TheScroogeReport

Imagine a ferocious ocean storm beating against a rocky shore. The lightning flashes, the thunder roars, the waves lash the rocks. But then imagine that you see a crevice in the rocky cliff–and inside is a little bird, its head serenely tucked under its wing, fast asleep…. God promised Moses, “I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand” (Exodus 33:22). That is God’s promise to us. Christ is our Rock, and we are secure in His hands forever. The storm rages, but our hearts are at rest.

- By Billy Graham, Hope For Each Day

First Lady Laura Bush announced Wednesday a $507 million grant to Mozambique to build roads and wells that will be used in the battle against the country’s biggest killer and the continent’s biggest child killer.

By JENNIFER RILEY
Christian Post

June 28, 2007 - TheScroogeReport.com Post

“The compact will help eliminate mosquito breeding grounds and by providing safe water for nearly 2 million people, the devastating toll of the water-borne disease including malaria would be reduced,” Bush told a gathering of religious groups, according to Reuters.

During the meeting, the U.S. first lady also awarded a $2 million grant to the first inter-religious campaign against malaria in Mozambique, which will provide health education and training to an estimated 1.5 million Mozambicans, according to Agence France-Presse.

Malaria, the preventable mosquito-borne disease, is Mozambique’s leading cause of death, affecting some 4 million Mozambicans each year. While it doesn’t grab the same headlines as AIDS, Malaria far outstrips the latter as the continent’s biggest child killer. Worldwide, Malaria kills 1 million people each year, mostly Africans.

Mozambique is one of four beneficiaries of the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) initiated by President Bush in 2005. The 1.2 billion dollar plan supports non-governmental organizations by funding prevention strategies such as pesticide spraying, mosquito bed net distribution and helps purchase anti-malarial drugs. The five-year program aims to reduce malaria in the recipient African countries by 50 percent.

Read Full Story

O’donnell’s “A picture is worth a thousand posts” depicts her 4-year-old girl wearing ammo belt

This Week’s Top Scrooge - June 29, 2007  

By ALEXANDER
TheScroogeReport.com 

I slept on it and I still don’t get it. Why would a woman so anti-war, display a photo slide show of her child dressed to an exact mirror image of the images we see coming out of the Middle East - terrorist indoctrination camps parading children in militia gear?

Thought provoking? Well, yes. But at what cost?

Rosie O’donnell’s idea of “art” is strange indeed. You see, that is how she is defending her post, by calling the photos “art”. Once again, the Rosie Alert level is set at high.

As reported in WorldNetDaily.com, O’Donnell explains the photo was the result of a game of make-believe.

In an e-mail to The ShowBuzz, she said:

“They don’t watch TV – this is how they play/the boys had fatigues and were playing war/the girls wanted some/they run around the house with water guns/shooting each other.”

“It’s fascinating to me/that an image of a child dressed up as a soldier/evokes so much attention/yet the real soldiers – their deaths – their wounded bodies/doesn’t seem to faze most/or make news,” she added.

But to post the photos on your peace-loving blog?

I admit…I don’t even get the whole concept of dressing up to be anything even hinting evil for Halloween. I’ll never forget that first Halloween after the 9/11 World Trade Center attack. I was thinking what was the point of it all? What was the point of dressing up like a ghoul or anything with blood?

Sure kids will be kids. However, I think I might have let this one sit out my blog. I might have let this one stay in my family album. Maybe even smile as I saw the reaction of grandparents or friends flipping through the ‘my military kid’ photos.

But to post the stuff on her popular blog knowing the “art” is all to real for a good chunk of the world? Not too brilliant.

I have got to hand it to you, Rosie. You have found a way to go beyond “The View” and made me realize that blogs such as Rosie.com can be as powerful as any media.

Rosie, you’ve been mentioned on this blog, TheScroogeReport.com, a few times, but never as This Week’s Top Scrooge. Sorry, tag…you are it!

And by the way…Peace out!
_______________
Past Scrooges:

North Dakota’s foster care, juvenile detention facilities under atheist group’s attack

Emergency at Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital Takes a Back Seat

At Galesburg High, kids are kids and school officials are out of control

Can Hugo Chavez go down on YouTube, blogs?

Sex, drugs and the ol’ ‘You’re going to do it anyway’ excuse

A nation traumatized by Paris Hilton

Fleeing to the satellite waves, radio jocks Opie and Anthony reach even lower

Parents’ child abuse includes dog cage, shock collar

Alec Baldwin tries cleaning pigsty with “Apology Tour 2007″

This week: no point in poking fun at boneheads and blunders

Knuckle-headed Dom Imus and Nebraska woman tie for top dishoner

Woman’s home up for grabs as part of online hoax
_______________

↑ Grab this Headline Animator

_______________

Get your ScroogeReport T-shirts, coffee mugs, and more - visit CafePress now!

OK, so Rosie O’Donnell is defending her bullet-toting child, apparently dressed up for a photo shoot, by calling it “art.” (What is it lately with celebrities exploiting their own children and others for the sake of “art”?)

So what is Rosie trying to convey in this piece?

I’m going to give my interpretation, which is exactly what art is supposed to do…make you think….right?!

Here’s what I think. Rosie’s piece of art is telling Islamic terrorists who visit her blog that its perfectly understandable that you killers train your children to kill. In fact, she wishes she had an AK-47 during her photo shoot to make the art more complete. Her art is telling the world that it’s not only terrorists that can display their children with weapons and ammunition…Rosie can, too!

- Alexander, TheScroogeReport.com 

PS While writing this post, the photo montage video of Rosie’s child with bullets was taken off her blog, Rosie.com. Later, it was back up. The photo above is from that slideshow/video.

From FOXNews.com:

Unemployed gabfest queen Rosie O’Donnell, who last went to war with Elisabeth Hasselbeck only to retreat from her position on “The View,” has drafted a reinforcement in the form of her waif-like 4-year-old daughter Vivienne Rose, better known as “Vivi.”

O’Donnell posted a video and photo of her little soldier on her Web site Rosie.com on Tuesday, which drew immediate reaction — some not so kind — about the media transformation of her daughter from little princess to bullet-toting guerrilla fighter.

“That is a horrible picture of VIvi!!” one viewer wrote to her blog.

O’Donnell defended the image on her blog.

“Art can’t hurt u,” she said to one person who called her “sick.” “Art provokes,” she said to another who begged her to take the picture down.

Other reader comments included:

“RO, I AGREE WITH U ON MOSTLY EVERYTHING. BUT SOMEHOW I FOUND THE PICTURE OF VIVI DISTURBING. I DON’T EVEN LET MY CHILDREN PLAY WITH ANYTHING SIMILAR TO THAT. IT’S JUST A COMMENT. BUT OH WELL!!!!!!”

“wow Ro that photo of Vivi with the bullets made me cry-it’s scary to think that there are precious little ones really walking around like that in our world “for real”. Come on people! Help our babies”

“what’s with the new pic? it’s rather disturbing!”

“Help me out here….Why is that child in the header pic(your child I believe) wearing a bullet belt around her? Is there a political statement ur trying to make?”

“that picture is gross! I am disturbed…leaving your site for a clearing of my mind as to what you are up to!”

“Oh, WOW Vivi looks beautiful.! the fact that U let her explore her imagination like that shows what a good mom U R. In some countries though, they are training terrorists that young, how sad is that?”

“Ro- So dissapointed to see your little ones with bullets…where are the guns? I thought for sure you would protect them more from such things…The internet is NOT OK…but bullets ARE?? Why Why??”

“Are you kidding me with that pic of your daughter? Why would you do that?”

“WHY DO YOU HAVE THAT PICTURE OF VIVI WEARING BULLETS, I LOVE YOU AND IT REALLY OFFENEDED ME !!!!”

“Not sure of the “message” you are trying to send with that pic of Viv, but I guarantee many are not going to get it… Children with bullets, even fake…?? what are u thinking?”

By ALEXANDER
TheScroogeReport.com

June 27, 2007 

Set aside for a moment that you are sick and tired of hearing about all-things-Paris-Hilton.

Does Paris Hilton know God?

And don’t give me that “I’m not paying attention” baloney either. After all, this Paris stuff is in our face every moment of the day unless you live on a deserted island with no electronic, satellite, or cellular devices in sight. So, “paying attention” is part of the deal.

Here is the rub on us: Why are we, and I mean we as a society, trying to figure out if Paris had a spiritual awakening in prison or not? In doing so, we’ve heard the most absurd parameters for whether a person knows God or not in a long time.

Just look at these headlines and comments:

Paris: God can wait - I need a hair extension
It appeared that socialite Hilton’s plans to serve God, perhaps by creating a halfway house for former ex-convicts, would have to wait at least a day as she readjusted to the simple life of fame and celebrity yesterday.

Will Paris Wear Orange on “Larry King”?
…But the intrepid oddsmakers at Bodog have put wagers on a slew of things that might — or might not — happen during Paris’ big interview on “Larry King Live.” For instance, the Bodog bettors are almost metaphysically certain (1-to-7 odds) that Paris will mention finding God in jail…

Paris Already Back to Her Old Ways
…The hair-fix house-call contradicts what Hilton told Barbara Walters at the start of her sentence. “I’m not that superficial girl,” she said. “I haven’t looked in a mirror since I got here. My purpose in life is to be where I am.”

And on the TV news, broadcasters are smirking and getting a good chuckle. Paris can not surely remain Paris and have a relationship with God at the same time…they smugly infer.

Can Paris Hilton say she has God’s purpose in mind and get hair extensions at the same time?

Wow! What a judgemental world we live in. Nowhere in the Bible did I read “Thou shall not get hair extensions.”

More importantly, we are seeing the evidence of confusion when it comes to knowing what it means to get a calling from God or having a relationship with Him. Also, we see the question being implied: can one be oneself and still follow the words of the Bible?

Do you have to drop the fancy homes, cars, and beautician house calls?

The answer is no. It is not a sin to live in this world not as a pauper, but as one among them…and in this case, one among the Hollywood crowd.

I don’t think it’s our job to analyze Paris to the Nth degree and look to see how God is or is not working in her life.

Perhaps these verses make it clearer:

It’s a good thing to keep in mind. Isn’t it?

Hair extensions aren’t going to make or break the deal when it comes to Paris Hilton’s journey…with or without a spiritual awakening.
_______________

A wrestler action figure left by a young fan stands on the wall outside the home of professional wrestling superstar Chris Benoit in Fayetteville, Georgia, June 26, 2007. Benoit was found dead along with his wife and 7-year-old son on Monday afternoon in what police believe was a murder-suicide, authorities said on Tuesday. REUTERS/Tami Chappell (UNITED STATES)

Two new stories today posted in the L.A. Times special online section, Troubles at King-Harbor: Full coverage. Both stories are written by Jack Leonard.

Burke silent as panel debates hospital’s fate
Troubled King-Harbor is in her district. But she has been silent while colleagues debate what to do about the facility.

Nearby hospitals could take some King-Harbor patients
But nearby facilities would have to add more emergency and critical care beds, a report finds.

Related Opinion Column:

Emergency at Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital Takes a Back Seat 
– Alexander, TheScroogeReport

June 26, 2007

Texas Inmate Executed; Doesn’t Tell Joke •

Blair not my poodle, Bush says •

Moore Likes Austrian Health-Care System •

- TheScroogeReport.com Post

By ALEXANDER
TheScroogeReport.com 

NEW YORK – In an attempt to overturn a court ruling that bans Nativity scenes at public schools during the Christmas season, New York City Councilman Tony Avella (D-Bayside) announced a resolution Sunday at City Hall.

The resolution calls for the New York City Department of Education (DOE) to amend their holiday display policy for public elementary and secondary schools to include a nativity scene or crèche.

In his proposal, presented at the press conference Sunday, Avella argued that the prohibition of the holiday display is discriminatory, and that it is part of the heritage of a majority of school children around the nation.

Schools currently allow two symbols, the menorah for Judaism and the Islamic Star and Crescent for Islam, which the councilman says is a double-standard.

“My resolution is purely about inclusion,” Avella said. “The menorah and star and crescent are religious symbols. By adding a nativity scene/crèche to the holiday display, Christianity will receive equal representation with other religious faiths during the holiday season.”

The Christian Post reports that Avella’s resolution is supported by many others, including Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel of the Christian legal group Thomas More Law Center.

“This case illustrates the court supported double-standard used by public schools across the country to outlaw Christian expressions while permitting and even encouraging expressions of every other religion,” Thompson wrote in a statement. “I applaud Councilman Avella’s endeavor to correct this obvious injustice to the Christian parents and their children that he represents. Authentic tolerance and pluralism includes respect for Christians.”

In February, the Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision to ban Nativity scenes from public schools, citing that it was constitutional. The school administration has argued that they will only allow secular symbols during the holiday season, according to the Christian Post story.

“We only allow secular symbols, and that decision has been upheld by the courts,” said Marge Feinberg, a Department of Education spokeswoman, in the New York Sun.

Christian activists are challenging the ruling, however, in that the interpretation mischaracterizes the Jewish and Islam symbols as being secular and only giving the Christmas tree as a secular symbol for Christmas.

Several groups have argued that a crèche, also known as a manger, should also be among the list of applicable displays, especially since about one million students in the New York public school system are affected.

The Thomas More Law Center originally started the litigation in February on behalf of Andrea Skoros and her two religious minor children who attend New York City schools. This is only after Catholic League president William Donohue had tried to convince school officials on multiple occasions to allow the displays.

“Our nation has a strong Christian heritage that is reflected in our traditions,” explained Robert Muise, the attorney who originally litigated the case, in a statement. “One such tradition is displaying a crèche during the Christmas season. New York City’s current Nativity ban exhibits a hostility toward religion that is contrary to our history and our Constitution.”

As reported in the Chritian Post, the issue is one of several around the country in relation to religious symbols at public schools. In April, a Rhode Island school administration renamed the Easter Bunny “Peter Rabbit,” citing that the other form was too religious. The incident spurred an “Easter Bunny Act” that would bar name changes of popular religious and secular symbols.

In Texas this past season, children were not allowed to write “Merry Christmas” in letters to soldiers to avoid religious content. The incident prompted a Religious Viewpoint Anti-Discrimination Act which was recently signed into law by Texas Gov. Rick Perry. It will allow Texas schoolchildren to express their Christian faith in public schools.

_______________

Curtis Allgier, 27, is taken away in the back of a police car from a fast food restaurant after being captured Monday, June 25, 2007, in Salt Lake City. The prison inmate taken to the University of Utah for a medical appointment Monday stole a gun from a corrections officer and fatally shot him, authorities said. Allgier fled the scene on foot, carjacked a Ford Explorer and was captured miles away at an Arby’s restaurant after a high-speed chase. (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac)