Topics: Abortion divides House Democrats; Iman pleads guilty in terror case; Phoenix church fights to feed homeless; Possible bias in gays-in-military study; Texas Board of Ed conservative loses; Rare biblical manuscript pieces united

Saying that The Aqulia Report is operated on a bootstrap is the understatement of the century. That affects our ability to report some of the stories we would like to report in much more depth – especially those that come off the Associated Press wire. At those prices, it is no wonder small newspapers are going out of business in large numbers.

So, periodically (perhaps once a week if there are enough stories) we will include an article with this title and format, giving you a brief description of the topic of the article and a link to a web source where you can read the larger story, which is most cases is not very large anyway.

1. Abortion coverage dispute divides House Democrats
By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar

On the other side of the obstacle course that President Barack Obama must clear to get his health care overhaul, a final trapdoor is lurking: the divisive politics of abortion.
The issue pits House Democrats against each other just when Obama is calling on them to unite for one last push on health care in a perilous election year. The fate of the sweeping legislation to expand coverage and revamp the health insurance market hangs in the balance
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_HEALTH_OVERHAUL_ABORTION?SITE=TXKER&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

2. Imam pleads guilty in NYC terror case

An imam linked to the suspects in an aborted suicide bomb plot against New York City pleaded guilty on Thursday to lying to the FBI — a deal sparing him serious jail time but forcing him to leave the country. A tearful Ahmad Afzali told a judge in federal court in Brooklyn that he had wanted to help authorities in the investigation of the threat, but lied under grilling by the FBI about his phone conversations with admitted al-Qaida associate Najibullah Zazi.
http://www.detnews.com/article/20100305/ENT04/3050375/1424/ENT04/Imam-pleads-guilty-in-NYC-terror-case#ixzz0hJba7gwq

3. Phoenix church fights city to feed homeless
By Amanda Lee Myers

On Saturday mornings, crowds of homeless people gather with other needy people at picnic tables outside a church in an upscale Phoenix neighborhood, listen to sermons and settle in for sausage, pancakes and scrambled eggs. The pastor says it’s the Lord’s work. Neighbors say it should be done elsewhere. Residents say the homeless create blight and pose a danger to them, pointing to the case of a homeless felon caught with child pornography in the neighborhood. A complaint prompted city officials to order the year-old breakfast halted, saying it violated zoning laws.
http://washingtontimes.com/news/2010/mar/03/phoenix-church-fights-city-to-feed-homeless/

4. Republicans fear study bias on gays in military
By Anne Flaherty

The Pentagon’s upcoming study on gays in the military is biased, some Republican lawmakers already contend, because it assumes Congress will repeal the 1993 law known as “don’t ask, don’t tell.” Republicans are likely to use that argument as they try to erode the credibility of the planned review, which Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates envisions as the first comprehensive look at the 17-year-old policy.
http://washingtontimes.com/news/2010/mar/04/republicans-fear-study-bias-on-gays-in-military/

5. Election weakens Texas Ed board conservatives
By April Castro

The Texas state education board’s influential Christian conservative bloc was weakened Wednesday after one of its most prominent members lost his seat to a moderate Republican. Another reliably conservative seat was headed to a runoff.
Former board chairman Don McLeroy was handed a GOP primary defeat by lobbyist Thomas Ratliff. Ratliff conceded McLeroy never foisted his religious beliefs into textbooks, over which the 15-member State Board of Education has nationwide influence because Texas is one of the biggest clients for publishers. But Ratliff had criticized the 10-year board veteran for being too far right.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5glGJGWvAlmbOsoI6qd8-wUAH6XxwD9E7EU080

6. Pieces of rare biblical manuscript reunited

Two parts of an ancient biblical manuscript separated across centuries and continents were reunited for the first time in a joint display Friday, thanks to an accidental discovery that is helping illuminate a dark period in the history of the Hebrew Bible.
The 1,300-year-old fragments, which are among only a handful of Hebrew biblical manuscripts known to have survived the era in which they were written, existed separately and with their relationship unknown, until a news photograph of one’s public unveiling in 2007 caught the attention of the scholars who would eventually link them.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1152606.html

[Editor’s note: Some of the original URLs (links) referenced in this article are no longer valid, so the links have been removed.]