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Annotations & Elucidations 

Close Of Business, October 2009

Another month, another campaign draws toward conclusion. Where does the time go? Where does life go? A sign of the times: Campaign news is light today. Everyone is expecting an anti-climatic GOP blowout. But will it be? What about New Jersey and the special Congressional election in upstate New York? If the Dems pull those out will that blunt any GOP resurgence nationally otherwise gained from a Virginia sweep? If the numbers hold, how many Republican delegates will win? Retirements alone guarantee a large freshman class in January.

About today’s headlines: The Richmond Times-Dispatch gets up close and personal with the LG candidates and the Washington Times already is analyzing where Creigh Deeds went wrong. Why is it always where Creigh Deeds went wrong? Bob McDonnell, Bill Bolling and Ken Cuccinelli have done a lot right. Meanwhile, political soothsayer Dr. Larry Sabato offers his predictions on the election.

Nationally: It’s unfortunate that several pastors in Washington, D.C., are supporting homosexual “marriage” there; the AP reports that, indeed, abortion funding is in the health care “reform” bill; and sociologist Brad Wilcox of U.Va., and The Family Foundation Marriage Commission, caught the AP’s attention with his research that faith helps marriages!

In Commentary, Dr. Thomas Sowell offers part two of his “Dismantling of America” exposition, the first part of which we posted earlier this week, and which drew considerable praise from Rush Limbaugh, among others. Also, a skin care company is using fetal cells in its product; Tim Kaine’s DNC has selected as a finalist in a contest promoting the health care bill a video that desecrates the American flag; and a high ranking Obama administration official reveals her “ultimate expression of self-righteous victimhood.” This is the weekend we move our clocks back and it gets dark earlier. How appropriate.

News:

Candidates for lieutenant governor come with different backgrounds (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Republicans rally supporters in Lynchburg as Election Day nears (Lynchburg News & Advance)

Money, missteps cost Deeds in polls for gubernatorial race (Washington Times)

Deeds makes stop in Roanoke (Roanoke Times)

National News: 

Health care businesses at risk in House overhaul (AP/OneNewsNow.com)

Believe it or not . . . abortion funding is in health care bill (OneNewsNow.com) 

Sociologist: Faith benefits marriage and family life (AP/OneNewsNow.com)

Pastors unite to support same-sex marriage in D.C. (Washington Post)

Analysis:

So who’s going to win? (Dr. Larry Sabato/Center For Politics)

Commentary:

Dismantling America, Part II(Thomas Sowell/OneNewsNow.com)

Desecrated Flag Video Is Finalist In DNC Contest(Tasha Easterling/Rightly Concerned Blog)

Got Waste? No Surprises There (Jeremy Wiggins/Rightly Concerned Blog)

Skin Care Company Using Fetal Cells In Anti-Wrinkle Cream (Jeremy Wiggins/Rightly Concerned Blog)

Obama Advisor: We’re Just Speaking Truth To Power (Tasha Easterling/Rightly Concerned Blog)

That’s the topic for discussion on Thursday, October 29, at Virginia Commonwealth  University. An eyebrow raising one at that. What may be more of a surprise — albeit a decidedly good one — is that Dr. Brad Wilcox is the one giving the presentation.

Dr. Wilcox is a renown expert on marriage and serves on our Marriage Commission, which has produced several recommendations for the General Assembly to reduce the rate of divorce in the commonwealth (at least one of which now is law). Dr. Wilcox is director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, where he also is an associate professor of sociology. In addition, he is a member of the James Madison Society at Princeton University. His research focuses on marriage, parenting and cohabitation, as well as on the ways that gender, religion and children influence the quality and stability of American family life. He is widely published in publications such as The American Sociological Review, Social Forces, The Journal of Marriage and Family, and The Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion.

The lecture is one in the Saint Benedict Institute Lecture series and is free and open to the public. If you live in, or will be in, the Richmond area on October 29, it will be well worth the time to attend. We’re sure Dr. Wilcox’s remarks will shed light on the very serious problem of divorce in America and the reasons for its proclivity. The preface to the lecture’s theme — “After The Revolution” — gives a hint: The sexual revolution was supposed to unleash a healthy liberation for women and men alike. Apparently, not; not for women, not for men, and certainly not for the wreckage of the broken families and children left in its wake.

The lecture is from 7:00-9:00 p.m. and is free and open to the public. It is in room 1169 at the VCU building at 901 West Main Street.

By the way, media present include the Associated Press, Norfolk Virginian-Pilot and WVIR/NBC29 from Charlottesville.

I know Governor Kaine announced an energy saving initiative, but does that mean the AC has to be off in the GAB? We’re all sweating puddles in here!

Delegate Janis asked if news conference is because the governor hasn’t asked responded to your approach. He says, no, that he’s trying to take this out of the political realm. Governor has shown good leadership, but we have several experts, such as Brad Wilcox, who are willing to offer their help and not make it a political issue. We need to fireproof families during these hard times. Why wait until January? We can start now.

Victoria adds that the task force had no such experts on it panel.

Delegate Janis adds that, “We are rearranging the deck chairs of the Titanic if we don’t address” marriage.

Question: Explain the TANF funding:

Delegate Janis: We have a surplus of our allotted federal TANF funds, about $16 million. It’s not all for welfare to work. It’s supposed to be used for marriage promotion, too. Oklahoma uses its money to this effect successfully and can be a model for us in Virginia. This money should be distributed by non-profits like the Man Up Initiative, not government.

If we told you there was existing federal money that could be used to decrease poverty by 20 percent immediately, and found out it was not being used, you’d asked why not. That’s exactly what is happening. The facts are in, this will work.

Friday’s Wall Street Journal contained an excellent article written by none other than Dr. Brad Wilcox, The Family Foundation’s very own Marriage Commission member. OK, he’s more than a Marriage Commission member.  When we are not utilizing his expertise, he also serves as a sociology professor at the University of Virginia. Seriously, we’ve been so honored to have Brad be apart of our organization that we have soaked him for all the time we can get. We had him speak at our 2007 Lobby Day, our 2008 Board of Directors Retreat and to the General Assembly House Education Committee in 2009. Imagine what 2010 holds for you Brad!

Dr. Wilcox’ WSJ article outlines the inverse relationship between size and scope of government and the religious observation. Basically, the more folks turn to the government to provide all of their needs (Scandanavia, etc.), the less they need to turn to the church. Anyone who has fallen on hard times knows that the blow is softer when cushioned by a loving and supportive church community. While it might have been good enough for Paul and his cohorts to “sell their possessions and goods and give to anyone as he had need,” today this wonderful human experience requiring self-sacrifice and a sense of community is less desirable if the government can provide “cradle to the grave” health care, education and housing. 

Combine these findings with a study we co-released with the Family Research Council in December 2008 that showed children have fewer problems at school and home when they frequently attend religious services. Coauthored by Drs. Nicholas Zill[1] and Philip Fletcher [2], this research found that religious attendance had an effect on the likelihood of repeating a grade level, having their parents contacted by school for behavioral issues, diminished social development and much more. These differences held up even after controlling for family income and poverty, low parent education levels, and race and ethnicity.

So, bigger government means less religious participation and less religious attendance means behavioral and educational challenges for children. As we continue on the road to the great welfare state, let’s be sure we know the end game.

[1] Dr. Nicholas Zill is the founding president of Child Trends and the former vice president of Westat, and a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

[2] Dr. Philip Fletcher is a research psychologist at Westat.