December 26, 2007

Ritter Seeks Advice On Spending Less Of Your Money

Eye-rolling populism from our guv:
Governor Bill Ritter wants the public's help in making the government more efficient.

On Wednesday, Ritter launched a new e-mail address, toll-free phone number and Web site to get public comments.

People can submit ideas to the Government Efficiency and Management (GEM) project hotline by calling toll free at 1-877-397-0013, e-mailing gem.ideas@state.co.us, or by filling out an on-line form by clicking here.

People also can visit the Government Efficiency page on the Governor's Web site (www.colorado.gov/governor).

The governor's office says Ritter is in the process of a top-to-bottom look at how the state government operates and how it can do a better job. The process has already found $145 million the government can be saved.
Newspeak oxymoron of the day--"government efficiency".

The last line should read: "The process has already found $145 million the government you can be saved.

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December 25, 2007

Christmas Day 2007

Merry Christmas!


Esteban Murillo, "Adoration of the Shepherds"

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December 24, 2007

Daily Nativity 121107; Updated And Bumped



A little humor for Christmas Eve, bumped up from 12/11.

Now the moonbattery, courtesy of my school:
Dear University Community,

It is with the warmest greetings that I write to you this, my last Communiqué in 2007. The holiday season is upon us all and I wanted to take this opportunity to wish you and yours a restful season and peace in the New Year.

As I was reflecting on this season, I was struck by the arrival of another Winter Solstice. This year’s solstice – the year’s shortest day and longest night – will arrive on Dec. 22. As we all know, astronomically, the solstice is the instant when the sun’s position in the sky is at its greatest angular distance on the other side of the equatorial plane from the person observing. In broader terms, the Winter Solstice marks what many consider mid-winter and delineates the point at which our daylight hours will grow longer and the nights shorter.

While the astronomical significance of the solstice is clear, its importance as a symbolic moment in our year has captured my thoughts. Most cultures stretching back thousands of years have celebrated this event as a time to reflect on that most basic cycle of life, of birth, death, and rebirth. The lengthening days, for most ancient cultures, heralded their ability to continue their agrarian or nomadic way of life. It reminded them of the ordered march of the yearly seasonal cycle and the promise of rebirth at the end of the long winter months.

This event parallels the moment we find here at our university in many ways. During the course of this year, as in the life of any institution, we have faced many challenges. During these challenges, I know that each of us have also found moments that renewed our sense of purpose and deepened our pride in individual and collective accomplishments. It was novelist and playwright Albert Camus who wrote, “In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.”

May the symbol of the Winter Solstice assist you in finding your “invincible summer” and may it remind all of us of the great potential that lies ahead for our individual work and this great institution. I want to thank each of you for your daily dedication to supporting and serving our university.

Happy Holidays,

M. Roy Wilson

Chancellor
Not a single mention of, you know, Christmas--and I received this "communique" today, no less. Just a little PC "holiday" cheer.

Via XDA, this little response to moonbats:
To all my friends on the left--Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to observe religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the generally accepted calendar year 2008, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures.


And to all my Republican friends--Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

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Christmas Eve Sunset

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Daily Nativity 122407

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December 23, 2007

Daily Nativity 122307

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December 22, 2007

Daily Nativity 122207

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December 21, 2007

Daily Nativity 122107

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December 20, 2007

Daily Nativity 122007

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December 19, 2007

Daily Nativity 121907


Hieronymous Bosch

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December 18, 2007

Daily Nativity 121807

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Illegal Immigrant Awarded $1.5M In Lawsuit Against Park County, CO; Fears Deportation

Yes, that's $1.5 million, on top of the $1 million in medical bills paid for by the Feds--and now is "fearful" of deportation:
Now, Park County has agreed to pay a $1.5 million settlement to the 31-year-old man — while denying any wrongdoing and Carranza-Reyes' charges, according to the agreement announced Monday.

But the disabled man's problems — and the debate over his ordeal and his illegal entry into the United States — are far from over.

Federal immigration authorities allowed Carranza-Reyes to remain in the U.S. while he recuperated. But his attorneys stressed in recent court filings that the man, who still lives in Colorado, is "in danger of deportation."

Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Carl Rusnok said today that "anyone who is illegally present in the United States runs the risk of being identified, located, arrested and ultimately deported."

ICE continues to have a detainee-housing agreement with Park County and the jail is inspected by the agency annually to ensure it complies with ICE's "strict detention standard," Rusnok said.

Although federal authorities paid most of Carranza-Reyes' $1 million medical bill, his attorneys wrote that the financial settlement was needed in part to fund long-term recovery for the man who remains "financially desperate, is unemployed, and in desperate need of medical care."

The immigrant "continues to suffer unbearable pain" from nerve damage in both legs and requires physical therapy and possibly more surgeries, according to court papers.

But the settlement, paid by the county's insurance, is sure to reignite protests by illegal immigration critics who railed against Carranza-Reyes' lawsuit filing in 2005.

"I am truly sorry that Moises Carranza-Reyes has lost his leg," a Denver man wrote in a letter to the Rocky at the time. "But if he had not been in this country illegally, he would still have his leg.
The defendants cited inspections by federal and state authorities that indicated conditions were satisfactory:
But in a motion seeking to have the case thrown out, Park County officials noted that a 2002 inspection by federal immigration authorities found "detainees were issued appropriate clothing, bedding, and towels, and that laundry and cleaning of those items were generally done appropriately."

The defendants added that a 2003 inspection by state prison officials reported the jail "pod, cells and showers were quite clean."
The judge, obviously, disagreed.

Carranza-Reyes was a former Mexico City police sergeant.

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December 17, 2007

Daily Nativity 121707

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Thoughts On The Primary--Fred! Not Huckabee

**Update 2--another Fred! endorsement

**Update--Iowa Rep. Steve King endorses Fred Thompson, in clear and forceful terms (via Michelle Malkin)
Haven't had too much time finishing up this semester's work to keep up with the GOP primary--and since the first votes are literally just weeks away, the importance cannot be understated.

Ben at Mount Virtus has done a little looking, and his post on Fred Thompson (and his primary endorsement of Fred!) are certainly echoed here.

More primary thoughts over the next few weeks.

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Blogs For Border Video Blogburst 121707

Freedom Folks has this week's edition of Blogs for Borders.

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December 16, 2007

Daily Nativity 121607

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Blogs For Borders Video Blogburst 121607

Freedom Folks' weekly video blogburst has been posted.

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December 15, 2007

Daily Nativity 121507

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December 14, 2007

Daily Nativity 121407

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December 13, 2007

Daily Nativity 121307

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December 12, 2007

Daily Nativity 121207

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Diana DeGette Refuses To Recognize Christmas, Christian Faith Citing "Separation Of Church And State" Concerns

More moonbattery from "my" representative, Democrat Diana DeGette:
One Republican House lawmaker is taking offense at nine Democrats for what he said should have been a no-brainer: recognizing the importance of Christians and Christmas.

In the end, the House on Tuesday supported Rep. Steve King's resolution to recognize "the Christian faith as one of the great religions of the world" and acknowledge "the international religious and historical importance of Christmas and the Christian faith."

But King, of Iowa, is upset that not everyone voted for his bill two weeks before an estimated 225 million Americans celebrate the Christian holiday even though the vote by usual standards would be a solid margin. The measure passed by a 372-9 vote, with 10 recording a neutral "present" vote and 40 members not voting.

"The naysayers didn't make it to the floor to debate. I would like to know how they could vote 'yes' on Islam, 'yes' on the Indian religions and 'no' on Christianity. The foundation of this nation and this culture is Christian. ... I think there's an assault on Christianity in America," King said in a release Wednesday.

Speaking with FOX News Wednesday, King said he was motivated to push the resolution because of liberal activists and "secularists in the country who are trying to eradicate Christ from Christmas."

"It's time we stood up and said so and said to the rest of America, 'Be who you are, and be confident, and let's worship Christ and celebrate Christmas for the right reasons'," he said.

King said he was upset with the nine lawmakers — all Democrats — who voted against his resolution even they did not vote against two earlier measures, one supporting Islam and the holy month of Ramadan, and the other supporting a number of Indian religions..

Those in King's crosshairs are Reps. Gary Ackerman and Yvette Clarke of New York; Diana DeGette of Colorado; Alcee Hastings of Florida; Jim McDermott of Washington; Bobby Scott of Virginia; and Barbara Lee, Pete Stark, and Lynn Woolsey of California.

All voted "yes" on both measures with the exception of Hastings and Lee. Hastings supported the Ramadan measure but did not vote on the Indian religion measure. Lee was the reverse: she supported the Indian religion measure, but did not vote on the Ramadan measure.

DeGette's chief of staff, Lisa Cohen, told FOXNews.com that she had not heard King's comments until she spoke with a reporter, but DeGette previously has opposed similar bills on Christianity because she "has concerns about separation of church and state." Other lawmakers' offices did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
Does DeGette really believe that by affirming a resolution such as this that she is somehow establishing Christianity as the state religion? I'm sure the raging Christianists in liberal Denver will riot in the streets over this offensive dismissal of their religion. Oh wait, they won't. But nice to see DeGette buy into the conspiratorial "Christians are trying to subvert the Constitution by establishing it as the state religion" moonbattery.

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Colorado Shootings Aftermath 2

"Why was I told that I couldn't be a missionary because I wasn't `social enough'? I was told that I was `an introvert"--Matthew Murray

**Update 3: Murray purchased five guns from licensed dealers, Assam fired 10 rounds; more of Murray's anti-Christian rants, railed against Christian homeschooling, posted links to Columbine videos; Ben at Mount Virtus notes the MSM's meme creation

**Update 2: Murray's parents issue a statement; Faith Bible Chapel and YWAM in Arvada celebrate the lives of Philip Crouse and Tiffany Johnson; Murray family meets with family members of victims Crouse and Johnson--forgiveness

**Update: Murray's ammunition purchases alerted UPS manager, prompted police interest in September, but there was no contact with Murray

The FBI received a tip between Sunday's shootings as a poster at the web forum frequented by Matthew Murray became worried by increasingly violent and threatening messages:
The FBI got a tip in between two shootings on church campuses warning them about Matthew Murray because of the violent messages he had posted on an anti-Pentecostal Web site.

Murray, 24, shot and killed two people, 26-year-old Tiffany Johnson and 24-year-old Philip Crouse, at Youth With a Mission in Arvada on early Sunday morning. He also wounded two others.

Later in the day, he went to New Life Church and shot and killed two teenage sisters, Stephanie and Rachel Works, and seriously wounded their father, David Works, before a security guard shot him. One other person was wounded at New Life, but his injuries were not life threatening.

On Tuesday, police said that Murray shot and killed himself after he was wounded by the security guard.

In between the shootings, Murray posted violent comments on the Web site. In the posting he warned of a shootout and said he was prepared to kill people.

Murray, who went by the name nghtmrchld26, made at least 11 posts between the two shootings.

At least one visitor to the site was alarmed and contacted the FBI promptly, before the second attack, the site's administrator said.
Murray's violent screeds prompted one woman to reach out to him months before Sunday's shootings, but she was rebuffed:
Seven months before the shootings, Marlene Winell, a former psychologist, heard of Murray's postings on an anti-Pentecostal Web site. She posted a message publicly to him writing, "I can see that you are in a great deal of pain and I'd like to invite you to contact me."

"One of your readers has contacted me to express concern, and I'd like to be helpful if I can. People do care about you and there is hope."

Winell, who spoke to 9Wants to Know Tuesday afternoon from San Francisco, says she wishes she could have helped Murray.

"This was a person who was definitely in a lot of pain," she said. "I simply invited him to contact me because I can understand when someone is experiencing these feelings they are very intense feelings."

Murray responded to Winell's postings saying, "I've already been working with counselors." He also wrote, "It's so funny how many people want to help you and love you and counsel you... when there is money involved."

Winell says Murray never contacted her directly even though she left her e-mail address and contact information on the Web site where Murray posted his writings.
Still more on Murray's ejection from YWAM, and additional postings from the killer:
It is unclear why Murray targeted the two churches, but he was dismissed from Youth With a Mission in 2002 for what the training center has described only as health reasons. Youth With a Mission maintains an office at New Life Church's World Prayer Center.

Murray's parents donated $250 to the prayer center several years ago, New Life Senior Pastor Brady Boyd told The Associated Press. The church also discovered a visitors card indicating that Matthew Murray attended services several years ago, Boyd said. The gunman's online rants make passing references both to New Life and founding pastor Ted Haggard.

Boyd said no Murray family members were members of the church, and he downplayed the connections.

"We're a large church, very visible, and (Matthew Murray) was not a member, was never connected, never affiliated with the church, and neither were his parents," Boyd said. "It has no bearing on the events or the shooting."

Murray had been making posts on the anti-Pentecostal Web site for months before the shootings.

One post, called "My YWAM Horror Story," complained about being removed from the Arvada youth mission program.

"Why was I told that I couldn't be a missionary because I wasn't `social enough'? I was told that I was `an introvert,"' nghtmrchld26 wrote. "Everyone else got to go on their outreaches except for a few who lied about smoking (cigarettes). The authoritarianism and hypocrisy is outrageous."

In an Oct. 6 post, nghtmrchld26 wrote about his anger at the church.

"We'll make our own religion and be our own God's (sic) instead (of) listening to some abusive pedophile church like what I was raised in telling us who's `saved' and who's not," the person wrote.

"During this dark period I've realized this is not the way just to be a martyr. I can't walk alone any longer and I'll fight for the ones who can't fight. If I lose at then (sic) least I tried. If I have to give my life you can have it."

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December 10, 2007

Colorado Shooting Aftermath

**Update 6: Breaking--El Paso County coroner says Murray killed himself after being shot by Jeanne Assam . . . (this ruling does not diminish Assam's heroism, Murray would have gone on to kill or injure others had she not stopped him)

**Update 5: Works family mourns loss of daughters, father David recovering--a descendant of Thomas Jefferson; Americans not interested in security "impediments" like metal detectors at malls (they wouldn't need it if guns were allowed!); churches have mixed reaction to having armed guards; Columbine stepfather--"nothing changes", calls for more gun "rules"; more on Murray's bizarre behavior at YWAM training 5 years ago

**Update 4: Murray's picture revealed; posted as "nghtmrchld26":



**Update 3: Jeanne Assam's work as a Minneapolis police officer, fired for lying after swearing at a bus driver

**Update 2: Matthew Murray's screed imitates Columbine killer Eric Harris' violent manifesto:
A diatribe was posted at 11:03 a.m. Sunday on a website devoted to people who have left religion. Investigating authorities believe it was left by gunman Matthew Murray. With the exception of two minor changes, some rearranging and the final paragraph, the text was originally written as a manifesto by Columbine killer Eric Harris. Some expletives from the Harris version were replaced by Murray with symbols. Other expletives were removed for publication, where noted.

The final paragraph comes from lyrics from the song "Anarchy" by the band KMFDM.


You christians brought this on yourselves

I'm coming for EVERYONE soon and I WILL be armed to the @#%$ teeth and I WILL shoot to kill. ....God, I can't wait till I can kill you people. Feel no remorse, no sense of shame, I don't care if I live or die in the shoot-out. All I want to do is kill and injure as many of you ... as I can especially Christians who are to blame for most of the problems in the world.

Well all you people out there can just kiss my (expletive removed) and die. From now on I don't give a @#%$ about what all you (expletive removed) have to say, unless I respect you which is highly unlikely, but for those of you who do happen to know me and know that I respect you, may peace be with you and don't be in my line of fire, for the rest of you, you all better @#%$ hide in your houses because I'm coming for EVERYONE soon, and I WILL be armed to the @#%$ teeth, and I WILL shoot to kill and I WILL @#%$ KILL EVERYTHING! No I am not crazy, crazy is just a word, to me it has no meaning, everyone is different, but most of you @#%$ heads out there in society, going to your everyday @#%$ jobs and doing your everyday routine (expletive removed) things, I say @#%$ you and die, if you got a problem with my thoughts, come to me and I'll kill you, because........God (expletive removed), DEAD PEOPLE DON'T ARGUE! My belief is that if I say something, it goes. I am the law. If you don't like it, you die. If I don't like you or I don't like what you want me to do, then you die. If I do something incorrect, oh @#%$ well, you die. Dead people can't do many things, like argue, whine, @#%$, complain, name, rat out, criticize, or even @#%$ talk. So that's the only way to solve arguments with all you (expletive removed) out there, I just kill. God I can't wait till I can kill you people, I'll just go to some downtown area in some big city and blow up and shoot everything I can.

You break my back but you won't break me.....all is black but I still see...shut me down, knock me to the floor.....shoot me up, @#%$ me like a whore....trapped under ice, comfortably cold, I've gone as low as you can go..... feel no remorse, no sorrow or shame......time's gonna wash away all pain I made a God out of blood not superiority I killed the king of deceit and now I sleep in anarchy.

**Update: how the shooting at New Life unfolded:



"It's time for me to head out and teach these (expletive) a lesson"
. . .

"I'm coming for EVERYONE soon and I WILL be armed to the @#%$ teeth and I WILL shoot to kill. ...God, I can't wait till I can kill you people. Feel no remorse, no sense of shame, I don't care if I live or die in the shoot-out. All I want to do is kill and injure as many of you ... as I can especially Christians who are to blame for most of the problems in the world"--Matthew Murray, gunman at both Colorado shootings

Yesterday's speculations surrounding Matthew Murray's motivations--alleged hatred of Christians despite his own affiliation with Christian organizations and his family's own religious connections--seemed to be confirmed by writings he left before he started his murderous rampage early Sunday morning:
9Wants to Know has discovered more than a dozen writings posted by Matthew Murray where he warns of an impending rampage and copied the statements of one of the Columbine High School gunmen.

On Monday, police confirmed that 24-year-old Murray was the gunman in the deadly shootings at both the Youth With a Mission center on the Faith Bible Chapel campus in Arvada and at New Life Church in Colorado Springs. Three people, including Murray, were killed in Colorado Springs, and two others died in Arvada. Five other people were wounded.

"You Christians brought this on yourselves," Murray wrote on a Web site for people who have left Pentecostal and fundamentalist religious organizations.

It was the most recent posting of his on the site, dated Sunday, December 9 at 11:03 a.m.

Murray lived with his parents in a home in unincorporated Arapahoe County where police conducted a search on Sunday night.

In the Web writings, which are now being investigated by Colorado Springs Police, Arvada Police and the FBI, Murray warned, "I'm coming for EVERYONE soon and I WILL be armed to the @#%$ teeth and I WILL shoot to kill. ...God, I can't wait till I can kill you people. Feel no remorse, no sense of shame, I don't care if I live or die in the shoot-out. All I want to do is kill and injure as many of you ... as I can especially Christians who are to blame for most of the problems in the world."
Murray had time to post again before heading to the New Life Church in Colorado Springs for the second round of violence, and managed to "say goodbye" to those he had contacted in the forums:
Murray's first posting on the day of the shootings is time stamped 10:50 a.m. It begins with a goodbye to those he has corresponded with for the past several months.

"You guys were awesome. It's time for me to head out and teach these (expletive) a lesson."

Murray continued, "Thanks for listening and all ... even though even many of you ex-Pentecostals don't understand ......(sic) See you all on the other side, we're leaving this nightmare behind to a better place."
Murray's descent into anti-Christian derangement was chronicled over several months of despondent, hateful posts:
Investigators already have copies of Murray's writings and are studying other Web sites.

Throughout his writings, which spanned several months, Murray's violence continued to accelerate.

Some of the users tried to counsel Murray and one psychologist even offered her services after reading his poem called "Crying all alone in pain in the nightmare of Christianity".

Murray rebuffed her offer.

"I've already been working with counselors. I have a point to make with all this talk about psychologists and counselors 'helping people with their pain,'" he wrote.

Murray's family issued a response yesterday:
"Our family cannot express the magnitude of our grief for the victims and families of this tragedy. On behalf of our family and our son, we ask for forgiveness," said Pastor Phil Abeyta, 24-year-old Matthew Murray's uncle. "We cannot understand why this has happened. We ask for prayer for the victims and their families during this time of grief. We are cooperating fully with the police agencies involved in the investigation of the events that led to this tragedy. Respectfully, the Murray family."

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Colorado Shootings Day 2

Scroll for updates . . .
****Update 8: Matthew Murray kicked out of YWAM, "strange behavior", heard "voices":
Matthew Murray was kicked out of a missionary training program five years ago for strange behavior, and talked about hearing voices, according to a man who served at the center with him.

Crime scene tape is placed near a Youth With A Mission sign in Arvada, Colorado, on Sunday.

Murray was the gunman who killed two people at the Youth With A Mission center on Sunday and two others at a Colorado Springs megachurch later that day, police said. He was shot by a church security guard and died of his wounds.

Richard Werner, 34, said Monday he was a worker at the center in Arvada, Colorado, in 2002, the same time as Murray.

He said Murray was told in December 2002 he would not be allowed to join a mission trip to Bosnia. That was five days after Murray performed a pair of dark rock songs at a concert at the mission that made fellow workers "pretty scared," according to Werner.

The performance -- which included a song by rock band Linkin Park and another that had been recorded by controversial rocker Marilyn Manson -- followed months of strange behavior, Werner said.

Werner, of Balneario Camborius, Brazil, said he had a bunk near Murray's and that Murray would roll around in bed and make noises.

"He would say, 'Don't worry, I'm just talking to the voices,' " Werner said. "He'd say, 'Don't worry, Richard. You're a nice guy. The voices like you.'"



Jeanne Assam

****Update 7: Jeanne Assam describes her experience, "hands didn't even shake":
The guard who saved untold lives at New Life Church gives credit to God for giving her cover, and boosting her firepower as she shot a heavily-armed gunman.

"I give credit to God. I say that very humbly," said Jeanne Assam. "God was with me, the whole time I was behind cover. Based on the firepower he had, compared to mine."

Assam spoke at a press conference in Colorado Springs this afternoon. She is one of about 12 armed security officers at New Life Church, according to Pastor Brady Boyd.

She responded when Matthew Murray, 24, began targeting church members in Colorado Springs, after a rampage hours earlier in Arvada in which two missionary training center staff members were killed and two were injured. Two teenagers at New Life were killed, and three others injured before Assam could shoot Murray.

She calmly described how the incident unfolded.

"I heard shots fired, there was chaos," she said. "There was a lot of people in the church. People were running away from shots fired.

"I saw him coming through the doors, and I took cover, and I waited for him to get closer...I identified myself, engaged him, and took him down."

She spoke unemotionally, but the first words she said were in tribute to the victims.

"I just want you to know it's an honor to be here and I want to extend my sympathy to the families of the victims and of the gunman. And I mean that very sincerely," she said.

"I just prayed for the holy spirit to guide me...my hands weren't even shaking."
****Update 6: Arvada, Colorado Springs shootings forensically linked; more details emerge from the final confrontation:
Bourbonnais says he was in the cafeteria when the gunfire started.

"He (Murray) had shot a couple out in the parking lot and by the time I got there, he had entered the two doors on the northeast side," said Bourbonnais. "I kept saying to the security guard, 'Give me your handgun, I'm going to take him out."

Bourbonnais says Murray was dressed in all black with combat boots and he had an assault rifle. Bourbonnais says Murray reminded him of a SWAT officer.

"I jumped out, got his attention and called him a name. And then he just looked at me and then he started to shoot me and so when I realized that, I jumped back," said Bourbonnais, "and all I got were two pellets in my arm so I thought, 'Well, I'll jump out again' and then I noticed the lady to my right. He shot a few times. She shot a few."

"She (Assam) was yelling, I recall, 'Surrender.' I didn't want to get in her way. I was unarmed, so I ran kind of up and parallel because I couldn't see," said Bourbonnais. "She fired off 10 or 12 shots and we both came around the corner and he started sliding down and he started bleeding. He looked pretty dead. I told her to take a headshot and she said, 'No, I think he's dead.' I took a handgun out of his hand because I was unarmed. I cleared it. It had jammed, I remember that."

"I told her that's the bravest thing I've ever seen and she said, 'I was just praying. It was the Holy Spirit to help me do this right.' That was pretty powerful stuff, very, very brave," he said.
****Update 5: Gunman ignored security officer Jeanne Assam's order to drop his weapon, fired at her before being shot himself, "thanks God"; two other armed male guards refused to fire:
The gunman who killed two at a Colorado Springs church Sunday refused a guard's order to drop his weapon and fired before the guard shot him to death and ended the attack, according to a church official.

The guard, a member of the New Life Church who provides security as a volunteer, was called a hero by church officials today.

"She's the hero," Senior Pastor Brady Boyd said. "She saved 100 lives yesterday."

Michael Ware, pastor of Victory Church in Westminster and a New Life overseer, said the security guard is a small woman, "110 pounds dripping wet."

Relating the account he had been told, Ware said the woman ordered the gunman to drop his weapon and they exchanged shots. The attacker shot at the guard, missed, and kept walking into the church, Ware said. The woman fired again, taking down the gunman.
Vietnam Vet Larry Bourbannais details two male guards who did not fire, refused to give him their weapons:
Near an entryway in the church, Bourbonnais came upon the gunman and an armed male church security guard who was there with his gun drawn but not firing, he said.

Bourbonnais said he pleaded with the armed guard to give him his weapon.

"Give me your handgun. I've been in combat, and I'm going to take this guy out," Bourbonnais recalled telling the guard. "He kept yelling, 'Get behind me! Get behind me!' He wouldn't hand me his weapon, but he wouldn't do anything."


There was an additional armed security guard there, another man, who also didn't fire, Bourbonnais said.

Bourbonnais yelled at the gunman to draw his attention, he said.

"First, I called him 'Coward' then I called him 'S---head' " Bourbonnais said. "I probably shouldn't have been saying that in church."


Rachael Works, 16, back left, and Stephanie Works, 18, front right, died in the shootings at New Life Church. They are pictured with their parents, David and Marie, and sisters. David Works was wounded in the attack.

****Update 4: "Gunman hated Christians" according to police, "like a commando on a suicide mission", worked for YWAM 3 years ago but was kicked out, sent "hate mail"; Murray's religious affiliation unknown:
A law enforcement official says the deadly rampages at a megachurch and a missionary training school were believed to have been carried out by the same person — Matthew J. Murray, a 24-year-old Arapahoe County man who “hated Christians.”

Murray had recently sent “hate mail” to the Youth With A Mission training center after being kicked out of the program three years ago, a search warrant affidavit obtained today says.


“The common denominator with both locations of (the shootings), is a church based group called ‘Youth With A Mission’ (Y-WAM),” Colorado Springs Detective Bradley Pratt wrote Sunday in a statement supporting of search warrant for Murray’s family home in Arapahoe County.

“It appears that the suspect had been kicked out of that program approximately three years prior, and during the past few weeks, had sent different forms of hate mail to the program, and/or its director,” Pratt wrote.

Murray’s expulsion from the school was confirmed by Cheryl Morrison, whose husband, George Morrison, is pastor of the Faith Bible Chapel adjacent to Y-WAM Arvada. She didn’t know specifics of the conflict.

“I don’t think that ‘run-in’ is the word, but they did have to dismiss him,” Cheryl Morrison said. “It had to be something of significance, because they go the nth degree with people.”

The search warrant affidavit shows that Murray assaulted New Life Church like a commando on a suicide mission.

**Yesterday's coverage here
*Update 3: Same gunman, Matthew Murray, at both shootings; Murray had worked with YWAM, sent threatening notes:
The shooter at both a missionary center and a church Sunday in Colorado was a man who once worked on a mission with the center, a source familiar with the events said Monday.

The source said the gunman -- who was killed by a security guard at the site of the second shooting -- was Matthew Murray.

The shootings left four people dead, in addition to the gunman, and five wounded.

The source -- a long-time member of New Life Church, site of the second shooting -- said Murray had a falling out with Youth With a Mission after working with the organization a couple of years ago and that he sent antagonistic and threatening correspondence afterward.

Murray fired on people at the missionary center in Arvada early Sunday, then drove to New Life Church in Colorado Springs, where the center has a satellite office, the source said.

Murray, carrying a great deal of ammunition, threw a smoke grenade into an area in which some people were gathered at the church after services, then got in his car and drove around to a different entrance, where he fired into a car -- killing two teenage girls and wounding their father, the source said.

Murray apparently fired at other cars as well, the source said.

A security guard confronted him and shot him.
One of the wounded--and a likely hero--Larry Bourbannais, a Vietnam veteran, ran toward the shooter to distract him as he was confronted by the security officer:
A Vietnam veteran is among the survivors, hit by gunfire at the New Life Church in Colorado Springs.

Larry Bourbannais, 59, was eating a hamburger in the cafeteria on the church campus when he heard gunfire, said his daughter, Sherry Smith.

Bourbannais headed in the direction of the shots as frightened people ran past him looking to escape to safety.

"Where's the shooter, where's the shooter," my dad kept yelling, Smith said.

Smith, 28, and other family members met Bourbannais at a hospital Sunday where he was treated for a gunshot wound in the arm and released.

Bourbannais was alert at the hospital and told Smith in detail about the shooting.

Bourbannais came upon the gunman near an entry way in a building and yelled at him to draw his attention, Smith said.

That's when the shooter pointed a handgun at Bourbannais and fired, she said.

Bourbannais had ducked behind a hollow, decorative pillar and was hit in the arm by the bullet and fragments of the pillar.

At about that moment, a woman with a drawn handgun turned a corner and walked toward the gunman and yelled "Surrender," Smith said.

When the gunman pointed his weapon at the woman, she fired at him and kept walking toward him as she continued firing, Smith said.

"My dad said it was the bravest thing he had ever seen," Smith said.

The woman fired off about 10 to 12 shots as she kept walking toward the shooter.

After the gunman went down, Bourbannais asked the woman, who has only been identified as a volunteer security guard with the church, how she remained so calm and focused.

Smith said the woman told Bourbannais: "She was praying for guidance from the Holy Spirit."


**Update 2: The alleged gunman in the shootings at New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, is 23-year-old Matthew Murray, CNN confirms
; from 9NEWS, gunman described as a "loner," didn't talk to neighbors:
The identity of the gunman in the shooting at a 10,000-plus member mega-church has been uncovered by 9Wants to Know.

9Wants to Know has learned 24-year-old Matthew Murray was killed after opening fire at New Life Church on Sunday.

Murray was home schooled and his last known address was at his parents' home in unincorporated Arapahoe County – the same home investigators searched Sunday night.

9NEWS was unable to find a record of Murray earning a high school diploma in the Cherry Creek School District.

It is still unclear whether there is a connection between Murray and the shooting at an Arvada missionary training center.
Homeschooled and lived with his parents:
On Sunday evening, authorities from several jurisdictions searched Murray's home in unincorporated Arapahoe County.

Authorities could be seen coming and going from the home, and at one point searching the bushes in front and the back yard. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Arapahoe County bomb squad were also involved in the search at the home on East Berry Place and Havana Street.

After the lengthy search -- during which many boxes of material were removed -- authorities took down crime scene tape at 5:30 a.m. and left the home without disclosing what they found.

Neighbors said the family has lived at that home for 10-plus years and has two sons, one of which attends a religious school. A Cherry Creek School District spokeswoman said that Murray was homeschooled and she doesn't have any record of him attending a high school in the area or receiving a diploma.

Murray lives with his father, a neurologist with a practice in Lone Tree, his mother and brother.

"It's just crazy just hearing about it. I was thinking about how I knew them so long ago ... They were a really religious family," said neighbor Cody Askeland.

USA Today blog reports the gunman was carrying 500 rounds of ammunition, and worked on a mission with the first group targeted in Sunday's shootings.

**Update: no BOLO issued after Arvada shooting; RMN issues bios for Arvada victims--Tiffany Johnson, Philip Crouse, Dan Griebenow, and Charlie Blanch; witnesses describe shooter, gunfire at New Life church; New Life church members suspect anti-Christian motivations for the shooting:
A few members speculated that the attack was motivated by hatred for Christianity, or New Life Church in particular.

“You get a lot of weird looks when you say you go to New Life,” said a member who declined to give her name. “It’s just a lot of judgment because we’re so big.”

Another New Life member saw a possible link with a shooting that killed two staff members at a missionary training center early Sunday in Arvada, a Denver suburb.

“Something’s going on,” said Melanie Vaughn. “I think people are so bitter about Christians. There are a lot of issues, killing, stealing and destroying. I think some people think the church is an easy target.”

An update on victims of the Colorado Springs shooting:
Police today identified two teenagers as the victims who were fatally shot in Sunday’s attack on New Life Church.

According to a statement to media outlets, the dead were 18-year-old Stephanie Works and 16-year-old Rachael Works.

The two girls were sisters, Pastor Brady Boyd said this morning.

The other shooting victims included:
David Works, 51, who suffered two gunshot wounds to the abdomen. He was listed in fair condition at Penrose Hospital.

Judy Purcell, 40, who suffered a gunshot wound to the right shoulder. She was treated at the hospital and released.

Larry Bourbannais, 59, who suffered a gunshot wound to the left forearm. He was treated at the hospital and released.

Pastor Boyd praised the quick reaction of the courageous female volunteer security officer who he credited with saving more lives:
The gunman was killed by a member of the church's volunteer security staff before police arrived.

"He never got more than 50 feet inside our building," said Boyd. "(Our security guard) rushed toward the attacker and took him down in the hallway. She probably saved 100 lives."


Boyd said the church "looked like a war zone" and that about 40 shots were fired in all. He called it a "senseless random attack."

The security guard was a woman in plain clothes who volunteers with the church and uses her own personal weapon, Boyd said. She has a law enforcement background and is licensed to carry a weapon. Boyd said she was the one who suggested the church beef up its security Sunday following the Arvada shooting, which it did.
Not much detail on the house searched in Englewood, but witnesses at both shootings described the alleged shooter in the same way.

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December 09, 2007

Gunman Kills Christian Missionaries In Arvada, Still At Large; Update: 4 Shot Outside Co. Springs Church

10 shot, 4 dead in two shootings at Christian facilities in Colorado 12 hours apart; gunman in second shooting killed by female security officer; police suspect shootings may be linked
****Update 5--Police remove boxes from home suspected to be linked to Sunday's shootings; shooter wore tactical helmet, body armor; two now reported dead in Co. Springs (aside from gunman)


****Update 4--RMN reports shootings may actually be linked, more at the Post:
By Sunday evening, investigators in the two cities believed they might be linked.

"There is a reason to believe that," Arvada Police Chief Don Wick said, but he would not elaborate.

"Those are leads we're following up," he said.

****Update 3--6 shot in Co. Springs, more details from Sunday's shooting in Co. Springs, 1 teenage girl dead, gunman killed by security officer (**update, female security officer) at the Church, IED found (**update, not explosives, but smoke-making devices):
Authorities say five people were shot on Sunday in the second shooting of the day at a Colorado religious center.

The gunfire erupted at the 10,000-plus member mega-church, New Life Church, just after 1 p.m., according to authorities.

KOAA says the gunman opened fire at the New Life Church, located at 11025 Voyager Parkway in Colorado Springs, as the 12 p.m. service was getting out. Authorities say the shooting occurred outside of the church.

Police say a security guard shot and killed the gunman. Authorities also found an improvised explosive device.

9NEWS has also learned that a teenage girl was killed in the shooting.
****Two gunmen believed to be involved in Colorado Springs shooting, one reportedly downed in exchange of gunfire with law enforcement

****Pictures of the four victims of the Arvada shooting have been released; gunman was apparently seeking shelter and opened fire when he was told he could not be accomodated (Youth with a Mission website):


dead


dead


critical condition


injured

More details emerge from the Arvada shooting:
A lone gunman opened fire on a missionary training campus early Sunday morning, shooting four people, two of whom have died and one who is in critical condition.

Arvada Police investigators say the gunman walked into a dorm-like residence hall at the Youth with a Mission facility on the Faith Bible Chapel campus near 64th & Ward Road just after midnight and began shooting. Youth with a Mission is commonly referred to as YWAM.

Peter Warren, the Director of Youth with a Mission Denver says YWAM had just finished a Christmas banquet and were cleaning up at about 12:30 a.m. when the suspect arrived and asked 26-year-old Tiffany Johnson of Minnesota if he could be housed for the evening.

When Johnson told him they could not accommodate him, Warren says, the suspect opened fire with an automatic handgun, hitting four people, including Johnson. Police have not yet released any information regarding the weapon used in the shooting.

All four people were rushed to area hospitals where two people died. Three of the four people have been confirmed as being staff members of YWAM.

Paul Filidis of YWAM Colorado Springs says Johnson and 24-year-old Philip Crouse of Alaska, were killed. He says their families have been notified and are on their way to Colorado.

According to Filidis and Warren, the third victim, 24-year-old Dan Griebenow of South Dakota, has a bullet in his neck and is listed in critical but stable condition. Griebenow joined the staff in the winter of 2007, according to YWAM's Web site.

Filidis says the fourth victim, 22-year-old Charlie Blanch, suffered gunshot wounds to his leg. Blanch has been a staff member of YWAM since the fall of 2006, according to their Web site.

Kevin Moloney for The New York Times--There was a heavy police presence at the Faith Bible Chapel campus in Arvada, Colo., on Sunday morning after a shooting left two missionaries-in-training dead
**Update 2--another shooting outside a church in Colorado Springs, 4 injured:
At least four people were shot outside New Life Church on Sunday, but it was not immediately clear if any of them died, El Paso County Sheriff's Lt. Lari Sevene said.

It was not immediately known if the shootings were connected with shootings earlier Sunday at a missionary training center in the Denver suburb of Arvada some 65 miles to the north. Two people died in the Arvada incident.

Lance Coles, a pastor at New Life Church, told The Associated Press he received a report that a man was shooting at people in the church parking lot and that the gunman may have entered the church.

New Life was founded by the Rev. Ted Haggard, who was fired last year after a former male prostitute alleged he had a three year cash-for-sex relationship.
Two shootings at churches within the same day, less than a two-hour drive apart? Too creepy--and if the moron moonbat comment posted below is any indication, we may see more of this activity in the future.

**There is no indication at this point that either shooting is religiously motivated--they could be random or personally motivated--but if there is a connection and the shootings were inspired by the victims' religion, then how long will it take before the MSM picks up on this?
Earlier--
Breaking from Arvada--now with video:
A gunman walked into a training center dormitory for young Christian missionaries early today and opened fire, shooting four people.

Two people, one male and one female both in their mid-20s, died and one is in critical condition, 9News reported. The condition of the fourth victim was not immediately available.

The shooting happened at about 12:30 a.m. at the Youth With a Mission center near West 64th Avenue and Ward Road, Arvada Police spokeswoman Susan Medina said. About 45 people were evacuated from the dormitory.

The gunman was still at large this morning.

Witnesses told police that the gunman was a 20-year-old white male, wearing a dark jacket and skull cap. He may have glasses or a beard.
Not much to go on at this point--whether or not the intended targets were chosen because of their religious affiliation or simply victims of convenience; what exactly the suspect looks like with more definition (skull cap and beard); any connection (possibly inspiration) from the recent shooting in Omaha, Nebraska. Details are sketchy at this point, and so speculation should be held to a minimum until more evidence comes in.

The targets, at least initially, look to be more than victims in "the wrong place at the wrong time", and the suspect's initial description is just a little disconcerting.
**Moron moonbat logic and hatemongering update from comments:
So the shooter killed only two and wounded two others. Too bad he didn't have more time to get some more. Religious missionaries are very legitimate targets since they stick their noses into other people's private religious affairs. America needs more shootings like this in the future to put the religious fanatics and loonies in their place.

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Daily Nativity 120907

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December 08, 2007

Daily Nativity 120807

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Blogs For Borders Video Blogburst 120307

Freedom Folks has the latest Blogs For Borders video.

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December 07, 2007

Daily Nativity 120707

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December 06, 2007

Daily Nativity 120607


Leonardo Da Vinci, "Adoration of the Magi"

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December 05, 2007

Daily Nativity 120507

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Pet Grooming Survey

Educational appeal--part 2:
Hello,

This survey is part of a Services Marketing project on the pet care/dog grooming industry conducted by a group of graduate students of the University of Colorado at Denver and Health Science Center. Your participation as one of a small number of people selected to offer their opinion on these matters will ensure that the results more truly represent the thinking of pet owners—dog lovers in particular. It is important that we achieve a sample response that is diverse in order to most precisely reflect overall consumer attitudes. It is also important that we have approximately the same amount of male and female respondents. For this, your response is very important. Please note however that we require that respondents must also be at least 18 years of age.

Your participation is greatly appreciated, and entirely voluntary. Surveys are anonymous and you can be assured of complete confidentiality. Your responses will be used only for aggregate analysis and will not be identified as an individual response. No personal contact information will be shared with any outside parties, nor will it will not be sold or made available to any commercial entity. You may receive a summary of the survey results by requesting a copy with your submitted survey response. Please do not include contact information or request for survey results on the survey itself.

We would be most happy to answer any questions you might have. Please email us at ameado19@yahoo.com, pollozano1@yahoo.com, tabascoii@gmail.com.

Estimated survey time: 15-20 minutes. Please consider forwarding this survey to others you feel may be interested.

You may click on the link, or copy/paste into a new tab or browser window:

Click Here to take survey

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=Dgvgy59OnLYt2UYaOctZWg_3d_3d

Thank you for your assistance.

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December 04, 2007

Daily Nativity 120407

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December 03, 2007

Daily Nativity 120307


Giotto, "The Nativity"

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Boulder County Proposes Smoking Ban Surveys For HOAs, Private Complexes

In addition to the surveys it plans for the Boulder Housing Authority-managed properties--polling residents to determine if a smoking ban is wanted, Boulder County urges private home owner associations and privately managed housing complexes to consider banning smoking through a polling mechanism. So much for private property rights--say hello to your new nanny-state overlords, aided and abetted by your neighbors:
Boulder County is considering snuffing out smoking inside Boulder Housing Authority-managed apartment, condominium and townhouse complexes — and health officials would like homeowners' associations to weigh similar bans in private buildings.

The county's public health division, along with the housing authority, distributed a 12-question survey last month to the 467 residents living in its scattered complexes, asking whether they'd support a smoking ban for every unit in their building.

If most tenants support building-wide bans, Boulder County Public Health and the Housing Authority will consider a smoking prohibition. If most tenants reject the idea, the authority probably won't, said EricAakko, the county's tobacco education coordinator.

"Most buildings aren't designed to have smokers in one area and not in the next," said Aakko, noting that 50 percent of the air in multi-unit housing complexes recirculates throughout the buildings because ventilation systems aren't equipped to filter out smoke.

"The surgeon general has been clear: There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke."

Katie Case, who lives in a Housing Authority complex on Broadway, said she's opposed to having smoke in her house — but she also respects people's freedoms. She's particularly sensitive to the issue in the winter, when it can be too cold to smoke outside.

Mark Rosinski takes a smoke break Friday at the apartment where he is doing maintenance work. He said he would not support further smoking bans in Boulder.

"With the bar bans, if you can't smoke at your house, you can't smoke at all," Case, 23, said.

Still, because of associated health risks, Case said she'll support a building-wide ban.

"But it is getting a little invasive," she said.
Ya think?

And how about that logic--the proposal is invasive, but she'll still vote for it! So much for personal freedom on private property, if your neighbors don't like it, no smoking for you, even inside your own home! And all under the presumed veil of "democratic" polling of the HOA or housing units. With neighbors using logic like this woman, a quick puff may earn you heavy fines, and perhaps a trip to the nearest moonbat reeducation camp.

And to think, when the public area bans were first proposed, there were claims that smoking on private property would never be a target. Nanny-state creep is all the rage, especially in smoking prohibition.

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December 02, 2007

Daily Nativity 120207

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Larimer County Sheriff Decks The Halls With Nativity, Menorah

"I think the task force was well-intentioned, the city was well-intentioned, but they took a hard left at some point in the process"--Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden

A left turn into ACLU-aided moonbattery. A big turnout, complete with a Nativity and menorah--the reasons for the season:
Sheriff Jim Alderden led an old fashioned tree trimming celebration Saturday in protest of the City of Fort Collins' decision to remove religious symbols from city property.

The tree trimming was originally organized in response to a holiday task force that recommended the Fort Collins City Council vote to remove all religious references and colored lights from the city's display. Because the sheriff's tree is on county-owned property, it is not subject to any decisions the Fort Collins City Council makes.

"To me, the whole thing was absurd. Why did we need a 15-member task force to even explore what should be appropriate on public property," Alderden said. "I think the task force was well-intentioned, the city was well-intentioned, but they took a hard left at some point in the process."
. . .
"You look around and you see all the people showing up for this old fashioned tree trimming and I think it's wonderful," said City Council member Diggs Brown.

Brown voted against the removal of Christmas trees and colored lights, saying "I'm not going to be the Grinch that does away with decorations."

"From my perspective, this was a freedom of speech, freedom of religion issue. The vocal minority of intolerant progressives was trying to run down the majority," Alderden said.

Alderden says he received $1,500 in donations for Saturday's event and more than 500 e-mails supporting his stance.

"I've gotten a great deal of pagans and atheists coming in to see me and e-mail me (because of) their recognition that some sort of spirituality isn't a bad thing."

In addition to the tree, Alderden's display includes a Nativity scene and a menorah.
Only ACLU/progressive-approved spirituality is allowed in moonbat diversity-land.

That leaves out the "fascist" Christianity (Nativity) and "Zionist" Judaism (menorah).

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December 01, 2007

Daily Nativity 120107


François Boucher, "The Light of the World"

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