Judge agrees to let student sue Poway district
By: TERI FIGUEROA - Staff Writer


A federal judge has ruled that a suit filed by a Poway High School student suspended for wearing an anti-gay shirt can move forward on constitutional grounds that include freedoms of speech and religious exercise.

But U.S. District Judge John A. Houston did toss parts of the suit filed by the family of student Tyler Chase Harper, including claims the boy was denied equal protection under the law and that the school's policies were vague.



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Civil unions gain support despite Measure 36
By James Sinks
The Bulletin


SALEM — The national movement against same-sex marriage gathered momentum in Tuesday's elections with the approval of bans in 11 states, including Oregon, but the votes, ironically, could help same-sex couples gain wider acceptance and legal standing.

At least, potentially, in Oregon.

Civil unions, government-recognized status for same-sex partnerships that were considered radical when legalized in Vermont just four years ago, are suddenly on the political radar for both political parties.

Democratic Gov. Ted Kulongoski said he would sign a civil union bill if it arrived on his desk. And even some Republicans — concerned that a gay-marriage ban prevents some people from obtaining some rights — are warming to the notion of some alternative.


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Lesbian 'Spoiler' Candidate In Still Undecided Race For Wash. Governor
by The Associated Press


(Olympia, Washington)  Three days after Election Day, Democrat Christine Gregoire clung to a narrow lead Friday in the nation's last undecided race for governor — a cliffhanger contest that could drag on for weeks while the votes are counted.

With most of the state's 39 counties reporting additional votes, Gregoire, Washington's attorney general, led Republican former state Sen. Dino Rossi by 5,500 votes, a difference of less than a quarter of 1 percentage point. Nearly 2.4 million ballots have been counted.

A Gregoire victory would mean the Democrats would preserve their 22 governorships nationwide. The Republicans already are assured of at least maintaining their 28.

The counties believe they have about 400,000 additional ballots to count this week and next. The deadline for counties to certify is Nov. 17.


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300 protest at station over Belling
One company pulling ads from show; WISN radio responds
By GEORGIA PABST


A diverse spectrum of more than 300 people protested outside WISN-AM (1130) radio studios Friday, calling for the firing of radio talk show host Mark Belling after he referred to Mexican illegal immigrants as "wetbacks" on the air.



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Staging Armageddon - Your place or mine?
by Ahmed Amr
"The signs are clear. If we are not vigilant, America is destined for Armageddon. The battle for morality in America is nothing less than a battle for national security."


To understand Dubya’s ‘landslide’ victory over JFK, one must be conversant with American moral values. After focusing so much attention on the quagmire in Iraq, the November surprise was that the Mess on Potamia didn’t matter. While the Democrats were busy criticizing Bush’s economic record, Karl Rove saved the day with a strategic assault by a ragtag army of evangelicals – driven by a missionary zeal to save America’s very soul.

Nothing less than the moral health of the nation was at stake in this election. Domestic and foreign challenges took a back seat to a holy crusade. Concerns about wars abroad and budget deficits in Washington were just diversions to blind us from scrutinizing the devil’s work in our own back yards.


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The Red Zone Of Fear, Intolerance
The president got re-elected by dividing the country along fault lines of fear, intolerance, ignorance and religious rule. He doesn't want to heal rifts; he wants to bring any riff-raff who disagree to heel.
By MAUREEN DOWD


With the Democratic Party splattered at his feet in little blue puddles, John Kerry told the crushed crowd at Faneuil Hall in Boston about his concession call to President Bush.

“We had a good conversation,” the senator said. “And we talked about the danger of division in our country and the need, the desperate need, for unity, for finding the common ground, coming together. Today I hope that we can begin the healing.”


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Newly elected Republicans shift Senate further to the right


The new Republican senators represent a further shift to the right within the Republican delegation. Five of the six are from southern states and personify various factions of the ultra-right forces that dominate the Republican Party.