Although the evidence of Stroud's homosexual relationship was "uncontradicted and overwhelming," the regional panel voted 8-1 to nullify Stroud's defrocking. The reason for the regional panel's ruling, ostensibly, was because many of the terms under which the lesbian minister had been disciplined have never been adequately defined by the proper church authorities.

A federal judge has struck down Nebraska's ban on homosexual "marriage." Judge Joseph Bataillon says the constitutional amendment, which defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman, violates the rights of same-sex couples, foster parents, adopted children and people in a host of other living arrangements. Despite the fact that 70 percent of Nebraska voters approved the marriage protection amendment in November 2000, Bataillon's decision effectively nullifies the votes of 477,000 Nebraskans -- and awards the election results to the 203,000 who voted against the measure.

...Nebraska is one of only 40 states that has Defense of Marriage law on the books. That state's statute is unique, however, in that it also prevents homosexuals who work for the state or the University of Nebraska system from sharing health insurance and other benefits with their partners. That may be one reason why Bataillon wrote that the ban "goes far beyond merely defining marriage as between a man and a woman." In fact, the judge stated the amendment "was designed against the class it affects, making it status-based."

Attorney Brian Fahling of the Center for Law & Policy minces no words in his reaction to the Nebraska judge's words. "Not only is Judge Bataillon's assertion [that the amendment demonstrates animus toward homosexuals] demonstrably wrong, it is saturated with an all-too-familiar judicial contempt and antipathy for the moral norms of our culture," he says.

"We are no longer permitted to govern ourselves in the most fundamental areas of life. Instead, we are called names by un-elected judges who deconstruct our written constitution and our society with all the subtlety of a wrecking ball."

Dr. James Dobson of Focus on the Family calls the ruling the "whim of a federal judicial tyrant." He says it is "ludicrous" for Bataillon to argue that advocates of homosexual marriage are disenfranchised by the amendment.

Representatives from the American Family Association, Morality in Media, and Family Research Council met recently with members of the Federal Communications Commission to discuss ways to allow consumers to block pornographic digital file transfer information from cell phones.