If any of you have benefited from the ministry in any way via our X3watch software, Porn Sunday or any other X3 event or resources, then you know how important it is for this ministry to exist and continue.

The golf marathon for Fireproof Ministries will be here in about a month. May 5th to be exact, and if you recall last year's Hackfest you know it is a ton of fun.

Alot of you ask me "How does XXXchurch get the money to do what it does?" Well, this is one of the top 3 ways, the others are selling merch and speaking dates. I'm asking all of you that are friends of the ministry, friends of me, friends of the family to chip in with some donations OR step it up a notch and commit to playing for TEAM EL CLINTO in the tournament.

If you want to play for TEAM EL CLINTO, I'll send you a booklet to keep track of all the people donating. We're playing 100 holes of golf in one day and The goal is to raise $25 a hole. You can start by sponsoring yourself at $1 a hole, that's a $100 donation from yourself, then ask others to do the same. If that means getting 24 people to donate $1 per hole each, 5 people to donate $5 a hole, whatever... It's up to you. You don't have to collect the money. All you need is an address, phone or email from the person so we can contact them and collect. This is where those booklets will come in handy. ALSO, if you're not living in the Grand Rapids area, we will fly you here, put you up and feed you.

/// If you can't commit to playing on my team, but want to make a one time donation, click here, click new user and choose TEAM EL CLINTO from the drop down box when you donate.

/// If you want to play for TEAM EL CLINTO, hit me back with your mailing address and I'll send you a booklet to get started.

Remember, this is not about golf. This is about the ministry and on Monday, May 5th we will have a great time trying to play golf. There will be lots of prizes for everyone involved and just an all around good time.

Thanks for your time.
El Clinto (clint mcmanaman)

More information here!

The porn was broadcast a short time after the end of a religious program and resulted in a number of phone complaints to the station. A union is pressing TNTV to take stronger action against their employee.

According to Haupert Ives, general director of TNTV, the technician attempted to watch adult content while taping another program off the satellite. He accidentally taped what he was watching and then neglected to verify the recording.

Check out some of my daily thoughts below...

-Craig

Easterfest Australia
I felt like I was in 10th grade again. Friday night I caught MXPX in Australia and last night I caught the end of the Newsboys show. My old intern and friend John Reinl would have loved it as they sang "Breakfast in Hell." MXPX played some oldies but played a great new song called "Shut It Down" off their new record.

The festival here is great. We spoke to hundreds of men yesterday morning about the issue of pornography and finally connected with Adrian Rowse from "The Fight." Today I am suppose to play in some special Cricket game and then speak this afternoon again. I was able to catch two songs from a band called Freedom One which are from Australia and these guys are amazing.

Brisbane To Sydney
Yesterday I caught up with Andy and Steve again this time for breakfast over at Citipointe Church. It looks like I will be speaking there in November when we come back. We had some pancakes with maple syrup which I found out most people here don't eat and they don't cook their bacon crispy either. The money here is plastic...did I mention that already. Colorful and plastic.

In the afternoon, Ben picked me up from Garden City church and I spent the rest of the day with him. He is a good bloke who has been following XXXchurch for a while. We headed over to ABC for an interview for a show called "Conversations". Turns out the host had a copy of "The Porn Report" in his hands and had just finished interviewing the authors for the same show that I was going to be on. He gave me the book which I read today...more on that later.

The show is about an hour. Half the time with me and half the time with the authors of The Porn Report. You can listen to the show on the ABC website beginning on Thursday I believe. Ben took me to a real Australian Steakhouse for dinner called the Norman Hotel. They don't have Outback here, the word over here is that Outback is a joke. Check out this place. Ben recorded a little video for me at the restaurant as well. Check it out here. We headed over to the church where I spoke at. There was a great crowd there and lots of good conversations. Afterwards we went out to a coffee shop with several people and talked for a while.

This morning I took off for Sydney. I am speaking tomorrow about three hours from Sydney. On the plane over I read "The Porn Report" and was unimpressed. The book is based on a survey of 1,000 people and their findings about porn in Australia. They make some good points but overall it is pretty weak. Basically, they are for porn and think it is harmless because the 1,000 people they surveyed are doing okay. We asked one of the authors to come on our podcast and he declined. Here is what he told Brandon...

Dear Brandon,

It sounds as though our research would not be of much interest to you. We have no theological or ideological line to push, and the facts that we uncovered would contradict the ideological thrust of your project (eg, we found that most consumers of pornography experience a positive effect from their consumption).

If however you are interested in engaging with the information, the results have been published in The Porn Report (Melbourne University Press, 2008).

My position would simply be that we should pay attention to the facts on this issue. Given that your position is a theological one, I presume there wouldn't really be the opportunity for discussion on this? We would be talking at cross purposes, surely? You would say 'But God hates porn', and all I could say is: 'I don't know. I'm an atheist'. Or you would say: 'I know lots of people who've been hurt by porn', and I would say: 'statistically they're in the minority', and again, we find ourselves at an impasse? It's morality vs research - the two don't really connect,

Best wishes,

Alan

I checked out the waterfront, the tower, the red light district and some other cool spots around town today. I tried to check email at the Internet cafe in Kings Cross which is a trendy little spot which also is the red light district. Internet at the hotels here is about 50 cents a minute so it was cheaper there but not worth it. The 60 year old man next to me was watching hard core gay porn and the guy across from video was looking at straight porn. Just a normal afternoon for these folks I guess. I left quickly and wondered if they were part of the group surveyed for The Porn Report. I have a ton of interviews in the morning for New Zealand stuff this week. The local paper already ran something yesterday. Finished the night with a little Ichat with the family.

One more thing if you would like to hear a 5 minute conversation on masturbation and wet dreams click here.

Porn and Power
Josh picked me up yesterday in Sydney and we drove over to Canberra which is the capital of Australia. It is also the porn capital of Australia. It is the only place in Australia where you can legally buy porn besides the Internet. So, there are 100 plus porn shops and it is the most profitable thing in town.

I found it interesting that it is the capital. So, the place where all the power is. Word from the porn shop security people and others around town is that the many members of parliament spend a lot of money at the shops and brothels in town. Brothels are legal all over Australia but porn is not? Strange.

I spoke at St. Matthews church last night and the turn out was amazing. We had all sorts of people drive in from all over the place. The coolest was getting to meet two faithful prayer wall dudes. They had never met each other until last night and came out and showed their support. I shot a video with them that you can see.

Josh and his wife and baby drove me back to Sydney last night and I took off this morning for New Plymouth, New Zealand. I don't think I can get any further away. I landed here and walked over to the beach across from my hotel and got on our google analytics account and just wanted to see how far XXXchurch has gone. In the last three weeks, we have seen people come to the site from 198 different countries and territories. As I sit in in New Zealand I am blown away that this ministry has covered the world and that I get to be a part of this. Just wait to you hear what is next for XXXchurch...

New Zealand to Home
I have never seen Lord of the Rings so I had no idea what to expect in New Zealand. Lets just say the media went a little crazy over this porn thing. Grant from North Point Church did an incredible job. We had a pancakes breakfast, a parents night and two PornSunday services. I did not get to see much of New Zealand but the people were great and the flight home was long....long. I flew from New Zealand to LAX, LAX to Chicago, met up with the family in Chicago and Sam Sanchez and then drove home. Today is a bit of a blur.
>>> Read more here...

My name is Jenn, I'm 39 years old. I've been married to my husband for over 17 years. We have a 6 year old son. My husband and I have been struggling in our marriage for years, but I didn't know what the problem was.]]> Thu, 27 Mar 2008 02:17:01 -0700 http://virb.com/xxxchurch/posts/text/534515 http://virb.com/xxxchurch/posts/text/526003 I am currently in Australia. The next week I will be here and then finish the trip in New Zealand. If you live in Australia and you heard me speak about the free filter that is provided by the Australian government. Here is the LINK. You have to live in Australia to get it for free. There are three different filters you can pick, XXXchurch endorses SAFE EYES. That is the last one on the page when you hit download. Download that one for free if you live in Australia. For the rest of you, well maybe we will see the U.S get on board with free filters in the future. If you are looking for the XXXchurch Accountability software click here.

The girl's body was found in a plastic tub in Underwood's apartment in April 2006. Jurors had heard his detailed videotaped confession in court Thursday.

Judge Candace Blalock told jurors to return to court Monday morning for the penalty phase. Prosecutors have said they intend to seek the death penalty, while the defense has said it will seek to spare his life.

Deputies led Underwood, 28, away in handcuffs once jurors had left the courtroom.

Rose Fox, Jamie's grandmother, said after the verdict that she was originally against the death penalty in the case, but has now changed her mind.

"He made his choice," Fox said. "He's a monster in human form."

"I was for mercy. And then when I found out what he really did to her ... . He showed her no mercy."

Jurors began deliberating following closing arguments in which Cleveland County District Attorney Greg Mashburn predicted it would take jurors longer to pick a foreman than to determine guilt.

"It's the worst of the worst," Mashburn said. "His plan is to butcher someone like an animal."

In his closing argument, Defense attorney Matthew Haire did not dispute Underwood's guilt. But he called him "a lonely, very troubled, reclusive young man" and accused prosecutors of overwhelming jurors with gruesome evidence.

In the confession, Underwood said he lured the girl, his upstairs neighbor, into his apartment in Purcell, hit her with a cutting board, smothered her with his hands, sexually assaulted the body and nearly cut her head off as part of a fantasy involving cannibalism.

"I wanted to know what it tasted like, and just the thought of eating someone was appealing to me," Underwood said in the confession.

Underwood also said such fantasies began about the time he started taking the antidepressant Lexapro. Defense attorneys plan to call witnesses during the penalty phase on his use of the drug.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,333929,00.html

Gov. Eliot Spitzer has been caught on a federal wiretap arranging to meet with a high-priced prostitute at a Washington hotel last month, according to a person briefed on the federal investigation.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer with his wife, Silda, made a statement to the news media on Monday.

An affidavit in the federal investigation into a prostitution ring said that a wiretap recording captured a man identified as Client 9 on a telephone call confirming plans to have a woman travel from New York to Washington, where he had reserved a hotel room. The person briefed on the case identified Mr. Spitzer as Client 9.

Mr. Spitzer today made a brief public appearance during which he apologized for his behavior, and described it as a "private matter."

"I have acted in a way that violates my obligation to my family and violates my or any sense of right or wrong," said Mr. Spitzer, who appeared with his wife Silda at his Manhattan office. "I apologize first and most importantly to my family. I apologize to the public to whom I promised better."

"I have disappointed and failed to live up to the standard I expected of myself. I must now dedicate some time to regain the trust of my family."

Before speaking, Mr. Spitzer stood with his arm around his wife; the two nodded and then strode forward together to face more than 100 reporters. Both had glassy, tear-filled eyes, but they did not cry.

The governor spoke for perhaps a minute and did not address his political future.

He declined to take questions and promised to report back soon. As he went to leave, three reporters screamed out, "Are you resigning? Are you resigning?", and Mr. Spitzer charged out of the room, slamming the door.

The governor learned that he had been implicated in the prostitution inquiry when a federal official contacted his staff last Friday, according to the person briefed on the case.

The governor informed his top aides Sunday night and this morning of his involvement. He canceled his public events today and scheduled the announcement for this afternoon after inquiries from The Times.

The governor's aides appeared shaken before he spoke, and one of them began to weep as they waited for him to make his statement at his Manhattan office.

The man described as Client 9 in court papers arranged to meet with a prostitute who was part of the ring, Emperors Club VIP, on the night of Feb. 13. Mr. Spitzer traveled to Washington that evening, according to a person told of his travel arrangements.

The affidavit says that Client 9 met with the woman in hotel room 871 but does not identify the hotel. Mr. Spitzer stayed at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington on Feb. 13, according to a source who was told of his travel arrangements. Room 871 at the Mayflower Hotel that evening was registered under another name.

Federal prosecutors rarely charge clients in prostitution cases, which are generally seen as state crimes. But the Mann Act, passed by Congress in 1910 to address prostitution, human trafficking and what was viewed at the time as immorality in general, makes it a crime to transport someone between states for the purpose of prostitution. The four defendants charged in the case unsealed last week were all charged with that crime, along with several others.

Mr. Spitzer had a difficult first year in office, rocked by a mix of scandal and legislative setbacks. In recent weeks, however, Mr. Spitzer seemed to have rebounded, with his Democratic party poised to perhaps gain control of the state Senate for the first time in four decades.

Mr. Spitzer gained national attention when he served as attorney general with his relentless pursuit of Wall Street wrongdoing. As attorney general, he also had prosecuted at least two prostitution rings as head of the state's organized crime task force.

In one such case in 2004, Mr. Spitzer spoke with revulsion and anger after announcing the arrest of 16 people for operating a high-end prostitution ring out of Staten Island.

"This was a sophisticated and lucrative operation with a multitiered management structure," Mr. Spitzer said at the time. "It was, however, nothing more than a prostitution ring."

Albany for months has been roiled by bitter fighting and accusations of dirty tricks. The Albany County district attorney is set to issue in the coming days the results of his investigation into Mr. Spitzer's first scandal, his aides' involvement in an effort to tarnish Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno, the state's top Republican.

More info is here.

AGMF Music Festival
AGMF Fri-Sun, March 21-23- Toowoomba Australia

Tuesday, March 25, 2008 7pm event: Garden City Christian Church located in Mt. Gravatt, QLD Australia.

Thursday, March 27, 2008 7pm event: St. Matthews Anglican Church Wanniassa, Australia

Sat & Sun, March 29-30 event Northpoint Baptist Church-New Plymouth, NZ
P&P Saturday 7:15am
Porn & Parents Sat 7:30pm
Porn Sunday-Sun 8:45am & 10:30am

The 50-year-old from Melton will face court this week on counts of possession and transmission of child pornography.
The man was among 22 people arrested in Australia, the United States, England, Canada and Germany.
His computer was seized in November last year and has undergone detailed forensic examination.
The Herald Sun online understands one other Australian has been arrested.

The Melton man was arrested by detectives from the Victoria Police sexual crime squad's internet child exploitation team.
He was bailed in an out-of-sessions hearing before a bail justice and will appear for a filing hearing in Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Friday.

Authorities involved in the international investigation have identified and rescued 20 of the children featured in more than 400,000 pictures, video files and other images.

Some of the children, aged as young as five, were portrayed engaged in sexual behaviour.

The images were traded and distributed globally in the online pornography ring, according to US and international authorities.

Queensland police Detective Chief Superintendent Ross Barnett said Australian investigators discovered the ring and infiltrated it under cover in 2006.

"From our perspective, it's definitely the largest and most sophisticated and disciplined group that we have ever seen operating in this environment," Supt Barnett said.

US authorities will not say how they eventually broke through several layers of encryption, background checks and other security measures the pornographers used to protect their online user group from being accessed.

The porn ring was run like a business, FBI executive assistant director J. Stephen Tidwell said today, with the lewd images used as currency instead of cash.

"This is beyond a quantum exponential leap for us to see folks that have gone to this much trouble to produce this kind of volume of horrific exploitation of children,'' Mr Tidwell said.

Viewers could gain access to the online forum only after passing a series of what Mr Tidwell called "various benchmarks and bars to get over to get into their group".

He admitted that "with 400,000 (images) we're going to be at this for years, trying got find the victims''.