Clipmarks | wiccantexan's 'children' clips

Obama to Media: "Back off!" Palin pregnancy

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 21:44:29 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Amen.

Obama To Media: "Back Off" Palin Pregnancy

At a brief press availability in Monroe, Mich., ABC News asked Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., if he had any response to Gov. Sarah Palin's statement that her unmarried 17-year-old daughter Bristol is pregnant.

"Let me be a clear as possible: I have said before and I will repeat again, I think people's families are off limits," Obama said, "and people's children are especially off limits.

"This shouldn't be part of our politics," he continued, "It has no relevance to Gov. Palin's performance as governor, or her potential performance as a vice president.

"And so I would strongly urge people to back off these kinds of stories," he said. "You know my mother had me when she was 18, and how a family deals with issues and, you know, teenage children, that shouldn't be the topic of our politics and I hope that anybody who is supporting me understands that's off limits."

Tags: palin, obama

Alleged FLDS Teen Bride Removed; Back in Foster Care

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 00:37:57 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.ksat.com

A 14-year-old girl allegedly married to jailed polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs with her parents' blessing at age 12 was removed from her family's home in Converse on Tuesday after a judge ordered her back into foster care.

District Judge Barbara Walther said that there was "uncontroverted evidence of the underage marriage" and that the girl's mother, Barbara Jessop, refused to guarantee the girl's safety. The girl, shown in photographs submitted to the court kissing Jeffs, was taken into custody by Child Protective Services.

In the case of the 14-year-old allegedly married to Jeffs, Walther said she felt she had to place the girl in foster care because Jessop "was unable to provide assurances that she'd be able to protect the child in the future."

On Monday, Jessop, 55, refused to answer roughly 50 questions asked by attorneys for Child Protective Services, including the names of her children, what constituted abuse and whether a parent had an obligation to protect her children.

Tags: flds, polygamy, minor, marriage, religion, belief, teens

Pagans prepare for preschool

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 04:19:13 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.dailytidings.com

Ashland's Rowan Tree Pagan Ministries may literally put the magic back in childhood this fall.

Rowan Tree Director of Children's Programs Selyna Faola'n plans to offer Rowan Academy, a preschool and kindergarten program for children ages 3 to 5, starting Sept. 22.

Rowan Tree Pagan Ministries is an organization that offers programs and resources for the Southern Oregon pagan community. The group received its nonprofit certificate this week.

She designed her Rowan Academy curriculum to emphasize the general basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. Her classes will also include age-appropriate lessons in natural cycles, the planets and the elements.

Other children's programs include the Magic Wheel and the Senesha School of Magic. Faola'n described the year-round Magic Wheel as similar to Sunday school. The Magic Wheel program takes place at holidays and full moon celebrations, and provides children with arts and crafts activities while their parents participate in rituals.

Tags: pagan, children, school, nonprofit, nature

Parents harm children's development by keeping them safe

Sun, 03 Aug 2008 08:59:24 GMT

clipped by: JohnWaterman

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

It is a scene that epitomises childhood: young siblings racing towards a heavy oak tree, hauling themselves on to the lower branches and scrambling up as high as they can get. Yet millions of children are being deprived of such pleasure because their parents are nervous about exposing them to any risks, new research has revealed.

Children are not being allowed many of the freedoms that were taken for granted when we were children

They are not enjoying the opportunities to play outside that most people would have thought of as normal when they were growing up.

Last year, almost three times as many children were admitted to hospital after falling out of bed as those who had fallen from a tree

transformed how they experience childhood

children ought to be taking risks

Risk-taking increases

resilience

helps them make judgments

fire-building, den-making, watersports, paintballing, boxing and climbing trees

should be encouraged

your heart is in your mouth and that is normal

'Kid-sick' parents hate to let go at camp time

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 15:25:21 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

Then Pidgeon looked around and noticed something else: “There were no children crying — just parents.”

These days, camp leaders and family counselors say it’s an increasingly common dynamic. It used to be the homesick kid begging to come home from camp. While that still happens, they’ve noticed that it’s often parents who have more trouble letting go.

They call it “kid-sickness,” a condition attributed in large part to today’s more involved style of parenting. Observers also say it’s only being exacerbated by our ability to be in constant contact by cell phone and computer, as well as many parents’ perception that the world is a more dangerous place.

He says there’s something to be said for a parent who cares, but not to the point of becoming a “helicopter parent,” a term used for parents who constantly hover over their children, stepping in to monitor their choices and solve their problems, even into adult life.

Tags: children, parents

Gunman critically wounds 7 at Unitarian children's church play

Sun, 27 Jul 2008 19:55:41 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

An armed man opened fire on worshippers in a Unitarian church in Knoxville, Tennessee, during a children's play Sunday, critically wounding seven people, police and church members said.

"To our knowledge right now, he is the lone suspect in this case," Roehl said.

The man entered the church and began shooting during a children's production of the musical "Annie," said Steve Drevik, a church member who arrived after man's arrest.

"We have a lot of scared, traumatized children and they just don't know what to think," Drevik said. iReport.com: Are you there? Share photos, video, accounts

The suspect, whose identity was not immediately released, was taken into custody without a fight after police arrived, Roehl said. Drevik said the man did not appear to be a church member.

"We don't know this particular individual. We may never know why," Drevik said. "All of this will come out in the next couple of days."

Tags: religion, children, crime, guns, church, unitarian

Obama Knocks Critics Of Language Comments

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 02:36:53 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.cbsnews.com

Democrat Barack Obama batted away conservative criticism Friday over a comment he made about Americans' lack of foreign language skills.

"The Republicans jumped on this. I said, absolutely immigrants need to learn English, but we also need to learn foreign languages,"

"This is an example of some of the problems we get into when somebody attacks you for saying the truth, which is: We should want our children with more knowledge. We should want our children to have more skills. There's nothing wrong with that. That's a good thing. I know, because I don't speak a foreign language. It's embarrassing," Obama said chuckling as his audience did the same.

The Americans for Legal Immigration PAC said in a statement, "Barack Obama has stepped on a political land mine by stating Americans should be forced to learn to speak Spanish."

But that's not what Obama said.

he said he doesn't understand people who say "we need English only."

Tags: obama, language, foreign, children, school, english

Satanist Father, Christian Mother Fight For Sunday Morning Custody Rights

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 02:48:52 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

A custody battle between a Satanist and his Christian ex-wife has raised constitutional issues after both demanded the right to share their religion with their three young children.

Kristie Meyer has cited the religious beliefs of her former husband, Jamie, as the main reason why an Indiana judge should restrict his visitation rights.

She wants the three to go to church on Sunday mornings - technically, when they are with Mr Meyer - but points out they are unlikely to do so if they are with their father, a member of an organisation calling itself the Church of Satan.

However, legal experts have warned that the American Constitution prevents judges from showing a religious preference.

Meyer may now be asked to prove that Satanism, which he says is about celebrating man's desires rather than worshipping the devil, is a real faith.

his former wife may have to show that Satanism - which is recognised as a religion by the US Internal Revenue Service - is harmful to their daughters' upbringing.

Tags: satan, satanism, christian, religion, children, rights, legal

World's oldest mom age now 72

Sun, 06 Jul 2008 18:21:15 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: abcnews.go.com

A 72-year-old woman who has two children and five grandchildren has given birth to twins, making her the world's oldest mother.

Omkari Panwar delivered twins, a boy and a girl, by Caesarean section last week.

Singh was reluctant to speak because he has received negative publicity for his wife's having children at such an advanced age.

"The desire for a male child has always been there, but God did not bless us with a male child," he said of the son who is a product of in vitro fertilization. "Now, we are very grateful to God, who has answered our prayers."

The septuagenarian couple spent their life savings and took out a loan from the bank for Panwar to undergo in vitro treatments. For the couple, the desire to have a son was most important because they wanted to carry on the family name. They know that their son may never be able to care for them in the traditional way because of the age gap.

Tags: children, elderly, pregnancy, old, woman, twins, medical, health

Obama tells black fathers to step up

Sun, 15 Jun 2008 22:41:49 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

Barack Obama celebrated Father's Day by calling on black fathers, who he said are "missing from too many lives and too many homes," to become active in raising their children.

"They have abandoned their responsibilities, acting like boys instead of men. And the foundations of our families are weaker because of it," the Democratic presidential candidate said Sunday at a largely black church in his hometown.

Obama often speaks about the importance of parental involvement. In Washington, he sponsored legislation to get more child support money to children by offering a tax credit for fathers who pay support, more efficient collection and penalties for fathers who don't meet their obligations.

"We can't simply write these problems off to past injustices," Obama said Sunday. "Those injustices are real. There's a reason our families are in disrepair ... but we can't keep using that as an excuse."

Obama urged black parents to demand the best from themselves and their children.

Tags: obama, parents, parenting, father, children

Court: Texas wrongly seized sect children

Thu, 22 May 2008 23:52:41 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

In a ruling that could torpedo the case against the West Texas polygamist sect, a state appeals court Thursday said authorities had no right to seize more than 440 children in a raid on the splinter group's ranch last month.

It was unclear how many children were affected by the ruling. The state took 464 children into custody in April, but Thursday's ruling directly applied to the children of 48 sect mothers represented by the Texas Rio Grande Legal Aide, said Cynthia Martinez of the agency. About 200 parents are involved in the polygamy case.

The Third Court of Appeals in Austin ruled that the state offered "legally and factually insufficient" grounds for the "extreme" measure of removing all children from the ranch, from babies to teenagers.

The state never provided evidence that the children were in any immediate danger, the only grounds in Texas law for taking children from their parents without court approval, the appeals court said.

Tags: texas, religion, belief, children, flds, polygamy, legal, parents

Age of pregnant FLDS 'girls' disputed

Sat, 17 May 2008 01:59:37 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- When Texas child welfare authorities released statistics showing nearly 60 percent of the teen girls taken from a polygamist sect's ranch were pregnant or had children, they seemed to prove what was alleged all along: The sect commonly pushed girls into marriage and sex.

But in the past week, the state has twice been forced to admit "girls" who gave birth while in state custody are actually adults. One was 22 and said she showed state officials a Utah birth certificate shortly after she and more than 400 minors were seized from the West Texas ranch in an April raid.

The state has in custody two dozen other young mothers and others whose ages are in dispute. If most of them also turn out to be adults, it would be a severe blow to the state's claim of widespread sexual abuse.

Parker said the state ignored evidence the young mothers presented, including birth certificates and Social Security cards.

Tags: flds, religion, belief, marriage, children, pregnancy, teen, girls, texas, abuse

Poland honors woman who saved 2,500 Jews

Wed, 14 Mar 2007 23:32:21 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

WARSAW, Poland - A 97-year-old woman credited with saving 2,500 Jews during the Holocaust was honored by parliament Wednesday at a ceremony during which Poland's president said she deserves the Nobel Peace Prize.

Irena Sendler, who lives in a nursing home in Warsaw, was too frail to attend the special session in which members of the Senate unanimously approved a resolution honoring her and the Polish underground Council for Assisting Jews.

The group's members, mostly Roman Catholics, risked their own lives to save Jews from the Holocaust in Nazi-occupied Poland.

Sendler was cited for organizing the "rescue of the most defenseless victims of the Nazi ideology — the Jewish children."

Tortured by Nazis
She wrote the children's names on slips of paper and buried them in jars in a neighbor's yard as a record that could help locate their parents after the war. The Nazis arrested her in 1943, but she refused — despite repeated torture — to reveal their names.

Tags: jews, holocaust, history

Polygamy showdown: balancing child welfare, religious freedom

Sat, 03 May 2008 02:55:43 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.firstamendmentcenter.org

Texas officials are trying hard to keep the focus on child abuse — and away from religion — in the custody battle involving 437 children seized from a polygamist religious sect this month.

If only it were so simple.

Like it or not, this conflict is about far more than the issue of older men having sex with under-age girls in violation of Texas law. It’s also about religion — specifically the religious culture of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS).

Defenders of the church argue that the raid was an overreaction to one telephone call (that may have been a hoax) and was motivated by long-standing animus toward the FLDS community. The state counters that dramatic measures are justified when evidence points to children trapped in a religious culture that promotes child abuse.

The only way to sort out the truth, and determine the fate of the children, will be to put the FLDS way of life on trial.

Tags: religion, belief, rights, children, polygamy, sect, texas, culture

CPS: Most Sect's Girls Have Been Pregnant

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 04:32:24 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.cbsnews.com

31 Of 53 Teen Girls Taken From FLDS Polygamist Compound Have Children Or Are Pregnant, Officials Say

A total of 53 girls between the ages of 14 and 17 are in state custody after a raid 3½ weeks ago at the Yearning For Zion Ranch in Eldorado. Of those girls, 31 either have children or are pregnant, said Child Protective Services spokesman Darrell Azar. Two are pregnant now, CPS officials have said in court; it was unclear whether either of those two already have children.

"It shows you a pretty distinct pattern, that it was pretty pervasive," he said.

State officials took custody of all 463 children at the ranch controlled by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, saying a pattern of teen girls forced into underage "spiritual" marriages and sex with much older men created an unsafe environment for the sect's children.

"I do have serious questions about how they are determining age in there," said Parker, who is trying to get a better count from FLDS families.

Tags: flds, polygamy, sect, religion, belief, children, abuse, pregnancy, teen