AANEWS for Monday, July 27, 2009 (long)

[and-justice-for-all]

A M E R I C A N A T H E I S T S
A A N E W S
#1265 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 7/27/09
http://www.atheists.org
http://www.americanatheist.org
http://www.atheistviewpoint.tv

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A Service of AMERICAN ATHEISTS, a nationwide movement that defends
civil rights for non-believers; works for the total separation of
Church and State; and addresses issues of First Amendment public
policy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"ATHEIST is really a thoroughly honest, unambiguous term, it admits
of no paltering and no evasion, and the need of the world, now as
ever, is for clear-cut issues and unambiguous speech."
-- Chapman Cohen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In This Issue...
* "Fellowship" scandal widens amidst concerns of cover-up
* Buckner to "Invoke" at County meet Tuesday
* NYC Atheists host "Final Exit" doctor
* Worth Noting...
* Resources
About this list...

"CHRISTIAN MAFIA" SCANDAL WIDENS -- BUZZFLASH --
GROUP WOULD CONCEAL CHILD MOLESTATION?

A mushrooming scandal over members of the U.S. congress and a shadowy
religious "fellowship"based in Washington, DC is attracting more
news coverage and questions, and could lead to calls that the House
Ethics Committee open an immediate investigation.

The story began when Sen. John Ensign admitted to having an
extramarital affair with a former aide. What made the tabloid aspect
more salacious, though, was that Ensign -- a strong crusader against
separation of church and state -- is linked to a religious-right
group that maintains an anonymous enclave in Washington, DC where
a number of key politicians, including Sen. Ensign, reside while
congress is in session. Dubbed "the family" or "the Fellowship,"
the unmarked building is also the venue for constant prayer, bible
meetings, and now, it seems, political strategy brain storming,
spin-control and campaign fund raising.

Ensign's hypocrisy and un-masking has focused media attention on the
"Christian mafia" and raised questions about what is taking place
behind closed doors of the C Street house "in the name of the lord."

-- Just eight days after the Ensign scandal made headlines,
a political action committee with ties to the disgraced senator
made a $5,000 contribution to the campaign of another "Fellowship"
member and resident, U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp of Tennessee. Chattanooga
Times Free Press reporter Andy Sher noted: "Ensign's political
action committee, Battle Born PAC, contributed the money on June 24
according to Federal Election Committee records. Wamp's campaign
received the contribution on June 29, his Tennessee Registry of
Election Finance shows."

One Wamp-connected operative , John Crisp refused to discuss the
donation, other than to say that "This is important because of how
hard Zach works... for the people of Tennessee."

Others weren't so sure. State Democratic Party Chairman Chip
Forrester questioned the timing and circumstances, telling reporters:
"It would seem to me that if you were running for governor and you
were running on a set of moral values that Zach Wamp seems to talk
about, you'd be sort of reluctant to receive financial support from
an admitted adulterer."

Wamp also reported a $1,000 contribution from the Mint Political
Action Committee linked to another religious right partisan,
U.S. Sen. Jeff DeMint (R.-SC). "Numerous news accounts" link DeMint
to the same C Street enclave as Wamp and Ensign, but the senator's
office is now denying this.

-- Somewhat off the radar at present is South Carolina Gov. Mark
Sanford, a Republican who is still working through his own imbroglio
involving an adulterous affair with a South American woman. Sanford
is a member of the "Fellowship" and reportedly received "spiritual
counseling" at the C Street house. We also should not forget about
US Rep. Chip Pickering (R-Miss.) now charged by his estranged wife
with having an affair while residing at the "Fellowship" residence.

-- How far will "Fellowship" residents and members go in
avoiding media scrutiny, or even official inquiries by congress?
One disturbing indicator is a July 22 piece on the Buzzflash web blog
by Mark Karlin, referring to material unearthed by Jeff Sharlet,
author of "The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of
American Power." The latter writes:

Family leaders consider their political network to be Christ's avant
garde, an elite that transcends not just conventional morality but
also earthly laws regulating lobbying. In the Family's early days,
they debated registering as "a lobby for God's Kingdom." Instead,
founder Abraham Vereide decided that the group could be more
effective by working personally with politicians. "The more invisible
you can make your organization," Vereide's successor, current leader
Doug Coe preaches, "the more influence you can have." That's true --
which is why we have laws requiring lobbyists to identify themselves
as such.

But David Coe, Doug Coe's son and heir apparent, calls himself
simply a friend to men such as John Ensign, whom he guided through
the coverup of his affair. I met the younger Coe when I lived
for several weeks as a member of the Family. He's a surprising
source of counsel, spiritual or otherwise. Attempting to explain
what it means to be chosen for leadership like King David was --
or Mark Sanford, according to his own estimate -- he asked a young
man who'd put himself, body and soul, under the Family's authority,
"Let's say I hear you raped three little girls. What would I think
of you?" The man guessed that Coe would probably think that he was
a monster. "No," answered Coe, "I wouldn't." Why? Because, as a
member of the Family, he's among what Family leaders refer to as the
"new chosen." If you're chosen, the normal rules don't apply.

It's a statement that should concerns about transparency on
C Street. Will "Fellowship" members charged with inappropriate
behavior cover for each other? If so , the term "Christian mafia"
becomes most appropriate given the "code of silence" or "omerta"
being practiced on C Street.

-- There are reports that some "Fellowship" operatives in high
places are now seeking cover amidst the widening scandal and
public attention. According to the Detroit News, for instance,
U.S. Rep.Bart Stupak now claims that "he does little more than
sleep in a room he rents there."

Another "Fellowship" member, Rep. Joseph Pitts of Pennsylvania (a
member of the Congressional "Values" Coalition that promotes religious
right legislation on Capitol Hill) issued a statement that he does
not reside at the C Street lair.

For the public, all of this must raise concerns about what is taking
place behind the doors at the C Street retreat and residence.
Were powerful individuals like these representatives linked in
such intimate and peculiar fashion to, say, a corporate interest
group or international mission, there would be an outcry for an
immediate congressional investigation. The C Street residence,
however, enjoys the mantle of religious probity. Its members do
not seem to be living up to that standard.

Links to the C Street Scandal

<http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2009/jul/21/tennessee-wamp-took-campaign-money-nevadas-ensign/?breakingnews>
Tennessee: Wamp took campaign money from Nevada's Ensign State
campaign finance records show U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., accepted
a $5,000 contribution from U.S. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., who lives
in a Capitol Hill Christian fellowship house with Mr. Wamp. The
contribution came 13 days after Sen. Ensign admitted to the world
he had had an affair with a former staffer. Sen. Ensign's political
action committee, Battle Born PAC, contributed the money on June 24,
according to Federal Election Commission records. Rep. Wamp reported
receiving the contribution to his gubernatorial campaign on June 29,
according to his Tennessee Registry of Election Finance disclosure.


http://blog.buzzflash.com/node/9044
"C Street" Cabal of Anti-Democracy Fundamentalist Senators and Reps
Wouldn't Turn Over Child Rapist Among Them to Police? Kudos to Rachel
Maddow for latching on to the captivating and chilling story about
not just the lascivious and potentially illegal activities of some
of the "C Street" Family, but -- more importantly -- focusing on
their belief that they are chosen by God to lead and infiltrate our
government. And she hasn't stopped pursuing this startling story,
defying the normal news cycle of a nano-second of coverage unless
it's Michael Jackson's death or a blonde white girl disappearing
in Aruba.

What gets lost in the disgusting details of Ensign's adulterous
affair, Mark Sanford's (an associate member of the Family) lust for
an Argentine, and former Congressman Chip Pickering's adulterous
bonking on-site at the C Street "Christian fellowship house" is
something that Maddow has repeatedly come back to: these men don't
believe they are responsible to moral or governmental laws. If
they deviate from the "righteous path," God is only testing their
strength, because they are the ones divinely chosen to lead --
and it is weakness to succumb to remorse about one's "misbehavior."
That is why Mark Sanford said he won't resign and compared himself
to King David, who slept adulterously with Bathsheba and then had
her husband killed.

**

AMERICAN ATHEISTS ACTION ALERT
http://www.atheists.org

BUCKNER TO "INVOKE," CHALLENGE
PRAYER AT COBB COUNTY
COMMISSION MEETING TUES. 7/28

DR. ED BUCKNER, President of American Atheists has been chosen to
deliver the "invocation" at next Tuesday's meeting of the Cobb
County, GA. Commission.. The event will take place at the BOC
Room, second floor, 100 Cherokee St. in Marietta, GA. at 7:00 PM.
The venue is located off the square in Marietta.

According to dictionaries, an "invocation" is an act "calling on
a higher power."

Ed Buckner was one of the plaintiffs in a 2006 law suit which
challenged the practice of having sectarian prayer to open County
Commission meetings. Those chosen to deliver the prayer reflected
a sectarian, often evangelical Christian point of view. One result
of the suit was that the court criticized this practice; since then,
the County has been trying to keep prayer in government by randomly
selecting people to deliver an "invocation."

Buckner firmly opposes any and all prayer, whatever its
denominational affiliation, at government meetings.

There MAY be an informal, on-your-own social event/get-together
following the Cobb County event. For more information, e-mail Ed
Buckner at [email protected] or call 770-803-5353.

WHO & WHAT: Dr. Ed Buckner, President of American Atheists, delivers
a very special "invocation" at the Cobb County Commission Meeting.

WHEN: Tuesday, July 28, 2009 at 7:00 PM

WHERE: BOC Room, second floor, 100 Cherokee St. in Marietta, GA. at
7:00 PM. The venue is located off the square in Marietta.

MORE INFO: For more information, e-mail Ed Buckner at
[email protected] or call 770-803-5353.

(AMERICAN ATHEISTS is a nationwide movement that defends civil
rights for Atheists, Freethinkers and other nonbelievers; works for
the total separation of church and state; and addresses issues of
First Amendment public policy.)

**

For Immediate Release
New York City Atheists Inc.
Press Contact: 212-879-2687
July 24, 2009

'FINAL EXIT DOCTOR TO SPEAK AT NYC ATHEISTS MEET
Out on Bail, to Talk On Persecution of Network Helping Terminally Ill
Awaiting Trial, Hounded Physician Defends Civil Rights Of Suffering
Patients

New York-Dr. Larry Egbert was sitting in his office on the third
floor of a row house that is also the home of the Baltimore
Peace Center when he heard a "tremendous hammering" on the door
of the second floor below. "I went out and said, 'Stop yelling,
the door is unlocked,'" he relates. "Four policemen, guns out,
carrying bulletproof shields, charged up the stairs yelling,
'You're under arrest!'"

It was the Baltimore homicide squad. They handcuffed him and made
him sit handcuffed in his office for more than an hour while the
Georgia police department, who had arranged with Baltimore police
to make the arrest, instructed them on what to search for. "I was
handcuffed in back when they told me to sit down and wait but with
my bad back I couldn't sit that way so they 'kindly' unlocked my
handcuffs and put them in front."

Dr. Larry Egbert is 81 years old and teaches part-time at the John
Hopkins School of Medicine. He got his undergraduate degree from
Johns Hopkins and his M.D. degree from the University of Maryland
Medical School. He has spent a lifetime in medicine, treating
patients, teaching and doing public health work. "I wouldn't have
been able to take on even one of those strapping cops, let alone
four," he says."They took my computer and all my files. Then they
took me down to central booking and put me into a private cell for
'protective custody' on the psychiatric ward. They agreed to bail
if I would get myself to Georgia on Monday. So my wife put a lien
on the house for $60,000 and bailed me out."

His crime? Compassion and guidance. Dr. Egbert is the unpaid medical
director of Final Exit Network, a nationwide volunteer network of
people dedicated to helping terminally ill patients to choose how,
and when, and where they will die. While the Network members do
not actually assist the patient, they determine if the patient is
indeed terminal and if everything medical has been attempted to cure
them. Network members even try to dissuade the patient. But if the
patient is adamant and resolute, the Network people offer compassion
and guidance based on the principles in the book FINAL EXIT by
Derek Humphry, which was a best seller as far back as the 1980s.

Our Society's Contradictions

As a specialist in anesthesiology, Dr. Egbert became interested,
when he was living in Dallas, Texas, in how some states use
anesthetics for executing criminals. "The so-called 'lethal
injection' is actually an anesthetic in larger doses," he
points out. "I got fascinated by this as a moral problem, and
the Unitarians invited me to give a series of workshops on this
and other medical/ethical dilemmas."Dr. Egbert points out the
contradictions in our society, which has no compunctions about
killing people in Iraq or Afghanistan, but considers it a crime
to help a dying person achieve a peaceful demise.

Homes of Volunteers Raided

When Dr. Egbert was arrested on February 25th on charges of
assisting a suicide, along with three other Final Exit Network
volunteers in other sites, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI)
added charges under the Georgia RICO racketeering statutes. "Thus,
Georgia initiated its plan to close down our organization,"
said Jerry Dincin, president of Final Exit Network, in a press
release. "Their plan, as has become evident, is to bankrupt
us by seizing our bank accounts and those of our affiliates,"
Dincin added. "They have also raided the homes of 14 of our
officers and other members, confiscating their computers and
records. They are also getting other police departments to bring
similar charges against others of our volunteers, knowing that
each person arrested must have their own lawyer, so that the legal
charges will ultimately drain what is left of our money or what
we might raise." He notes, however, that the Network is surviving
with loans and donations by people who are outraged at the GBI's
tactics. In addition, Derek Humphry, author of FINAL EXIT and a
Network advisory board member, has established a legal defense
fund. "Between the two efforts, we have been able to bail out
our members and hire first-rate attorneys who are working for a
reduced rate," Dincin reports.

Salute Atheist Heroes

Come on Thursday to the NYC Atheists meeting to hear from his own
lips the remarkable, courageous story of Dr. Larry Egbert, who spent
time in jail so that his suffering patients nationwide may receive
the surcease of pain and the peaceful farewells they yearn for. Do
not ask for whom the bell tolls; someday, it may toll for you. We
Atheists do not have many heroes. When a genuine hero arises, let's
let him know we care. Let's let Dr. Egbert know we appreciate his
nobility and his sacrifices and his concerns for patients. Come,
let us show our appreciation with a round of applause that he will
remember when, and if, he has to go back to jail for us.

EVENT SUMMARY

WHAT: "Why Are Some States Harassing a Volunteer Network That
Dying?" -a talk by Dr. Larry Egbert, medical director of Final E xit
Network, Baltimore, Md.

WHEN: Thursday, July 30, 2009 at 7 p.m.

WHERE: SLC Conference Center 352 Seventh Avenue - (29th/30th)
16th Floor

COST: We would appreciate a donation of $5 to help
cover the cost of the conference room.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Jane Everhart
Director of Communications
New York City Atheists
212-879-2687
or
Kenneth Bronstein
President
New York City Atheists
212-535-7425
---------------------------------------

New York City Atheists Inc. is a 501C not-for-profit educational
association dedicated to the separation of church and state and
to promoting the atheist lifestyle and values. All are welcome,
including agnostics, humanists, freethinkers, skeptics and those
who are questioning and seeking.

**

WORTH NOTING...

<http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g_K_ED6fmSYZv8DUHBYybMYQOSQw>
Malaysians debate whipping for beer-drinking model An Islamic court
decision to have a Muslim model whipped for drinking beer at a
pub has triggered controversy in Malaysia, a multicultural country
where such convictions are extremely rare. Last week, a Sharia or
religious court sentenced Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, 32, to six
strokes of the cane and a fine of 5,000 ringgit (1,412 dollars)
after she pleaded guilty to consuming alcohol in eastern Pahang
state last year. Her conviction created a furore in the nation
which is predominantly Muslim, but also home to large Indian and
Chinese minorities. Alcohol is widely available in most parts of
the country and Muslims are rarely punished for consuming it.

<http://www.sltrib.com/ci_12893165?IADID=Search-www.sltrib.com-www.sltrib.com>
'De-baptism' helps atheists denounce faith Until last summer,
Jennifer Gray considered herself "a weak Christian" whose baptism
at age 11 came to mean less and less to her as she gradually lost
faith in God. Then the 32-year-old medical transcriptionist from
Columbus, Ohio, took a decisive step, one that previously hadn't been
available. She got "de-baptized." In a type of mock ceremony that now
has been performed in at least four states, a robed "priest" used a
hairdryer marked "reason" in an apparent bid to blow away the waters
of baptism. Several dozen participants then fed on a "de-sacrament"
(crackers with peanut butter) and received certificates assuring
they had "freely renounced a previous mistake, and accepted reason
over superstition."

<http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2009/07/27/some-more-words-to-the-new-atheist-blogosphere-on-unscientific-america/>
Some More Words to the New Atheist Blogosphere on Unscientific
America As the two of us grapple with a book tour, other book
projects, cross-country moves, and much else, we've been pretty
hamstrung in our online replies to the "New Atheists." So this
post will try to make up a bit of that slack. At the outset,
let us say that we always knew Unscientific America would be
controversial. Indeed, we're glad it has touched such a nerve in some
quarters-to us, this underscores that its critique was much needed.

**

RESOURCES FROM AMERICAN ATHEISTS

* For membership information about American Atheists, send
mail to [email protected]. Kindly include your name and postal
mailing address. Ask for a free membership info packet. You may
also visit http://www.atheists.org and click on the "Membership"
navigation button.

* For a free catalogue of American Atheist Press books, videos and
other products, send mail to [email protected]. Kindly include
your name and postal mailing address, and request a copy of the
AAP catalogue. You may also shop directly at http://www.atheists.org
--click on the "Shopping" navigation button.

* Current members in good standing of American Atheists may sign up
for our free E-mail Discussion Group list, aachat. We have over 150
participants who discuss topics such as Atheism, religion, First
Amendment issues, creationism and much, much more. Contact the
Moderator, Ed Gauci through [email protected] .

**

[Strong Atheist]

1. Interesting. Thank you. nt.