February 28, 2014

The following Voice of the Voiceless statement “Gay Activists lose two states in a row as Washington Senate says ‘No’ to SB 2451” is reprinted in its entirety: Voice of the Voiceless (VoV) just got news that Washington State Senate Bill 2451, which would have banned Sexual Orientation Change Effort (SOCE) therapy for minors, was killed in committee today, making Washington the second state, after Virginia, to say “No” to gay activists who are seeking to take away the rights of clients to pursue therapy for unwanted same-sex attractions (SSA). This victory was achieved, in part, due to some great testimony from VoV Board Members Robin Goodspeed and David Pickup. (more…)

February 27, 2014

The following excerpts are from the blog “Wrestling with Arizona” on Joe Dallas’s website: “I’ve been wrestling with the rightness or wrongness of SB 1062 the controversial bill passed by the Arizona Legislature but vetoed by the state’s Governor Jan Brewer which would have granted private businesses protection if they chose not to offer services that violated their religious beliefs.”

“Usually I find myself firmly on the conservative end of controversies like this, but I’m finding it hard to land foursquare for or against this type of legislation which has been, by the way, considered in Kansas, Tennessee, Idaho, South Dakota, Mississippi, and Utah.” … (more…)

February 21, 2014

The following excerpts are from the article “Opponents of therapy for unwanted same-sex attractions have no scientific backing” on the Christian Post website: “A prominent US psychologist says professional bodies and parts of the UK media are attempting to stop mental health professionals offering help to people with unwanted same-sex attraction, based on ideological grounds and without any scientific evidence to support their case.” …

“Dr. Sutton concludes from his analysis that: “In the absence of clear, reliable and valid scientific evidence, it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that professional organisations like the American Psychological Association, the UK Association of Christian Counsellors, various state and national government legislatures, and even media such as The Guardian, are working to prevent mental health professionals from offering educational guidance, counselling and therapeutic care for persons with unwanted same-sex attraction and behaviour based on ideological and not scientific or professional grounds.” (more…)

February 21, 2015

The following excerpts are from the article “Opponents of therapy for unwanted same-sex attractions have no scientific backing” on the Christian Post website: … “Dr. Mike Davidson, Director of Core Issues Trust, says that despite several official requests for scientific evidence that supports the professional bodies’ opposition to therapies for unwanted same-sex attraction, neither has provided any evidence.” …

“Dr. Davidson says that moving forward, it is necessary that national and world medical and mental health associations deal in a professionally responsible manner with the issue of therapeutic choice concerning unwanted same-sex attraction and do so with scientific integrity rather than taking an ideological standpoint. He says persistent warnings from the professional bodies and supported by media organisations, that therapies have the potential to do harm, are misleading and do a disservice to the general public. (more…)

February 18, 2014

The following excerpts are from the blog “Obama-snare” on Andrew Comiskey’s website: “A nation whose head cannot distinguish between ethnicity and sexual identity is in big trouble. Race is immutable and inspired by God; sexual identity variations (LGBTSQ, etc.) are man-made, elastic constructs designed to either work out inner conflicts or to expand one’s sexual consumerism. To equate skin color and sexual identity is superficial, weak reasoning that proves unjust to oppressed ethnicities and broken people searching for real love and identity.”

“Yet racial justice is precisely the parallel invoked by the Obama Administration last week when it arbitrarily chose to expand ‘gay marriage’ benefits to all gay couples in the USA in opposition to the 34 states which define marriage as male/female.” … (more…)

February 16, 2014

The following excerpts are from the article “State Seeks Talking Points for Therapist” by Bob Unruh and published on World Net Daily: “As expected, Maryland is seeking to become the third state to impose talking points on therapists whose clients are horrified by the same-sex attractions they may experience and want help to rid themselves. State lawmakers have proposed, like in California and New Jersey, a ban on what therapists can say in such situations.”

“‘This legislation makes unfounded claims that sexual orientation change effort (SOCE) therapy is harmful and ineffective, while ignoring the reality that some minors who develop homosexual feelings have already been harmed by sexual abuse (more…)

February 14, 2014

The following excerpts are from the article “House Passes Ban on Life Change Therapy 94-4” by by Joseph Backholm on the Family Policy Institute website: “Yesterday the Washington State House of Representatives delivered a blow to religious freedom when it passed HB 2451 which bans therapy for minors to help them reduce or eliminate same-sex attraction. The bill, which passed 94-4, now moves to the Senate for consideration.”

“This bill, modeled after similar bills in New Jersey and California, makes it professional misconduct for a licensed therapist to provide sexual orientation change therapy to minors even when the client requests it. Therefore, it makes it illegal for a licensed counselor to counsel in a way that is consistent with the Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or LDS understanding of sexuality…even in a church, mosque, or synagogue.” (more…)

February 14, 2014

The following excerpts are from the PFOX news release “Maryland ban on heterosexual therapy:” … “House Bill 91 relies exclusively on policy statements from so-called “mainstream” mental and medical health organizations such as the American Psychological Association (APA), who formed a Task Force in 2009 made up exclusively of gay-identified and gay-affirming psychologists. ‘What the APA Task Force report actually said was that there is inadequate research to make conclusions on the efficacy and safety of SOCE therapy,’ commented [Christopher] Doyle. ‘Bill 91’s interpretation of the APA report’s conclusions is inaccurate, and we are calling on the APA to correct those inaccuracies, as it states in their own 2002 Code of Conduct: When its research is misinterpreted or misquoted, it (APA) should take reasonable steps to correct the misinterpretation.'”

“‘House Bill 91 threatens clients’ constitutional rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness and their first amendment rights to see a counselor who helps them resolve unwanted SSA while remaining faithful to their deeply held spiritual beliefs. All parents, children, and families in Maryland deserve the right to pursue their own self-determination and should not be forced to choose between their counselor and their faith values,’ commented Doyle. ‘We are urging Maryland delegates to put the rights of innocent children, who do not have a voice, over this politically motivated legislation.’” …

February 14, 2014

The following excerpts are from the article “Unreleased Xq28 Gene Study Repeats Unproven Theory” by John Ozanich on the Voice of the Voiceless website: “We want to jump on this new junk science article right away because we’ve been down the Xq28 road before and this unreleased study managed to suspiciously get a Valentine’s Day news release without peer review. We’ve excerpted and highlighted the laughable holes for you. The attempt to pass this off as anything new or valid in a Valentine’s Day news release is insipid politics.” … (more…)

February 11, 2014

Joseph Backholm of the Family Policy Institute has articulated 6 reasons to be concerned about the bill in Washington State which seeks to ban sexual orientation change therapy to minors. The reasons apply to all similar bans and are as follows:

“1. Licensed therapists are not currently involved in coercive therapy to change sexual orientation: The Washington State Department of Health has no records of complaints filed against a licensed therapist for coercive therapy intended to change their sexual orientation. If anyone is receiving counseling to change their sexual orientation from a therapist, it is probably because they asked for it. Why would that bother you?” (more…)