The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

New Hampshire's motto is Live Free or Die and God bless 'em they're living up to it.

New Hampshire health officials announced plans Wednesday to routinely give girls a newly approved vaccine to protect them against cervical cancer.

"New Hampshire will be the first state in the country to offer the vaccine in its universal children's (vaccine) program," said Health and Human Services Commissioner John Stephen.

The state's Vaccine for Children program is funded by the federal government and private insurers and offers immunizations for a variety of diseases at no cost to children through age 18.

Stephen said the vaccine for the human papillomavirus -- or HPV -- will be provided free to girls ages 11 through 18.

Our friends at the Christian right don't think that girls should be given the vaccine because they believe it will encourage them to have sex. But based on what they did to their formerly incoming president I think you know we can't trust their judgment.

You see, they elected a new President, Joel Hunter, who thought Christian meant Christ-like and wanted to focus on poverty and the environment. Well, that dog just wouldn't hunt so he stepped down.

Hunter announced he would take the coalition in a new direction, emphasizing other moral issues that he believed younger conservative Christians found equally compelling. "I look forward to expanding our mission to concern itself with the care of creation, helping society's marginalized, human rights/religious issues and compassion issues," he said in a press release announcing his appointment.

But that goal did not sit well with some rank-and-file supporters. Representatives of several statewide Christian Coalition groups that have separated themselves from the national body in recent years cited Hunter's comments as emblematic of their tensions with the national organization.

They would rather keep their focus on abortion and gay marriage instead of helping the poor and being good stewards to the earth. (Those are "lefty" issues, GASP!)


And just to round out the story for a little local interest, a man was rescued from Lake Parker here in Lakeland yesterday morning from the jaws of an 11 foot alligator. What the man was doing in a heavily infested lake at 3:45 am I don't know but the good news is he's ok.