Recently in Censorship Category

Barry, there's a troubling pattern developing as the White House and Congressional leadership embark on a campaign to silence their critics - especially when it comes to concerns about health care.

Example One:  Last week, in an official White House release from Macon Phillips, the White House Director of New Media, the White House launched what can only be described as a citizen reporting initiative on the White House website.  Phillips claimed that "[t]here is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there" both on the web and floating around in chain emails.  He stated that "[s]ince we can't keep track of all of them here at the White House, we're asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov."

Jay, just a few days ago I was a participant in an event on "church politicking" at the National Press Club here in Washington.  The event was reported by your friends over at the Christian Broadcasting Network.  The focus of that afternoon was principally on whether pastors do or do not have the right to endorse candidates in sermons.  The Tax Code suggests they do not--and I argued that was the correct position.

Today, the Washington Post reports that Liberty University, founded by the late Dr. Jerry Falwell, has just terminated the right of the Democratic student club to be recognized at the university.  Effectively, Liberty has declared itself a Democratic Party-free zone.  This is quite shocking, violating basic tenets of free speech, free association, and even religious liberty (can't you be a Democrat and religious?). 

.

Well, Jay, we didn't agree about holding graduations in churches.  It looks like we won't agree on what students can say or do at graduation, either.

Songs which mention God are usually called "hymns."  Hymns are prayers set to music.  Prayers should not be a part of a public junior high graduation ceremony.  Although the facts you relate in your post about the California case are pretty sparse, it seems completely appropriate for the school to veto inclusion of a "song [that] mentions God" at the event.  (Frankly, I'd prefer never to see tap dancing on general principle, but the First Amendment wouldn't allow a government body to bar such performances all together.)

Maybe  James Dobson was just having a particularly bad day.  As the top Religious Right leader gave a "farewell speech" to the staff at Focus On the Family he noted that "we are awash in evil" and that "humanly speaking, we can say we have lost all those battles."  By those battles he meant the "cultural" clash over reproductive choice, gay rights and censorship. As a few bloggers did point out, however, Dobson also noted that "God is in control and we are not going to give up, right?"

Of course, Dobson and his "far-right-of-center" colleagues aren't giving up.  They have a mound of money, are raising more with Obama-bashing every day and continue to return to the wells of gay-bashing and vilifying the separation of church and state on a daily basis.  In the last year for which we have IRS records, Focus took in about $145 million and Dobson's more overtly political arm vacuumed in an additional $10 million.

With each passing day comes more concern about conservative talk radio.  Now, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has launched an online petition targeting Rush Limbaugh.  That comes just days after President Obama told Republican lawmakers that "they can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done."