Signs and Wonders 06.13

Blockbuster research. An important component of pro-gay propaganda is the notion that children raised by homosexuals turn out as well as or better than children raised by heterosexuals. And with so many dysfunctional heterosexual parents running around, this illusion has not been that hard to maintain. But it crumbles in the face of new data published by a University of Texas professor, Mark Regnerus. His study, which appeared this week in the journal Social Science Research, made the front page of The Washington Times, and is beginning to get serious traction because of its solid scholarship and politically incorrect findings, said children raised by homosexual parents have many more social problems than children raised by married heterosexual parents and have more problems as adults with impulse control, depression, and thoughts of suicide. They are more likely to need mental health therapy and identify themselves as homosexual. In fact, children raised by heterosexual couples scored better in virtually all of the 40 categories Regnerus and his team surveyed. The difference was significant in more than half the categories. The bottom line: "The empirical claim that no notable differences exist must go," Regnerus said, and now he has-and we have-the data to prove it.

North Dakota votes. North Dakota is one of the least populous states in the nation, but it is also one of the richest. Unemployment there is less than 4 percent, largely because of oil and gas money. That's why a referendum to end the state's property tax was put on the ballot. But North Dakotans overwhelmingly defeated the proposed amendment 78 percent to 22 percent. Another amendment, to protect religious freedom, attracted national attention and national money. In fact, the "anti" forces spent more than $1 million on this issue alone. And in case you're wondering who the "anti" forces are: Americans United for the Separation of Church and State contributed $5,000, the Los Angeles-based Planned Parenthood Advocacy Project gave $6,736, and Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota combined for $116,307. In fact, by calling in donations from affiliates nationwide, Planned Parenthood alone contributed $950,000. All that money had an impact, and the measure failed 64 percent to 36 percent.

A noble Nobel winner. Elinor Ostrom, the only woman to win the Nobel Prize in economics and a professor of political science at Indiana University in Bloomington, has died at the age of 78. She received the Nobel in 2009 for work showing, in the words of her Nobel citation, "how common resources-forests, fisheries, oil fields, or grazing lands, can be managed successfully by the people who use them, rather than by governments." But she occasionally rankled free-market types because she was as critical of big corporations as she was of big government. But in the process she became a hero to many conservatives who had a strong communitarian streak in them. On the day she received the Nobel Prize, she said, "What we have ignored is the importance of real [participation] of the people involved, versus just having somebody in Washington make a rule."

What would you do? In Texas last Saturday, a neighborhood get-together went awry when a man began sexually molesting a 4-year-old child. The child's 23-year-old father allegedly caught the act in progress, pulled the man off his daughter, and started punching him. Somewhere along the way the alleged abuser experienced head trauma-either from the punches or from hitting the ground as a result of the punches-and died. So far, Lavaca County Sheriff Micah Harmon has filed no charges, but the case is attracting national attention, usually accompanied with the questions: a) Should charges be filed? or b) What would you do? Sheriff Harmon has been pretty clear about his position: "He was in defense of a third person, which would be his daughter. He was just merely defending his daughter." Harmon also said the father was remorseful and did not intend to kill the alleged abuser. The decision to prosecute is ultimately not up to Harmon. The sheriff said that after a complete investigation, a grand jury would make the final decision whether to prosecute or not.