Melanie_

True... but it is part of our Canadian identity to laugh at the tourists who think the North begins at the 49th parallel...

This is the real point of the discussion. If someone believes that life begins at conception, how that conception occurred is irrelevent. Life has begun. I have no respect for someone who says that it is wrong to take the life of a fetus, unless they don't like how that fetus was conceived. This isn't my belief, by the way, but the whole discussion of exceptions for rape seems hypocritical to me.

To each his/her own.

In response to the OP... I've been to so many of the places mentioned, and have always found something to admire about each site, from the east coast to the west coast. But, you haven't really seen Canada until you have been to the North. If I could pick a place in Canada to visit again, it would be Churchill (or further North, to visit a first time). Descriptions of the North are trite - everyone has heard about the vastness, the beauty, the barrenness, the wild - but you have to see it yourself to really understand.

No. You said if it happens again it is rape. I say if he doesn't have consent the first time it is rape. He can't assume she consents. If she isn't aware enough to consent, it is rape.

No. If it happens once, and she says that she doesn't want it to happen and he continues, it is rape. Simple. No consent = rape. Why are you even disputing this? Anyway, the whole issue has been derailed. The issue isn't about rape (and I am in no way denying the gravity and violation of rape), it is about whether or not abortion is justified in cases of rape. I am completely opposed to having this discussion. It seems to me that if you believe that life begins at conception, it shouldn't matter to you how the conception happened, the life is just as valid as a fetus conceived in love. And if you believe that women have the right to choose whether or not to continue a pregnancy, it doesn't matter what any individual woman's reasons for terminating are - it is her decision to make, as she knows her life and circumstances best. I'm well past bearing children, but I have daughters and granddaughters. I trust their judgement, and don't want some politician to decide for them something so personal as when they become a mother.

Hmmmm... confusion...

This forum is for discussing the topics that are presented. You can't start a topic and then try to limit who should and shouldn't read it, or limit the discussion to those who are already predisposed to accepting your view. I'm sure there are Christian forums out there that would be more appropriate for the type of discussion you want, but if you post it here you have to be open to responses from non-Christians.

Context????

Its simple, Betsy. If Christians object to having abortions, they should not have them. But don't expect the rest of us to live by the arbitrary rules of your Magic Sky Pixie.

Its in our Fringe Festival here in Winnipeg, too; did you go to it in Toronto? Was it good? I'm still picking through the program to decide what to take in, so if you have any recommendations please post them!

Yes, historically many gay men have lived in the closet, pretending to be heterosexual. But you are deliberately trying, again, to link being gay with being a pedophile. They are two different things. Why is that so hard for you to understand?

Banning gays does nothing to protect children from child molesters; someone can be "happily married", live a heterosexual lifestyle, and still abuse young boys. The Boy Scouts are promoting homophobia, by reinforcing the stigma against gays. They deserve the same amount of respect as an organization as the Ku Klux Klan.

BBC news - Boy Scouts uphold ban on gays The most disturbing part of this for me is the message that so many young boys have just been sent, that they need to deny their sexuality to be part of an organization that has nothing to do with sex. I wonder if there will be a check box on the application form for sexual orientation?

Parents do have the right to teach their values to their own children. They can do so in their homes, or in the church/synagogue/mosque/temple of their choice. Offloading it to the school system is lazy parenting.

Implicit attitude test Here's a fun way to measure our own implicit attitudes, or biases. I just took one of the tests, and it says I have a strong preference for thin people over fat people. Anyone else want to try one of the tests? From their website...

Kudos, Mr. Canada. I think we all have read some of our own posts later, and thought, “what the hell was I thinking?”, but not many of us are able to admit it gracefully. I appreciate that you did so here. Wild Bill, I have caused some thread drift here, you’re right. Back to the issue of whether or not the parade was anti-Semitic… can you show examples of anti-Semitism in this year’s parade? As I said, this wasn’t reported on here, and I can’t seem to find any reports online that say there were racist slurs or anti-Semitic chants from the Pride parade participants, as Mr. Canada claims. All the links I can find talk about the expectation of anti-Semitism, not about actual instances of it. There certainly is wide opposition to the QuAIA, but from what I can see that group’s concerns are based on political rather than racial or religious grounds. It isn’t anti-Semitic to disagree with the political decisions of the state of Israel. A separate issue is whether or not the parade is the right forum for unrelated political protests; should there be limits on what causes the participants are there for? That is a question for the parade organizers, and I’m sure they struggle with this all the time. I agree with what you wrote earlier, there is the possibility that having so many groups, for so many different causes, dilutes the overall message of the parade.

Everyone has biases. They are preferences for one thing over another, generally based on what is familiar, or “known”, to us. These preferences may not be reasonable, as we generalize what we “know” to situations where the knowledge doesn’t really apply. So a fair person will try to be aware of what biases they carry, and think critically about how they apply their knowledge.

They were his words, just in another thread. But I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt… perhaps his perspective has changed since he wrote those words. Mr. Canada, could you please let us know which of these statements you stand behind? (bolding mine) Or, from the beginning of this thread... And I’m still curious to know what you see as the motives of the Pride movement.

Thanks for the link, it clarified the point for me; I was honestly asking for more info. I'm not a UN basher; in fact, I admire much of the work the UN does, particularly on the Convention on the Rights of the Child. I know the UN isn't perfect; there are inefficiencies and imbalances of power, but there still is good work being done on many fronts.

Never mind, I found this...

Ahhh, now the current thread about the gay pride parade has more context...

So glad to see this point made. Apparently misogyny is still alive and well in some sports fans!

I can't catch my breath, I'm laughing so hard. Ok, now I believe all the people who have said you are a just a composite of all the left wing ideology we can find on MLW. Come out of the closet... who are you, really?

Please explain what you see as the motives of Pride.