a minor under the age of 16, Kansas Attorney-General Phill Kline issues a legal opinion saying that doctors who commit abortions on patients under 16 must report the cases to authorities because the girls' pregnancies are evidence of child abuse ... Patricia Ireland, former president of the pro-abortion National Organization of Women, after being named head of the YWCA: "I'm not the head of a Christian organization. I'm the head of a social justice women's organization."

International

Schools in Scotland are banned from distributing the morning-after pill to girls following a public outcry. SPUC Scotland director Ian Murray says, "Scottish parents will be relieved by this news that their children's schools will be an abortion-free zone" ... Dana Rosemary Scallon, a member of the European Parliament for Ireland, castigates her government for failing to defend the Irish Constitution against an EU commission's decision to allow funding for research on spare IVF embryos. She says the research Ireland has assented to "flies in the face of democracy and reduces Ireland's Constitution to nothing other than a reference book" ... Germany considers allowing the morning-after pill to be distributed over-the-counter ... The British Medical Journal reports that despite a 1994 ban on prenatal gender screening, the gender discrepancy in India continues unabated. Near the nation's capital, Delhi, there are only 869 females born per 1,000 males, as baby girls are more likely to be aborted and uncared for after birth than boys.

Gay Agenda

Argentina grants same-sex partners legal status, giving them special insurance and hospital visitation rights, but not the ability to "marry" or adopt children. Canada's Globe and Mail calls it the most "progressive" homosexual legislation in Latin America ... The United Kingdom introduces a "civil partners" registry, thus giving legal recogntion to same-sex partners. Activist Peter Tatchell says the registry is "heterophobic" because it allows same-sex, but not opposite sex, couples to register their relationships ... A study by the Amsterdam Municipal Health Service of homosexual men finds that their relationships last, on average, 1.5 years and that even men involved in long-term relationships have an average of eight partners outside the relationship.

Euthanasia

A U.S. study into assisted suicide finds that patients seek help to end their lives when they are suffering severe pain or discomfort. The study's lead author, Dr Diane Meier, says: "I think these data underscore that if we don't pay attention to palliative care needs, we will end up with a nation with an Oregon Death With Dignity Act."

Art