SPCS

SOCIETY FOR PROMOTION OF COMMUNITY STANDARDS INC.

Family First NZ welcomes removal of brothel near PM’s home

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Family First NZ, a registered charity with the Charities Commission, issued the following media release today:

Residents’ Action Gets Remuera Brothel Booted Out

Family First NZ is welcoming news that the residents in Remuera’s Ascot Ave near the Prime Minister’s residence have succeeded in getting rid of a residential brothel through community pressure. 

“It is disappointing that politicians have foisted a flawed prostitution law on families with the result of brothels setting up right next door to family homes – yet it has to take the determination and persistence of families to try and remedy this unacceptable situation,” says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ. 

“We have huge sympathy for the families in this neighbourhood – but they are not the first, and won’t be the last to be harmed until the politicians admit they made a mistake.” [Read more…]

NZ First and Conservatives win on ValueYourVote Election 2011

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The NZ First Party led by the Hon. Winston Peters, which romped back into parliament with eight MPS and gained 7% of the vote on election night, scored highly ( second highest at 80%), along with the Conservative Party (90% top “value”) , in a “VALUEYOURVOTE” election guide published by Family First NZ . See www.valueyourvote.org.nz (“One way or another, the politicians you elect will influence your family … So before you vote for them, wouldn’t you like to know what they stand for?”)

Tens of thousands of the guides were distributed throughout the country by Family First NZ, a charity registered with the Charities Commission; assessing the political parties based on their responses and/or lack of responses to questions on their respective policies on moral and conscience issues considered by the charity to be highly important to prospective voters. Such issues included:

1. Define marriage as one man and one woman

2. Policies promoting marriage

3. Unborn child has right to life

4. Informed consent for women seeking abortion 

5. Parental notification for teen pregnancies

6. Abstinence and parental-based sex education

7. Legalisation of surrogacy

8. Same sex adoption by non-biological adults

9. Decriminalisation of euthanasia

10 G-rated billboards

11. Decriminalise non-abusive smacking

12 Raise drinking and purchase age to 20

The pamplete stated: “The leaders of the Labour, National and Maori Parties refused to complete the questionnaires.” Points were awarded to responses (Yes/No) which were in line with Family First NZ position. Where possible the charity analysed these three partys’  voting record and public statements on these issues, but was only able to provide guidance on the policies relating to a small small number of the 30 questions/issues raised.

NZ First NZ and the Conservative Party (the latter received 2.8% of the vote, fifth in ranking ahead of their closest rival the Maori Party, which only scored 1.3%) were real ‘winners’ on election night. ‘Winners’ in the sense of wooing a significant block of voters (almost 10%), based on a firm, unequivocal policy stance taken on 30 values issues – with answers in harmomy with Family First NZ position – while leaders of the National, Labour and Maori parties who refused to respond ‘failed’ in the “value” assessment. The Greens scored poorly in the Family First NZ guide at 23% – well below Act at 43% and United Future at 37%.

Hamilton Councillors Should Reject Sex Expo – says Family First NZ

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Family First NZ, a registered charity with the Charities Commission, has issued a media release today, calling on Hamilton Councillors to refuse an application t0 stage a Sex Expo, promoting hardcore pornography, in council-owned buildings.

Family First NZ Media Release 18 November:

Hamilton Councillors Should Reject Sex Expo

Family First NZ is calling on Hamilton Councillors to reject the application for the Erotica Expo to be held in the council-owned Claudelands Arena.

 “Council buildings should only be available for family-friendly events which are beneficial to the community. The Erotica Expo is simply an attempt to normalise the hard core pornography industry,” says Bob McCoskrie, National Director of Family First NZ.

 “Pornography has a damaging effect on intimacy, love, and respect and at its worst, leads to sex role stereotyping, viewing persons as sexual objects, and family breakdown.”

 Research at Australia’s La Trobe University recently concluded “This is not about couples going to the porn store to spice up their sex lives. Men in growing numbers are using porn in ways that are secret, shameful and damaging. It is having a damaging impact on intimacy and sexuality.”

Research has also shown that children who are exposed to pornography develop skewed ideas about sex and sexuality, which lead to negative stereotypes of women, sexual activity at a young age, and increased aggression in boys.

A meta-analysis of research by the National Foundation for Family Research and Education (NFFRE) at the University of Calgary found that viewing pornography leads to perceptions of sexual dominance, sex role stereotyping, viewing persons as sexual objects, sexual aggressiveness, and sexually hostility and violent behaviours.

“We are asking the Hamilton City Council to exercise moral leadership and act in the best interests of families by rejecting this application. The Council should not be associated in any way with the promotion of the pornography industry which harms our families,” says Mr McCoskrie

ENDS

Gay Community cannot redefine marriage – Dom Post – Opinion

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Marriage about purpose, not rights – Opinion – by Bob McCoskrie – national director of Family First NZ – a registered charity with the Charities Commission – writes:

DEBORAH RUSSELL, (“Marriage should be for all”, October 21, Dominion Post) says the state has no business in the marriage game, but then argues that the state should redefine marriage to allow same-sex marriage.

Marriages are a matter of significant public concern, as the record of almost every culture shows.

If it weren’t for the fact that sexual intercourse between a man and a woman leads to children and brings with it a further obligation to care for tose children, the notion of marriage would probably never have existed.

Marriage encourages the raising of children by the mother and father who conceived them. Onn average, children raised by their biological parents who are married have the best outcomes in health, education and income, and by far the lowest involvement with the criminal justice system.

Russell then argues that denying same-sex marriage is “discriminatory” and “reinforces the power of traditional churches by endorcing their morality”.

Firstly, it is true that marriage by definition is discriminatory. A homosexual cannot now legally marry. But neither can a wholelot of other people. A five-year-old boy cannot marry. Three people cannot get married to each other. A married man can’t marry another person. A child cannot marry her pet goldfish. A football team cannot enact group marriage – the list is endless. It is disingenuous to complain to complain about rights being taken away, when they never existed in the first place. It is like trying to argue that Kiri te Kanawa is being discriminated against since she cannot play for the All Blacks, or Richie McCaw can’t play for the Silver Ferns.

Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/comment/5849413/Gay-community-cannot-redefine-marriage

 

[Read more…]

Why saying ‘I do’ is good for families – Bob McCoskrie (Director – Family First NZ)

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[On 27 June the Dominion Post published the following article in defence of marriage and the family, by Bob McCoskrie, national director of the registered charity – Family First NZ]

On April 29, two billion people worldwide sat in front of their TV screens as they witnessed one of the most public weddings in history – the marriage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton.

No-one asked why they were getting married, why they didn’t get a civil union instead, or said that the ceremony was pointless and unnecessary. It was simply the dream that many aspire to.

Just 20,900 couples got married in New Zealand last year – an all-time low. This has led to claims that a wedding ring is unnecessary to legitimise parenthood and sexual activity. Put simply: some think marriage doesn’t matter. On that basis, civil unions matter even less – only 273 couples got one last year.

But do declining rates mean that it doesn’t matter? Should we be concerned that marriage rates are at an all-time low? Yes, we should. Marriage matters. The weakening of marriage is one of the most important social issues we are facing.

A 2006 British report said that the breakdown of the traditional married family was at the root of teenagers being involved in violent acts, taking more drugs, drinking more, and having sex at a younger age.

But the report didn’t come from a “Right-wing think-tank’ or lobby group with a “moralist agenda”. It was from Britain’s most prominent and influential Left-leaning policy group – the Institute for Public Policy Research. It contradicted years of ideology that family structure doesn’t matter.

Cohabitation statistics in the 21st century released this year by British social reform organisation the Jubilee Centre found that married couples with children are 10 times more likely to stay together than de facto couples – and marriages last an average of four years longer if partners haven’t lived together before getting married.

According to the study, in 1993 70 per cent of couples who had children after they got married remained married at their child’s 16th birthday – increasing to 75 per cent in 2006. Yet just 36 per cent of cohabiting parents were together for their child’s 16th birthday in 1992 – reducing to just 7 per cent in 2006. This indicates that marriage has become a more stable family background for raising children.

According to Why Marriage Matters – a report co-authored by 13 leading social- science scholars, including Professor William Galston, a domestic policy adviser to the Clinton administration – parental divorce or non-marriage appears to increase children’s risk of school failure, the risk of suicide, psychological distress and, most significantly, delinquent and criminal behaviour.

For full published article go to:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/comment/5195687/Why-saying-I-do-is-good-for-our-families

OR

Family First NZ website: www.familyfirst.org.nz