In his continuing effort to legislate behavior, South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds proclaimed the week of July 24-30, 2006, a "Week to Pray for Rain."
“Current extreme drought conditions across a large portion of South Dakota have people asking what they can do to help,” said Gov. Rounds. “We are a strong people and all can provide help in many ways, whether actually fighting the fires, providing assistance to the crews, or joining together in the power of prayer.”
Part of the proclamation states:
Whereas many of our rural communities are heavily dependent upon agriculture to sustain their markets and local communities, and many South Dakotans could face wildfire danger if moisture conditions do not improve in the next few weeks, it is appropriate to urge all citizens to join together to pray for rain in our great state of South Dakota.
Gov. Rounds signed legislation in March banning nearly all abortions in South Dakota, making it a crime for doctors to perform an abortion unless the procedure was necessary to save the woman’s life. The law made no exception for cases of rape or incest. It was to become law on July 1, but opponents gathered enough signatures to delay it and to let voters decide in November whether the ban should take effect.
A Washington Post poll shows voters are against the ban:
The statewide survey of 800 registered voters found 47 percent opposed the strict ban, while 39 percent favored it. The remaining 14 percent were undecided. The poll had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
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