Obama & Family Meets Pope

President Barack Obama sat down with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican on Friday for a meeting in which frank but constructive talks were expected between two men who agree on helping the poor but disagree on abortion and stem cell research.

The Obamas meet with Pope Benedict XVI Friday. The Vatican changed a long-standing tradition of meeting leaders at midday in order to accommodate the president before he left Italy for his first official trip to Africa.

The pope and Obama met for half an hour, then were joined by first lady Michelle Obama, who wore black.

With some Catholic activists and American bishops outspoken in their criticism of Obama, even as polls have shown he received a slim majority of Catholic votes, the audience was much awaited. Former St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke, who now heads a Vatican tribunal, accused Obama of pursuing anti-life and antifamily agendas. He called it a "scandal" that Notre Dame had invited him to speak earlier in the year. Obama also incensed many in the religious community with his requirement that all religious references to Jesus (crosses and inscriptions like "IHS" (in his name)) be covered during his speech at Georgetown, another Catholic university.

This week, Cardinal Justin Rigali, who heads the U.S. bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities, complained that the final guidelines of the National Institutes of Health for human embryonic stem cell research are broader than the draft guidelines.

As Obama has pledged to step-up efforts for Middle East peace through a two-state solution, Benedict made a similar appeal during a trip in May to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories. He issued the Vatican's strongest call yet for a Palestinian state.

Obama met first with Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's secretary of state, before meeting Benedict in the pope's study.
Obama's wife, Michelle, joined him at the end of the meeting, and gifts were exchanged. Daughters Malia and Sasha, who accompanied their parents on the weeklong overseas trip (at taxpayers expense), also met Benedict. They were ushered out of the room before the media were allowed back in. Several senior White House staff members also met the pope, with some either shaking his hand or kissing his ring. See Chick's THE POOR POPE.

Revolutionary Bishop Blasts Sinner's Prayer

Episcopal Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori says it's "heresy" to believe that an individual can be saved through a sinner's prayer of repentance.

The controversial leader made her opening address to the church's General Conference in California. She is an outspoken liberal who promotes other non-Biblical beliefs, like same sex marriage. Jefferts Schori called that "the great Western heresy: that we can be saved as individuals, that any of us alone can be in right relationship with God."

According to Schori, it is heresy to believe that an individual's prayer can achieve a saving relationship with God. "That individualist focus is a form of idolatry, for it puts me and my words in the place that only God can occupy."

Meanwhile, six Episcopal bishops are pushing for greater recognition of same-sex marriages at a national gathering of church officials in California. Bishop Thomas Ely of Vermont says he and other bishops from states recognizing same-sex marriage will offer a resolution urging the church to adapt marriage rituals to include homosexual couples.

Ely says the resolution will be introduced at the church's General Convention, which started Wednesday in Anaheim. The convention is held every three years.

Besides Vermont, politicians and courts have legalized same-sex marriage in the states of Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Iowa, and Connecticut. The public has never voted to legalize it in any state, or country for that matter. (Even California voted it down when given the opportunity.) Realizing this, homosexuals continue to push their agenda in through the back door. See Chick's WHY NO REVIVAL?

Graves Moved To Sell Land

Workers at a historic black Illinois cemetery may have dug up more than 100 bodies and dumped them in mass graves at the back of the 150-acre property in a scheme to resell plots to unsuspecting customers, authorities said Wednesday.

Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said his office was questioning five employees from Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip, about 20 miles southwest of Chicago. But no charges were announced and investigators were working to determine how many plots may have been resold.

The sheriff's investigation began six weeks ago when the cemetery's owner reported that an employee who began feeling guilty revealed what allegedly had been going on, possibly for as long as four years, Dart said.

"All of us who were working on this for the last week were pretty distraught," Dart said. "You start with the premise of your own loved ones and how they are cared for after they are buried, but there is also a true significance to this particular cemetery." See Chick's WHO'S MISSING?

Workers Told To Work Naked

Like a scene from the 'The Office,' the employees of British marketing company onebestway came in to work one Friday and proceeded to get NAKED. The idea came from David Taylor, a cheeky business consultant and psychologist hired by the company to boost team spirit.

"Inviting an organization to go naked is the most extreme technique I've used," he told The Sun. "It may seem weird, but it works. It's the ultimate expression of trust in yourself and each other." The move to bring in Taylor came after onebestway was forced through six rounds of layoffs.

The staff underwent a week of counseling and nerve building activities leading up to the big day. Tasks included photocopying body parts, sketching nude models and discussing at length. Finally, they were asked to strip down to their birthday suits -- but only if comfortable.

Amazingly most turned up in the nude. One man chose to fashion a pouch, and two female workers wore black underwear. The only female to go fully naked was front-of-house manager Sam Jackson, 23. "It was brilliant. Now that we've seen each other naked, there are no barriers," she said. "We weren't put under pressure. If we wanted to come in clothed or in our underwear, we could. But I love my body and wasn't ashamed."

But did the stunt work? According to Managing Director Mike Owen, "We have been so much closer since, professionally and personally. It's given us that boost I wanted." He added, "I recommend anyone to do what we did. It's not a sexual thing. If you do anything scary as a company, it encourages bonding."

Whatever. See Chick's THE MONSTER.

Actor's Wife Sleeps With Son

Just when you thought Hollywood couldn't get any worse... Star magazine is reporting that Lorenzo Lamas left his fourth wife, Playboy model Shauna Sand, after it came to light she was sleeping with his then 18-year-old son, AJ. A friend of the actor called it the "ultimate betrayal" from the model.

"Lorenzo had no idea; he was in the dark about the whole thing," the friend said. "He thought Shauna was acting like a mom to A.J., he had no clue that she was his son's lover!"

Lamas married the former Playmate of the Month in 1996 and they had three daughters together. He filed for divorce in 2002. The one-time 'Falcon Crest' star has not re-married. According to reports, Lamas is currently filming a reality show revolved around his family for E!, where he will supposedly address the scandal. Oh joy. See Chick's WOUNDED CHILDREN.

Missing 7-Year-Old case solved

The mystery of Amber Swartz-Garcia, a 7-year-old Northern California girl who disappeared after going to jump rope outside her home 21 years ago, has been solved, police said Monday. Curtis Dean Anderson confessed in 2007 — a month before dying in prison — that he kidnapped and killed Amber, Pinole Police Chief Paul Clancy said.

Amber Swartz-Garcia was 7 years old when she went outside to jump rope on June 3, 1988. She never returned. On Monday, 21 years after she disappeared, police in the Northern California town of Pinole said they know what happened to her.

Anderson, 46, died of natural causes in December 2007 while serving a sentence of more than 300 years for kidnapping and sexually assaulting two other young girls. He was sentenced to 251 years for the 2000 abduction and sexual assault of an 8-year-old Vallejo girl and was sentenced to another 50 years to life after pleading guilty to the 1999 kidnapping, molestation and murder of a 7-year-old girl, also from Vallejo.

At a Monday news conference announcing the case was closed, police distributed copies of Anderson's brief handwritten statement that read, "If there is no pursuit of the death penalty, I will freely admit my role in being responsible for the death of Amber Swartz-Garcia." (So much for the claim that criminals are not influenced by the death penalty.) See Chick's KIDNAPPED.

Ukrain Outlaws Porn

Tuesday, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko signed a bill into law, making the possession of pornography a criminal offense in the country. They don't define exactly what porn is, but don't expect that to exempt anyone. See Chick's WOUNDED CHILDREN.

Riots irrupt in Occupied Chinese Territories

Riots and street battles killed at least 140 people in China's western Xinjiang province and injured 828 others in the deadliest ethnic unrest to hit the region in decades. Officials said Monday the death toll was expected to rise.

The unrest is another troubling sign for Beijing at how rapid economic development has failed to stem — and even has exacerbated — resentment among ethnic minorities, who say they are being marginalized in their homelands as Chinese migrants pour in. The Uighur natives don't want their country rule by China, but Communists officials labels such separatist groups as terrorists.

"First they fired tear gas at the students. Then they started beating them and shooting them with bullets. Big trucks arrived, and students were rounded up and arrested," a witness said.

The clashes in Urumqi echoed last year's unrest in Tibet, when a peaceful demonstration by monks in the capital of Lhasa erupted into riots that spread to surrounding areas, leaving at least 22 dead. The Chinese government accused Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, of orchestrating the violence — a charge he denied.

Since the communist take over of China, it has routinely snatched neighboring territories for itself, then ruling them with tighter and tighter restrictions. Their most recent target is Taiwan, though the island nation has stood up to threat for decades.

See Chick's KINGS OF THE EAST.

Teacher Provides REAL Sex-Ed (by Mistake)

A class of fifth graders in California got a shocking crash course on the birds and the bees courtesy of their teacher and an X-rated home video she accidentally included in a DVD of classroom memories. The DVD included six seconds of the teacher engaging in sexual activity. (Oops.) The error was not caught until after the DVDs were distributed to the students and their families. Parents tell CBS 13 Sacramento that the woman is a good teacher who made an honest but embarrassing mistake.

According to the station, the offending DVD starts with a menu screen that displays various school trips and functions. Click on one of them and "you see kids in a classroom sharing stories. They then start clapping and the video suddenly cuts to sex. The teacher, according to CBS 13, called one family's home the day after the DVD was sent, and apologized profusely, "asking the man and his wife to call every parent they knew to stop their kids from seeing the DVD too."

CBS 13 reports that the local school district is investigating the case, but that it is unlikely that teacher, who is well-liked and respected, will lose her job. (If the tape had included a message promoting Jesus, then the cries for dismissal would be fast and furious, haw-haw!)

See Chick's IT'S COMING.
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Non-Chick Comics Promote Same Sex Love

Those "funny books" aren't so funny any more. The most recent issue of "X-Factor" ended with two male team members, Shatterstar and Rictor, making out. While readers will have to wait till next month to find out whether they're gay, bisexual, or it's some sort of mind-control plot point, consider writer Peter David's track record of supporting gay characters in comics -- and the lesser-known fact that writers planned for the pair to hook up back in the mid-90s.There's a good shot this is the start of a homosexual whirlwind romance.

Yet Mainstream comics haven't always been so liberal. The Comics Code Authority was created in the 50s partly out of concern about a subtext of sexual perversion, and it forbade homosexuality until 1989. Now it's all the rage. A typical example is the recent promotion of the crime-fighting lesbian Batwoman to the helm of "Detective Comics". But count your blessings, at least they didn't make Batman and Robin gay lovers (not yet, anyway). See Chick's SIN CITY.

Dems Snatch Senate Seat

After using a flock of lawyers to disqualify hundreds of Republican votes, and "discovering" numerous Democrat absentee ballots, Al Franken snatches the Senate seat from Norm Coleman, who originally won by over 200 votes. It was an uphill battle for Coleman, because the final say was made by a liberal Minnesota Supreme Court, and US Congress and Senate are also dominated by Democrats. The U.S. Supreme court had already indicated it wasn't likely to get involved, since it was a state rights issue and not a national issue. Democrats were determined to get the 60th seat so they could prevent any Filibuster opposition in the Senate to controversial issues like Amnesty for Illegal aliens, Gays in the Military, and the Cap and Trade Bill. Franken was an acid tongued comedian who turned into a talk show and became famous for attacking Republicans, Conservative values, and fundamentalist Christians on "Air America". The silver lining, however, is that unlike Iran, there is no sign of violence as a result of the controversy. See Chick's THE FOOL.

Obama Promises To Put Gays In Military

President Obama and his wife commemorated the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion in New York City, widely seen as the spark for the gay rights movement. As a candidate, the president collected millions for gays and promised to repeal the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy banning gays from serving openly in the military as well as the Defense Of Marriage Act. Gay rights advocates have grown increasingly impatient as his administration has yet to deliver all the benefits he promised. He earlier declared June to be LGBT month (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender month). He also gave the first ever Gay Pride event in the Whitehouse.

"I believe preventing patriotic Americans from serving their country weakens our national security," the president said in reference to "don't ask, don't tell." He said the administration is pushing the Pentagon and Congress to end the policy. He also insisted that doing so will require an act of Congress, though many believe the president could halt discharges of openly gay servicemembers through an executive order.

The president noted that he has signed a memorandum extending some federal benefits to gay, lesbian, and "transgendered" couples and is urging Congress to pass the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act, which would mean the extension of health care benefits to the partners of such people. The change will cost taxpayers hundreds of millions in new expenses.

He also said his administration is working to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination bill and a hate crimes bill named after Matthew Shepard. The hate crimes law punishes criminals who hurt minorities more than it does average Americans.

After setting out to close down the prison in Cuba because it is "a recruiting tool for the terrorists," Obama isn't addressing how putting openly gay soldiers in the military will help incite attacks against our occupational forces. (Homosexuality is one of the most offensive behaviors to the Muslim faith.) See Chick's DOOM TOWN.

"Miracle" Investigated for Pope

A panel appointed by the Archdiocese of Baltimore is about to take on a rare investigation -- whether prayers to a 19th-century priest miraculously cured an Annapolis, Md., woman of terminal cancer, The Baltimore Sun reported.

The case is just the fifth such investigation in the archdiocese's 200-year history. If the priest, Francis X. Seelos, is found to be behind the woman's cure, it could move him closer to being declared a Roman Catholic saint. The pope will have the final say.

Mary Ellen Heibel, 71, was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in 2003, The Sun said. She underwent surgery, but doctors later discovered the procedure had missed a cancerous lymph node. The disease spread to her lungs, liver, stomach and chest.

She began praying to Seelos, who had been a pastor at her church, St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church. Seelos died in 1867 while treating yellow fever victims in New Orleans. In the 1970s, a woman there beat terminal liver cancer after praying to Seelos. The Catholic Church investigated that case and deemed it a miracle, a finding that led to Seelos' beatification in 2000.

Heibel, her husband and their priest began a special series of prayers to Seelos in January 2005. At that point, her doctor believed she had six, maybe 12, months to live. The following month, a scan showed something stunning: All her tumors were gone. And, according to the results of her latest scan, in March 2008, she's still healthy.

See Chick's ROOM 310.