By Christy Barritt

Parent Thrown Out of Common Core Meeting

A man in Ellicott City, Maryland was arrested after asking a question during a pubic forum meeting of the Maryland State Department of Education in Baltimore County. 

The meeting was about the Common Core curriculum—a new set of federal standards that will be applied to school systems across the country. The school administrators selected presubmitted questions to be answered.

Robert Small, a parent, suspected his question wouldn’t be chosen, so he stood up and voiced his concern, saying that the new program would “lower American education standards.”

His statement was met with applause from other parents.

An off-duty police officer, acting as a security guard, forced Small out of the room. The officer claimed that Small yelled and pushed him. Small was then charged with assaulting a police officer and disturbing a school activity. 

The charges against Small were later dropped. He could have served 10 years if convicted.

Porn Activates Same Addiction Triggers as Alcohol and Heroin

A new study by Cambridge University shows that pornography can become a physical addiction.

Researcher Dr. Valerie Voon studied 19 men aged 19 to 34 who had tried to quit looking at porn and failed. Some had even lost relationships and jobs because of their habits.

Voon scanned the men’s brains as they watched pornographic images. She found that these men displayed the same addiction responses as those of alcoholics being shown ads for booze or drug abusers shown images of dealers.

“When an alcoholic sees an ad for a drink, their brain will light up in a certain way and they will be stimulated in a certain way, “ said Voon. “We are seeing this same kind of activity in users of pornography.”

Voon’s study is believed to be the first of its kind to study the actual physical signs of addiction in the brain in response to pornography exposure.

Atheists Encourage People to “Stone” Them 

The Freedom From Religion Foundation invited students, faculty, and the general public at the University of Wisconsin-Madison to “stone” them at an event called “Blasphemy Rights Day” in September.

Blasphemy Rights Day International is a day when individuals and groups can express their criticism of religion. To celebrate that day, the FFRF, an atheist group, planned an event called “Is Blasphemy Okay?” Rather than use actual stones, the group sold water balloons and gave the proceeds to cancer research.

The group put up signs around campus, quoting the Bible and citing the “stoning of atheists and blasphemers.” Some of the verses they used included 2 Chronicles 15:13, which says, “all who would not seek the Lord . . . were to be put to death” and Leviticus 24:16 which says, “Anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death.”

The organizer said their goal was to educate atheist students about how to protect their constitutional rights.

Trucker Spends Thousands on Bible Billboards

A truck driver from Green Bay, Wisconsin wants to bring Christian messages to the men, women, and children who travel along some of the state’s highways.

Harold Scott, 72, started the Kaiser Christian Fund and set out to raise $750,000 for this project. Most of the money he’s spent has been his own.

Already, Scott has posted his message of God’s love on 25 billboards in the state.

Scott is even considering taking out a loan or acquiring a reverse mortgage on his house in order to keep funding the campaign. Some people have called his efforts crazy.

 “Anything that’s advancing the kingdom of Christ is not crazy at all,” Scott told USA Today. “We need more people to get on the wagon for Jesus Christ. We need more disciples.”

Christy Barritt is an award-winning author, freelance writer, and speaker living in Chesapeake, Virginia. She and her husband Scott have two sons.
www.christybarritt.com