Is "The Fish" for Real in Jonah...

This is always the rub for marketplace conversation, "How can a fish swallow a man, and the man stay alive for three days and three nights?" Isn't this "just a story", not a real event? And, did the crew do the right thing by throwing Jonah over the side of the boat into the sea? What was the 'right' thing to do? A fun conversation with those who are 'not Christians', and those who are and believe it was God's will that Jonah be tossed into the water.

The Olympic Torch Arrives...

Today US Senator Hillary Clinton asked President Bush to boycott the Olympic Games Opening Ceremony. The Torch was attached all weekend long in Europe, so much so, that a portion of the journey has been canceled. 

It is good to be the Olympic flame. After being birthed by the rays of the sun in a ceremony steeped in tradition and antiquity, the flame receives VIP treatment as it travels around the world in a chartered jet, with a coterie of human handlers who watch it day and night to ensure it never, ever goes out. The question will be; "How much violence will burn surrounding the torch's journey in The City this week? SF Gate 

Immigration Issue Reaches a Real Threshold...

Blaming a broken immigration system, a prominent Pennsylvania tomato grower has sacrificed a year's crop and potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in profit, making a dramatic political point as presidential candidates crisscross his state. Eckel decided last month that he could not risk “putting over a million and a half dollars out there to grow a tomato crop that it just doesn't look to me that we're going to be able to harvest.” San Diego Tribune 

July 1st 'Celling' Changes...

Less than three months before a new state law goes into effect requiring drivers 18 and over to use hands-free cell phone devices when behind the wheel, not many motorists are beating a path to the nearest phone store. "Our customers appear to be unaware of the details of the new law," said Phil Malaspina of Wireless World in Morgan Hill, echoing comments made by employees of other wireless stores. "Most are surprised to find out that there is a hands-free law taking effect on July 1." Mercy News 

Cross-Dressing is Simple Fun...

After what happened last week, elementary-school officials in Reedsburg won't be encouraging kids to dress as members of the opposite gender. Wacky Week is an annual tradition at Pineview Elementary when kids are encouraged to dress in costume. The theme Friday was to dress as a senior citizen or as the opposite sex. A Milwaukee-based radio network called Voice of Christian Youth America criticized the dress-up day, accusing the district of promoting alternative lifestyles. Its broadcast on nine radio stations throughout Wisconsin prompted angry calls to the school and the Reedsburg School District. Principal Tammy Hayes says the response surprised her. She says she didn't receive any objections beforehand, and the event was just meant to be fun. WBAY Television 

Another Example of How Not to Behave...

A three-judge panel heard testimony Friday in a Naperville high school student's appeal to wear a T-shirt expressing opposition to homosexuality. Alexander Nuxoll, a Neuqua Valley High School sophomore, was banned from wearing a T-shirt reading "Be Happy, Not Gay" to school. Nuxoll and one-time student Heidi Zamecnik, who wore a similar T-shirt to school in 2006, filed a lawsuit saying their civil rights had been violated. Indian Prairie Unit District 204 later said the students could wear a T-shirt that read "Be Happy, Be Straight," but the students refused. Last year, a judge ruled against them. Zamecnik has since graduated. On Friday, the federal appeals court in Chicago heard arguments from attorneys in Nuxoll's case. Chicago Tribune 

Compared to Barak Obama, John McCain Stays Clear...

Traversing the country this week on a tour of places that have shaped his life and informed his values, John McCain spoke in strikingly personal language to introduce himself to the American public. But missing so far is any significant mention of religious faith. In an Oprah Winfrey era in which soul-baring and expressions of faith are the norm for public figures, the presumptive Republican nominee, open and candid about much else, retains a shroud of privacy around his Christianity. Raised Episcopalian, McCain now attends a Baptist megachurch in Phoenix. But he has not been baptized and rarely talks of his faith in anything but the broadest terms or as it relates to how it enabled him to survive 5½ years in captivity as a POW. Political News 

Considering the Immigration Story Above...

Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is urging the Bush administration to reform a guest worker program that he believes has led to the elimination of many American jobs. Grassley says the administration has not kept the promise it made last August to implement some needed reforms to the H1-B visa process. H1-Bs are the most common type of skilled guest worker visas. The Homeland Security Department sent a response to Grassley last week on the matter, but he said the response was not worth the paper it was printed on. "It's easy to see why we've got problems here. For instance, some companies are applying for H1 visas for pizza tossers, hotel managers, and llama farm operators. The California Republican Party has hired a Canadian as what they call 'a State Deputy Political Director.' They've all done these things through the H1 visa programs," Grassley points out. One News Now 

The Pink Arches at McDonalds...

All it takes is the smell of those fries, the taste of a Happy Meal, or the sight of the Golden Arches to know that you've arrived at McDonald's. But the founder of the American Family Association says the restaurant chain has turned its attention away from inexpensive food and toward a potentially costly political agenda. With 30,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries, you can get your chicken McNuggets fix just about anywhere. Rev. Don Wildmon, founder and chairman of the American Family Association, says McDonald's' success can be attributed to their choice to market to one American institution. "McDonald's caters to the family," Wildmon says. "They put emphasis on the children." One News Now