The selection of Sarah Palin as a vice presidential running mate is a victory for women, and rightfully so. However, there are serious questions about her beliefs that can cause concerns in our secular society. When a politician feels that his or her religious beliefs should become the law, then we should closely examine those beliefs and question whether they should be allowed to overthrow our constitution. That constitution emphatically states that there should be freedom for all to practice their own religious beliefs, but not be forced to follow those of others. Both parties have stated that family matters should not be part of a political campaign, and there is some validity in that. ...more

September 8, 2008

Scientists have transformed one type of fully developed adult cell directly into another inside a living animal, a startling advance that could lead to cures for a plethora of illnesses and sidestep the political and ethical quagmires that have plagued embryonic stem cell research. ...more

August 28, 2008

Bernann McKinney says her beloved pit bull Booger saved her life when another dog attacked her, then learned to push her wheelchair while she recovered from a severe hand injury and nerve damage. ...more

August 8, 2008

The nation's Roman Catholic bishops issued a document Friday warning against what they consider the moral dangers of embryonic stem cell research, saying it treats human beings as commodities and reduces procreation to a manufacturing process. ...more

June 14, 2008

John McCain's embrace from the Republican establishment, once hard to imagine, is nearly complete. ...more

February 16, 2008

On Tuesday Florida voters will choose their presidential candidate in a winner-take-all primary. ...more

January 27, 2008

with the total disintegration of the once all-powerful religious right. ...more

January 2, 2008

To the dismay of many, religion is becoming one of the defining issues of the presidential election campaign. From the scrutiny of Mike Huckabee's views about evolution and Mitt Romney's Mormonism on the Republican side, to unseemly e-mails questioning the religious upbringing of Barack Obama among Democrats, religious faith is once again front and center in electoral politics. ...more

December 26, 2007

Six months after stepping down as Britain's prime minister, Tony Blair has completed his long-expected conversion to Roman Catholicism from Britain's established church, Anglicanism, Catholics officials said in a statement Saturday. ...more

December 23, 2007

I think most Americans feel a little zing of pride when a Nobel Prize goes to an American. Kind of like when your favorite reporter wins a Pulitzer or our athletes win gold at the Olympics. Therefore, I was struck at the negative coverage of Al Gore becoming a laureate. Suddenly the Nobel committee has ulterior motives and an anti Bush agenda. Your paper published three editorial cartoons on the same day ridiculing the award and Mr. Gore, sandwiched between two over the top columns debunking global warming claims and Mr. Gore's involvement. Whether one believes that global warming is a crises or snake oil, the point is that this accomplished American embittered by losing an election picked himself up and became the front man for a cause. He took his message to the world, friend and foe alike, and the world listened, even though America's image has been shattered by other events in recent years. ...more

October 26, 2007