As of January 1, a new Illinois state law is in effect that removes grant funding from public libraries that ban books “because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.” House Bill 2789 was signed by Governor J.B. Pritzker last summer and is just the latest in a string of policies advanced by this administration and motivated by its apparent obsession with indoctrinating kids into sexual orientation and gender identity ideology.

Recently, I noticed an online post of a local church that read: “Everyone is welcome! No exceptions. Period.” Really? Everyone?

Stories are powerful and incredibly influential. Almost everyone can point to at least one story, if not more, that have deeply changed the way they think, act, or live. Even without meaning to, we tend to base our perception of reality around the stories we know, love, and tell.

How we spend our time and money reveals what we care about. That principle applies not only to individuals, but to groups, to corporations, to governments. What people say means very little. It’s what they do that counts.

There are 1.85 million public school students in grades K to 12 in Illinois. Of those, 1.2 million of them, 65 percent, cannot read at grade level, and 1.4 million, 76 percent, do not have math skills at grade level. Did you know that?

Which side are you on? Do you know? There are only two. From the moment you get up in the morning until you go to sleep at night, you take one side or the other.

Several essential characteristics separate humans from other mammals. The most significant among them is our complex reasoning ability. We can solve problems throughout the full range of our current awareness. We have a powerful capability to observe, collect, and analyze facts. We can formulate theories and design meticulous studies to test them out. And we can debate the meaning of the findings of those studies.

In a July 2010, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation featured a story by Ginger Gorman about a homosexual couple’s efforts to become parents. Peter Truong and Mark Newton of Queensland, Australia were celebrated as loving, caring, gay parents of their son, Boy 1.

Alexi Giannoulias, Illinois Secretary of State, recently testified before a U.S. Senate Committee on the issue of how to determine what books belong in libraries and who determines what stays and what goes. Under questioning by Senator John Kennedy (R-LA), Giannoulias found himself at a loss for words after Kennedy read obscene passages from two controversial books, Gender Queer and All Boys Aren’t Blue, often found in public and school libraries.

The British destroyed our original Library of Congress and the 3,000 books it housed, in 1814 during the War of 1812... Today, the Library of Congress is the largest library in the world and holds 173 million items, 39 million of them are books. Every day 15,000 items are added to the collection by the library's 3,000 employees.

Four principles of manhood that our society is attacking vigorously: #1: Men are to take dominion over the earth (Gen. 1:28). This was included in God's first set of commands to Adam and still remains a central imperative for men today. On the contrary, our culture provides little support for men who are serious about exercising dominion over what God has placed under their control, and instead provides many escapes from a man's true obligations.

No problem can be solved unless you can see it clearly. Too often, people jump in and act without having any real understanding of the problem--its nature and scope, its scale and dimensions. They make assumptions and conclusions, without proper investigation and clarity. The result is always the same when you act without understanding. Failure.

Why is there so much enthusiasm by so many people to celebrate non-heterosexual sexuality? For a whole month? It was June 11, 1999 that President Clinton proclaimed June as “Gay and Lesbian Pride Month.” President Obama changed it to “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month” on May 31, 2011. Why do we even have it? Why are certain groups selected to have a day or a month dedicated to their recognition, celebration, honor, or just acknowledgment?

Politicians and government officials have debated about LGBT issues for quite some time now. Decades in fact. Bathroom and locker-room laws, "don't-ask-don't-tell" in the armed services, and whether or not to apply anti-discrimination laws to sexual orientation have all flashed across the national stage at various points in time. The decisions politicians and judges have made in situations like these have had far-reaching consequences for our nation.

Nothing opens your mind to new worlds and new possibilities better than a book. Stories can communicate ideas, themes, and lessons considerably better than a lecture does. Children love to act out the stories of their favorite characters, adopting their mannerisms and wishing to be them. You probably can think of a book that has impacted you deeply and maybe even encouraged you to change your behavior in some manner.