Welcome to PulsePoint for 13th June – the latest media stories and research related to family and society that you need to know about – issues from both New Zealand and overseas that the Family First team have been monitoring and researching over the last week. It’s time to cut through the spin and uncover the real issues.
In this episode of PulsePoint, we’ll update you on these topics:
1. The United Methodist Church loses 1 million members in a single day, thousands of churches leave the denomination in the US. 00:56
2. Disney’s woke activism doubles down on the new Star Wars series. 02:06
3. Cancer misdiagnosis could have resulted in euthanasia. 06:12
4. The Canadian Cancer Society apologises for using the biologically accurate term “cervix”. 08:33
5. Crucial topics and key international speakers at the upcoming Forum on the Family. 09:37
TRANSCRIPT:
In this episode of PulsePoint, we’ll update you on these topics:
- The United Methodist Church loses 1 million members in a single day, thousands of churches leave the denomination in the US
- Disney’s woke activism doubles down on the new Star Wars series
- Cancer misdiagnosis could have resulted in euthanasia
- The Canadian Cancer Society apologises for using the biologically accurate term “cervix”
- Finally, crucial topics and key international speakers at the upcoming Forum on the Family.
Intro: Welcome to PulsePoint – the LATEST media stories AND research related to family and society that YOU need to know. It’s time to cut through the spin and uncover the REAL issues.
I’m Tumby Stowers.
- The United Methodist Church (UMC) is facing a mass exodus following its decision to allow the ordination of LGBT clergy and the blessing of same-sex unions.
More than one million members from the Côte d’Ivoire (Koat Davu waa) Conference in West Africa voted to leave, citing the UMC’s departure from “the Holy Scriptures” and compromising its integrity to instead promote the LGBQT community.
The UMC’s recent lifting of a nearly 40-year-old ban on ordaining gay clergy, approved by a significant majority vote, has been controversial. This change has led to the departure of numerous U.S. congregations, with more than 7 and a half thousand churches leaving in the last five years along with African, Eastern Europe and Central Asia branches.
Progressive congregations have been pushing for greater LGBTQ inclusion, causing further division. Embracing and even promoting LGBTQ in its practices has seen parallel exit trends in other Protestant denominations such as the Anglican church (including the NZ branch) in response to a shift away from biblical teachings on sexuality and marriage.
- Last year, Disney’s CEO, Bob Iger, publicly pledged to make Disney less woke.
This is because Three years ago Disney launched its new “Pride” apparel and accessory collection targeted, once again, at our children.
Last year, a TikTok clip of a man in a dress welcoming small children into a Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique Disneyland full of princess costumes went viral on social media.
And now some of the classics are being pulled off their platform.
But in the latest example the new Disney “Star Wars” show, “The Acolyte.” has been promoted as the gayest “Star Wars” show yet.
Here’s a recent interview featuring Leslye Headland, the creator of the new Disney “Star Wars” show, “The Acolyte.”
Earlier this year, Headland openly admitted to the goal behind the show in an interview. Surprisingly, it involves the child favourite Frozen.
One reviewer said
The Acolyte, Star Wars new series streaming, very woke. 1) main character has two mothers 2) main Jedi characters are all Black and Asian, no white men 3) In the first episode, the only speaking role for a white character was for prisoners.
In Episode 3, they plan to throw away all Star Wars cannon and also start using pronouns. One reviewer who has seen the episode said it will destroy all remaining affection the fans had for Star Wars.
More recently there was “Tales of the Empire.” This one is apparently geared towards kids, and some critics argue it features a nonbinary Jedi, based on how all of the characters use “they/them” pronouns to refer to his corpse.
And the long-awaited sequel to Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out is due out soon, and it’s looking a little…(pause) gay.
That’s not according to us – but according to the media commentators at Yahoo News UK
There has been a backlash on Disney’s wokeness and it has suffered a loss of 4 million subscribers in one year, and a fall in share price.
But it’s not just Disney. It’s programmes generally targeted at child audiences – including even Sesame Street – celebrating gender diversity and sexuality for very young children.
The bottom line? Sadly, treat the latest Disney and other new children programmes as potentially hostile. Check them first. Don’t hope for the best.
- A Christchurch woman began preparing for the end of her life after being mistakenly diagnosed with cancer due to a file mix-up. Incorrect images were loaded into the woman’s file.
She accessed her records through the Patient Portal, which indicated she had multiple masses on her liver, primarily caused by issues with her pancreas. She said, “I went to the doctor, and she sat me down and said, ‘Unfortunately, it’s more than likely you have cancer’.
Over the next six days, Shields lived with the belief that she had a terminal illness.
You will note that the media report failed to highlight a real concern with our current euthanasia laws – as we pointed out at the time of the debate.
What if the diagnosis (the illness) or the prognosis (the time to live) is wrong?
Toni Sheilds was given the wrong diagnosis due to incorrect images being loaded into her files. She said:
“𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒚 𝒇𝒖𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍. 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒅𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈. (euthanasia)”
There are 𝐍𝐎 safeguards that could have prevented her obtaining assisted suicide if they hadn’t realised the error of the diagnosis.
The media failed to make the connection.
But this scenario simply confirms what we already knew.
It was one of the arguments used to do away with the death penalty. What if we get one wrong. Euthanasia is not safe.
And this is not a one-off case as supporters of euthanasia will argue.
A diverse range of research into this issue over the past several decades suggests that the diagnosis is wrong 10–15% of the time. A 2012 paper published in the British Medical Journal noted that 28% of autopsies report at least one misdiagnosis.
- 4. Continuing the health theme, the Canadian Cancer Society is apologizing for referring tothe cervix by its technical name rather than euphemisms such as “front hole.”
The agency also conceded that “men can have these body parts too.”
“Trans, non-binary and gender-diverse people face significant barriers to accessing healthcare and are less likely than cisgender people to be screened for cancer,” wrote the Canadian Cancer Society in a page on cervical cancer screening for LGBTQ people.
In a “words matter” section on the organization’s official website, the Canadian Cancer Society atoned for the fact that some non-binary and transgender people might find the term “cervix” offensive and preferred to use slang terms instead.
’ We recognize the limitations of the words we’ve used while also acknowledging the need for simplicity,” the Canadian Cancer Society wrote.
- And finally, the Forum on the Family is only 1 month away. The theme this year is Protecting The Next Generation.
And once again there is an amazing lineup of international and local speakers including detransitioner Chloe Cole, abortion survivor Melissa Ohden and author of “The Anxious Generation” Jonathan Haidt who will be interviewed via zoom
Last year was an absolute sell-out! So go to forumonthefamily.nz to register and for more information.
And THAT’S the latest episode of PulsePoint. You can check out ALL these stories AND MORE on our website familyfirst.nz. We’ll keep watching the news… so that you don’t have to.
See you next time.
