The Common Good
September-October 2000

Briefly Noted

by Ryan Beiler | September-October 2000

  • "No matter how we pray, nor how we sin, we can stand up for each other. We can
    stand up against hate."—Republican Sen.
Print
Post a Comment | Write to the Editor
  • "No matter how we pray, nor how we sin, we can stand up for each other. We can stand up against hate."—Republican Sen. Gordon Smith of Oregon, speaking in support of legislation that would make crimes involving bodily injury motivated by a victim’s race, religion, national origin, disability, gender, or sexual orientation a federal offense.
  • While 57 percent of Americans believe that abortion is murder, a majority also believe it should remain a legal option for women, according to a June LA Times poll. The poll also reflected a trend toward acceptance of abortion restrictions: Seventy-two percent of women said that second-trimester abortions should be illegal, compared to 58 percent of men.
  • A team of ethnic Albanian housewives trained by Scandinavian experts has begun to clear Yugoslav landmines from their native Kosovo. "I’m not scared," said Vjolca Gashi, 28, a member of the first all-female mine-clearance team in the world. "We’re aware of the danger. I came to help my people and I’m proud of it. Anyway, women are better than men; they’re more precise and careful."
  • Congress voted in May to rename the infamous U.S. Army School of the Americas (SOA) at Ft. Benning, Georgia, now officially known as the Defense Institute for Hemispheric Security Cooperation. "The SOA has a new name, but the same shame," said SOA Watch leaders Fr. Roy Bourgeois and Carol Richardson. "We will be at Ft. Benning by the thousands again this November, and we will be in the halls of the new Congress in January. We will keep coming back until we shut down the ‘School of the Assassins’—whatever they call it." See www.soaw.org.
Post a Comment | Write to the Editor
Sojourners relies on the support of readers like you to sustain our message and ministry.

Like what you're reading? Get Sojourners E-Mail updates!

Sojourners Comment Community Covenant

I will express myself with civility, courtesy, and respect for every member of the Sojourners online community, especially toward those with whom I disagree, even if I feel disrespected by them. (Romans 12:17-21)

I will express my disagreements with other community members' ideas without insulting, mocking, or slandering them personally. (Matthew 5:22)

I will not exaggerate others' beliefs nor make unfounded prejudicial assumptions based on labels, categories, or stereotypes. I will always extend the benefit of the doubt. (Ephesians 4:29)

I will hold others accountable by clicking "report" on comments that violate these principles, based not on what ideas are expressed but on how they're expressed. (2 Thessalonians 3:13-15)

I understand that comments reported as abusive are reviewed by Sojourners staff and are subject to removal. Repeat offenders will be blocked from making further comments. (Proverbs 18:7)