Saturday, November 22, 2008

HomoQuotable - Candace Gingrich

"Dear Newt,

"I recently had the displeasure of watching you bash the protesters of the Prop 8 marriage ban to Bill O'Reilly on FOX News. I must say, after years of watching you build your career by stirring up the fears and prejudices of the far right, I feel compelled to use the words of your idol, Ronald Reagan, 'There you go, again.'

"However, I realize that you may have been a little preoccupied lately with planning your resurrection as the savior of your party, so I thought I would fill you in on a few important developments you might have overlooked. The truth is that you're living in a world that no longer exists. I, along with millions of Americans, clearly see the world the way it as -- and we embrace what it can be. You, on the other hand, seem incapable of looking for new ideas or moving beyond what worked in the past.

[snip]

"This is a movement of the people that you most fear. It's a movement of progress -- and your words on FOX News only show how truly desperate you are to maintain control of a world that is changing before your very eyes.

"Then again, we've seen these tactics before. We know how much the right likes to play political and cultural hardball, and then turn around and accuse us of lashing out first. You give a pass to a religious group -- one that looks down upon minorities and women -- when they use their money and membership roles to roll back the rights of others, and then you label us "fascists" when we fight back. You belittle the relationships of gay and lesbian couples, and yet somehow neglect to explain who anointed you the protector of "traditional" marriage. And, of course, you've also mastered taking the foolish actions of a few people and then indicting an entire population based on those mistakes. I fail to see how any of these patterns coincide with the values of "historic Christianity" you claim to champion.

"Again, nothing new here. This is just more of the blatant hypocrisy we're used to hearing. What really worries me is that you are always willing to use LGBT Americans as political weapons to further your ambitions. That's really so '90s, Newt. In this day and age, it's embarrassing to watch you talk like that. You should be more afraid of the new political climate in America, because, there is no place for you in it.

"In other words, stop being a hater, big bro." - Candace Gingrich, responding in the Huffington Post to her brother's appearance on Fox News, during which he referred to marriage equality activists as "fascists." Candace Gingrich works for the Human Rights Campaign where she is their Youth & Campus Outreach Senior Manager.

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Friday, November 21, 2008

Defending Traditional Sidewalks

There's a really cute bit of activism going on at Princeton in which advocates for "Princeton Prop 8" say that they love freshmen, they really do, but they should not be allowed to use the sidewalks. Sidewalks are for traditional use, not for some redefined non-traditional sidewalk values users.

From the comments on YouTube:
-"To be fair, freshman have the right of walking on the sidewalk. They just have to chose be sophomores."
-"There's just one little hole in this whole metaphor. Freshman turn into Sophomores after 1 year. Gay people don't turn into straight people over time."
-"You couldn't be more right. Freshmen knew what they were getting into when the made the choice of Princeton. They could have attended anywhere. They chose Princeton so TO THE GRASS WITH THEM."

(Via - Andrew Sullivan)

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Christine Cloud Is A Lying Christian


The woman hit on the head with her Bible in last Friday's melee in the Castro went on Bill O'Reilly last night to claim that her group doesn't seek the conversions of gays. This is, of course, an utter lie. So much for the 9th Commandment.

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Securlarism: The Route To Prosperity And Low Crime

Over on Huffington Post, Phil Zuckerman makes an interesting comparison between very religious nations and relatively secular ones in respect to the Christiantists' claim that God smites heathen nations.
Consider the nations of Scandinavia specifically. These countries are noteworthy because they were among the first nations to make abortion legal and readily available and they were also among the first nations (along with Holland) to allow for gay marriage. Indeed, gays and lesbians have been able to wed in these countries of Northern Europe for nearly 20 years now. And what is the state of society in these relatively irreligious nations, where weekly church attendance is among the lowest in the world and belief in God is markedly thin? They lead the world on nearly all indicators of societal well-being. From economic prosperity to low crime rates, from equality between men and women to excellent child welfare, from life expectancy to low rates of H.I.V., the relatively godless (or at least God-indifferent) nations of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Holland suggest that secularity - and acceptance of gay marriage, specifically -- doesn't bring down the wrath of God at all. And yet when we look at the most religious nations in the world - especially those that severely condemn homosexuality, such as Iran, Angola, and Mauritania -- we see extreme poverty, high violent crime rates, oppression of women, dictatorship, warfare, corruption, etc..

Where is the best place to be a mother and raise children? According to the latest Save the Children Report, it is relatively godless Sweden. The worst? Extremely Godful Niger. How about murder rates? Highly religious Columbia leads the globe, while highly secular Japan is near the bottom. What about strong economies? According to the World Economic Forum, of the top ten nations boasting today's most competitive economies, nine are relatively irreligious (the USA being the sole exception). According to the latest Global Peace Index, the top five most peaceful nations are simultaneously among the most secular, such as Denmark, which ranks in at #2. Even when it comes to suicide rates, it is the former Soviet nations that lead the pack, some of which are fairly secular, but most of which are quite religious, such as Lithuania.

When it comes to God and the acceptance of gay marriage, the religious supporters of Proposition 8 certainly have a right to their opinion. But that doesn't make their opinion right.
Zuckerman does note the glaring exception of communist nations that are both godless and totalitarian as being lousy economically and violent socially. The take-away from his piece is that secularism + democracy = stronger economy, lower crime. Read the entire piece. As the first commenter on the piece notes, "The only difference between an atheist dictatorship and fundamentalist religion is the fact that one has a visible dictator, while the other has an invisible one."

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DADT Repeal Pushed Back,
Possibly For Years

Unhappy news from the Washington Times:
President-elect Barack Obama will not move for months, and perhaps not until 2010, to ask Congress to end the military's decades-old ban on open homosexuals in the ranks, two people who have advised the Obama transition team on this issue say. Repealing the ban was an Obama campaign promise. However, Mr. Obama first wants to confer with the Joint Chiefs of Staff and his new political appointees at the Pentagon to reach a consensus and then present legislation to Congress, the advisers said.

"I think 2009 is about foundation building and reaching consensus," said Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network. The group supports military personnel targeted under the ban. Mr. Sarvis told The Washington Times that he has held "informal discussions" with the Obama transition team on how the new president should proceed on the potentially explosive issue. Lawrence Korb, an analyst at the Center for American Progress and an adviser to the Obama campaign, said the new administration should set up a Pentagon committee to make recommendations to Congress on a host of manpower issues, including the gay ban. "If it's part of a larger package, it has a better chance of getting passed," he said.
Clearly the Obama team is worried about another Clinton-style fiasco which resulted in DADT in the first place.

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Daily Grumble

My mom, who is as sharp a cookie as they come, still doesn't quite understand email. When she was visiting me in September, she lamented that she'd turned her computer off at home and was therefore "missing" her emails. I think she believes that turning off your computer is like unplugging your landline. I explain that just like voicemail, Lady Internet was safely storing her emails until her return. She seemed unconvinced.

And yesterday she emailed me from my sister's account (again) while she was over there babysitting. Which takes us back to September. JMG: "Don't you remember me showing you how to log into your own email on any computer?" Mom: "Oh...well...yes, I guess. But I don't want my email coming over here! I want it at home!" This, from one of the most skilled and devoted users of eBay. I don't get it.

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The Christian Right is SO Disappointed With eHarmony For Caving To The Gays

From the Family Research Council's Tony Perkins:
The surest way to lose the culture war is refusing to fight. Unfortunately, no company illustrates that better than eHarmony, whose shocking concession to the homosexual movement is sending tremors through the faith community. In New Jersey, a man named Eric McKinley filed a complaint against the dating service, arguing that its website discriminated against homosexuals by not offering same-sex matching. When the state's attorney general pressed eHarmony about its policy, the company surrendered on the spot. Instead of fighting New Jersey's unreasonable demands, eHarmony collapsed under the intimidation. In a settlement reached out of court, Neil Clark Warren's enterprise agreed to cover $50,000 in administrative costs, pay McKinley $5,000, and give free six-month memberships to the first 10,000 homosexuals who register.

To those of us in the pro-family movement who hailed eHarmony's commitment to the virtue of traditional marriage, the company's actions are distressing and damaging. Even legal experts on the Left agreed that McKinley didn't have a case since Warren, as the owner of a private company, has a right to keep lawful limits on his clients. What's worse, there were plenty of ways for the site to resolve the issue and keep its policy intact. For instance, eHarmony could have simply refused to service the state of New Jersey. Instead, Warren conceded significant moral ground, opening the door to a wave of attacks on other dating sites like catholicmatch.com. Please join us in expressing your disappointment by emailing customerrelations@eHarmony.com or by calling 800-951-2023. Let them know how troubling it is that a company once so bold in its mission to establish "successful heterosexual marriages" is now actively participating in the assault on the true meaning of sexuality.
Yay! Infighting! Yay!

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Clintons Pass Vetting, Hillary As SOS Said To Be A Lock

The Clintons have passed the Obama team's vetting process in Hillary's candidacy for Secretary of State.
President-elect Barack Obama is "on track" to name Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) as his secretary of state shortly after Thanksgiving, two senior Obama aides said. Financial disclosure issues have been worked out, aides said. The officials said they expect her to accept. Clinton aides had no comment. The choice unites the two rivals in the most protracted presidential primary in American history, giving Obama the Team of Rivals Cabinet he had promised. Former President Bill Clinton authorized unprecedented disclosures about his finances to Obama's vetting team, and transition lawyers are satisfied, officials said.
Once Hillary assumes the cabinet position, NY Gov. David Paterson will appoint her replacement in the Senate. That person (many think it will be NY Attorney General Andrew Cuomo), would presumably run for the office in 2009. There's some talk that Rudy Giuliani is considering running against Hillary's replacement.

UPDATE: For clarity, here's how an election would go for Hillary's replacement.
If Hillary leaves her Senate seat in an even-numbered year (that is, by the end of 2008), Governor Paterson appoints a replacement who serves until January 3, 2010. There would be a special election in November 2009 to fill the remainder of Clinton's term, which runs through 2012. If, however, the vacancy doesn't occur until January 2009, the replacement serves until January 3, 2011. A special election would take place in November 2010 to fill the (short) remainder of the Clinton term.

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Improv Everywhere At JFK


In which they makes signs and welcome home total strangers.

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JMG: INTP

According to Typealyzer, some geegaw that analyzes blogs, this here website thingy comes out like this:
INTP: The Thinkers

The logical and analytical type. They are especially attuned to difficult creative and intellectual challenges and always look for something more complex to dig into. They are great at finding subtle connections between things and imagine far-reaching implications. They enjoy working with complex things using a lot of concepts and imaginative models of reality. Since they are not very good at seeing and understanding the needs of other people, they might come across as arrogant, impatient and insensitive to people that need some time to understand what they are talking about.
Sounds about right. Oh well.

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17-Story Billboard For Times Square

One of the world's largest and brightest LED billboards lit up in Times Square last night. Via New York Times:
The new Walgreens sign going live in Times Square Thursday is not the largest LED-based sign in the world, but its developers believe that it is the most complex, both in terms of its construction and operation. Rising 340 feet high, the 17,000-square-foot sign wraps most of the facade of the One Times Square building. It combines a series of diagonal LED panels, plus 13 60-inch plasma displays to create a single moving image with 20 times the resolution of standard HDTV.

To make that happen, the sign’s developers, D3 LED, LLC used over 12 million LEDs, or light-emitting diodes. The higher up the sign, the further apart the LEDs were spaced; those parts of the sign closer to the street used a higher density to increase the effective resolution for nearby viewers. The trick was in combining the variable densities to create a uniform-sized image that could spread around the sides of the building and onto the plasma screens that adjoin the store’s entrance.

The sign will display ad spots from Colgate, Kraft, Johnson & Johnson and L’Oreal, among other companies. To create the imagery, 150GB of information is transmitted every 30 seconds from 32 custom-built computers. Because so much information has to be transmitted so quickly, all of the imagery is sent in an uncompressed format; if it were compressed to save space, too much computing power would be need to uncompress the information. The range of colors that can be displayed far exceeds what a standard television can transmit and even exceeds the number that can be created by color printers..

Can't wait to see it. Times Square is already so bright, the Times recommends sunglasses to look at the billboard at night.

(Via - Gothamist)

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The Way You Mecca Me Feel

The Sun UK is reporting that Michael Jackson has converted to Islam.
The skint superstar, 50, donned Islamic garb to pledge allegiance to the Koran in a ceremony at a pal’s mansion in Los Angeles, The Sun can reveal. Jacko sat on the floor wearing a tiny hat after an Imam was summoned to officiate — days before the singer is due to appear at London’s High Court where he is being sued by an Arab sheik.
A source told last night how Jacko, brought up as a Jehovah’s Witness, decided to convert as he used a studio at the home of his chum to record a new album. “An Imam was summoned from the mosque and Michael went through the shahada, which is the Muslim declaration of belief.” Mikaeel is the name of one of Allah’s angels.

“Jacko rejected an alternative name, Mustafa — meaning “the chosen one”. Brit singer Yousef Islam, 60 — who was called Cat Stevens until he famously converted — turned up to help Jacko celebrate. It was his pals David Wharnsby — a Canadian songwriter — and producer Phillip Bubal who counselled Jacko. The pair’s new names are Dawud Wharnsby Ali and Idris Phillips. Jacko now prays to Mecca after the ceremony at the Hollywood Hills home of Toto keyboard player Steve Porcaro, 51, who composed music on the singer’s Thriller album.
So are we buying this? It IS the Sun, after all. But then again, it IS Michael Jackson.

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Where Things Stand


Maps via Freedom To Marry.

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Worst Interview Backdrop Ever


Sarah Palin does an an intereview after pardoning a turkey, meanwhile other turkeys are slaughtered behind her.

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Thursday, November 20, 2008

Fannie & Freddie Suspend Foreclosures

Well, the stock market dropped another jillion points today and now it's at about 50% of what it was a year ago. But at least Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have announced a temporary suspension of home foreclosures. Via Calculated Risk:

Press Release from Fannie Mae (no link yet): Fannie Mae to Suspend Foreclosures Until January

In order to support the streamlined modification program announced on November 11, 2008, Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) today issued a notice to its loan servicing organizations and retained foreclosure attorneys directing them to suspend foreclosure sales on occupied single-family properties as well as the completion of evictions from occupied single-family properties scheduled to occur from November 26, 2008 until January 9, 2009.

The temporary suspension of foreclosures is designed to allow affected borrowers facing foreclosure to retain their homes while Fannie Mae works with mortgage servicers to implement the streamlined modification program scheduled to launch December 15.
Freddie Mac also announced they are suspending foreclosures.

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Poof! You're One Of Us

Remember the dust-up earlier this month about Mormons posthumously baptizing Jews? A Daily Kos diarist has just posthumously converted LDS founder Joseph Smith to the family of homosexuals.
Dear God of the Homos,

With your great and everlasting love that blessed the covenants of Achilles and Petroclus, Gilgamesh and Enkidu, and of Jonathon and David, bless then the soul of Joseph Smith of Sharon, Vermont with your divine penis. Let it pierce the anus of his soul, and let you be forever joined to him, since on this oppressive earth, he was denied the pleasure of the male sex.

Forever and ever, our brother Joseph Smith has now joined our family (We Sing the Hymn to Praise God of the Homos!).

Blessed be God of the Homos,

Amen

I know, we're terrible. But look at the portrait! It just screams "Hmmph!"

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Will They Call This "Barry-Rolling"?


"Rick-rolling" is much catchier.

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The Truth About Phyllis Burgess

There's more to the story of Phylliss Burgess, 69, the "Styrofoam Cross Lady" that is currently the darling of Christianist websites after her cross was ripped from her hands and stomped during a Prop 8 rally in Palm Springs. If you buy the story being told on right-wing sites, Burgesss is a frail, elderly, innocent victim of "gay fascists."

But it turns out that Burgess is somewhat of a professional rabble-rouser and has disrupted at least several other LGBT events, including Palm Springs Gay Pride. Burgess even showed up to protest at the White Party, a giant circuit party held every spring..

On CNN's iReport, a witness to the cross incident tells a somewhat different version of the event than the one depicted on the news video that is on so many right-wing sites.
At City Hall a woman with a huge styrofoam cross appeared screaming about YES on 8 at the back of the crowd of NO on 8 supporters --their rally. She wanted to get to where the speakers were up front and I saw her knock a disabled man, a NO on 8 supporter to the ground, screaming, "Get out of my way!". People in the crowd around her tore away her cross and threw it to the ground and began pushing her. Local CBS channel 2 and KMIR channel 6 videotaped the woman being shoved and then interviewed her, ignoring the poor disabled man who was attacked first. Later after all of the rally, march and protest were over I watched the news which headlined this as "Gay Protest Turns Violent!"
Mike Tidmus has posted an excellent recap of the Burgess story, and suggests that we watch this video of the event for a clearer idea of Burgess' tactics.
If you study the video from KESQ, you’ll see Ms Burgess emerge, not from the sidelines, but directly through the middle of the crowd. You’ll also note that the news anchor recognizes Burgess, because this is not Burgess’ first visit to an anti-Prop-8 event. She showed up to protest five days earlier at the Palm Springs Gay Pride Parade.
Burgess is apparently well-known to the Palm Springs police and she informed them in advance that she would be attending the No On 8 candlelight vigil during which the cross incident occurred. Several days later, new cross in hand, she again appeared, this time at the Palm Springs Village Fest, telling the press, "I have a right to be here. It's not to antagonize, but it exposes where the hatred is."

Check out Burgess' MySpace page in which she rails against gay rights. The gay people who snatched and stomped Burgess' cross were definitely in the wrong, but it's clear that she is a professional agitator and hardly an "innocent victim."

(Via - Mike Tidmus)

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The Answer To Conservapedia

I love Dickipedia.
Elisabeth Hasselbeck (née Filarski; born May 28, 1977) is a former reality show contestant—not even the winner, mind you, or even the runner-up—who somehow became co-host of one of the most popular daytime talk shows of all time, and a dick. Though not especially well informed, Hasselbeck is, nonetheless, an irritatingly vocal supporter of conservative viewpoints. Also, she bears a striking resemblance to one of those “It’s a Small World” animatronic robots they have at Disneyland, if those robots were programmed by Sean Hannity.

Elisabeth Hasselbeck is a panelist on The View, the program that pioneered the format of four women jabbering over each other for an hour and a half, interspersed with commercials for Boniva and a special kind of yogurt that promises to regulate your bowels. In this capacity, Hasselbeck’s main duties involve baiting the other panelists to drop the F-bomb on national TV and attaining a level of shrillness that would make most testicles re-ascend. Of course, anyone with external genitalia really has no business watching The View, so it would serve them right.

Because she enjoys such incredible exposure, many liberals consider Elisabeth Hasselbeck one of the country’s most dangerous conservatives. They might be on to something. As it has been proven time and again, Americans love them a televised idiot. In late October 2008, Whoopi Goldberg revealed that Elisabeth Hasselbeck receives more death threats than any other View panelist. That must be an awful lot of death threats.

Rush Limbaugh's is pretty great too.

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Project Postcard

Here's another Activism 4.0 project, only this one uses snail-mail. CivilRightsFront.com wants you to mail postcards to Barack Obama requesting the immediate repeal of the Defense Of Marriage Act.
President-elect Barack Obama
Presidential Transition Office
Kluczynski Federal Building
230 S. Dearborn St., 38th Floor
Chicago, IL 60604

WRITE A MESSAGE - I recommend that we all write the same thing, so that our message can't get any clearer. Our post cards should read...

Dear President-elect Obama: Please ask Congress to repeal D.O.M.A.! All Americans should have the right to marry. Thank you in advance for advocating for the civil rights of your LGBT citizens.

SIGN YOUR NAME - There is nothing more powerful than that. BUY POSTAGE AND DROP YOUR POSTCARD(S) IN THE MAIL - Wasn't that easy? NOW, REPEAT - Send one a week. Or better yet, one a day. Have a postcard party and have all your friends do it too. Email these instructions to your loved ones so they can join in the fun. Think of the statement that thousands and thousands of postcards from around the country will make.

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Tonight On Bilerico: A LiveBlog To Ask LGBT Leaders What Went Wrong

Tonight at 7pm EST there will be a LiveBlog hosted on the Bilerico Project during which the public can pose questions to Kate Kendell, Nadine Smith, and Barbara McCullough-Jones - the three women who led the anti-amendment movements in Florida, Arizona and California. The live Q&A will be hosted by Bilerico editor Bil Browning and Pam Spaulding of Pam's House Blend.

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Dubya Ignored On G-20 Stage


Count how many world leaders were willing to shake Dubya's hand as they took the stage for a photo-op at the G-20 summit. How embarraskin'!

(Via - AmericaBlog)

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Transgender Day Of Remembrance

Today is the International Transgender Day of Remembrance. From the site:
The Transgender Day of Remembrance was set aside to memorialize those who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. The event is held in November to honor Rita Hester, whose murder on November 28th, 1998 kicked off the “Remembering Our Dead” web project and a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Rita Hester’s murder — like most anti-transgender murder cases — has yet to be solved.

Although not every person represented during the Day of Remembrance self-identified as transgender — that is, as a transsexual, crossdresser, or otherwise gender-variant — each was a victim of violence based on bias against transgender people. We live in times more sensitive than ever to hatred based violence, especially since the events of September 11th. Yet even now, the deaths of those based on anti-transgender hatred or prejudice are largely ignored. Over the last decade, more than one person per month has died due to transgender-based hate or prejudice, regardless of any other factors in their lives. This trend shows no sign of abating.
There will be events marking the occasion all over the world. In NYC, there will be a candlelight vigil and other observances of the LGBT Center at 7pm.

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Caption This

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Day Without A Gay

From the site:
The worldwide media attention surrounding our massive grassweb efforts for gay rights has been tremendous. Join the Impact was a HUGE success and will continue to thrive because of our efforts. We've reacted to anti-gay ballot initiatives in California, Arizona, Florida, and Arkansas with anger, with resolve, and with courage. NOW, it's time to show America and the world how we love.

Gay people and our allies are compassionate, sensitive, caring, mobilized, and programmed for success. A day without gays would be tragic because it would be a day without love. On December 10, 2008 the gay community will take a historic stance against hatred by donating love to a variety of different causes. On December 10, you are encouraged not to call in sick to work. You are encouraged to call in "gay"--and donate your time to service! December 10, 2008 is International Human Rights Day. CLICK HERE to join us, and search or add to the list of human rights organizations that need our help RIGHT NOW.

What about those of us who have been treated well by our employers? Do we punish them by calling in gay? This is an interesting idea, but one that I think plays better in concept. In any case, if you live in one of the 30 states in which it is perfectly legal be fired for being gay, the Day Without A Gay site does offer an alternative to calling in gay.

RELATED: ACLU blogger Joel Engardio isn't so crazy about the idea.

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Four More By 2012

Could four more New England states get marriage equality by 2012?
The group that helped legalize gay marriage in two New England states wants to do the same in the other four by the year 2012. GLAD -- which stands for Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders -- announced the campaign Tuesday, the fifth anniversary of the key court decision legalizing gay marriage in Massachusetts. GLAD also backed the case that led Connecticut to start allowing gay couples to marry this month. Executive Director Lee Swislow says that by using know-how and experience from those fights, it wants to bring around Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Rhode Island by 2012. GLAD says it will work in the courts and with groups that support gay marriage in each of those states.
In 2000, Vermont was the first state to offer civil unions. New Hampshire followed in 2007.

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Paws Off The Screen!

Shelley's favorite show is Sunrise Earth.

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Nate Silver For The Win

Stats god Nate Silver interviewed radio host John Ziegler, the guy behind How Obama Got Elected, a cry-baby site that selectively asked some Obama supporters a bunch of misleading and unfactual questions, therefore proving that all Democrats are dum-dums. Let's just say that the interview doesn't go too well and ends with "Fuck you." Click. Dial tone. Here's the video that Ziegler posted.

If you haven't already nominated Silver's FiveThirtyEight for 2008's Best Blog or Best New Blog (or both), I suggest you do so. His was the go-to site for clear analysis of election polling data and his final call on the election was insanely on-the-mark.

RELATED: Nominations for Best LGBT Blog also continue until Friday.

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AZ Gov. Janet Napolitano Picked As Head Of Homeland Security

Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano (D) has been picked by Barack Obama to be his head of Homeland Security.
Democratic officials said. Napolitano is a border governor who will now be responsible for immigration policy and border security, which are part of Homeland Security’s myriad functions. Napolitano brings law-and-order experience from her stint as the Grand Canyon State’s first female attorney general. One of the nation’s most prominent female elected officials, she made frequent appearances on behalf of Barack Obama during the campaign. She was re-elected to a second four-year term in 2006. Transition insiders have long expected that she would be offered a Cabinet slot, although she had also been mentioned for other posts, including attorney general.
According to the Arizona constitution, Napolitano's mid-term departure will elevate Secretary of State Jan Brewer to governor. Brewer is a Republican and that will give the GOP complete control over Arizona's government as they already control that state's House and Senate.

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Christianist Pressure = HIV Studies Dropped

A new study shows that due to the influence of Christianists and the GOP, half of the surveyed HIV researchers dropped or changed their grant requests to study populations affected by the virus.
Important US research to reduce HIV infection may have been prevented in recent years because scientists have censored their funding requests in response to political controversy, according to a study published on Tuesday. Writing in PLoS Medicine, the academic journal, Joanna Kempner from Rutgers University identified a “chilling effect” on researchers seeking grants from the government-backed National Institutes of Health after their work was questioned by Republican lawmakers and Christian groups.

The findings suggest politics influence scientists’ willingness to conduct research, and raise warnings at a time of continued sensitivity over medical research topics from sexual behaviour to stem cells. Among 82 researchers polled by Ms Kempner, who had received money from the NIH, almost a quarter had dropped or reframed studies around sexual behaviour they judged to be politically sensitive, and four had made career changes and left academia as a result of the controversy. Half reframed their studies to avoid work on marginalised populations, or dropped studies they thought would be politically sensitive, such as those on sexual orientation, abortion, childhood sexual abuse, and condom use.

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Open Thread Thursday

What are you reading?

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Wednesday, November 19, 2008

BREAKING: CA Supreme Court Agrees To Hear Challenges To Prop 8

Via Los Angeles Times:
The California Supreme Court agreed today to review legal challenges to Prop. 8, the voter initiative that restored a ban on same-sex marriage, but refused to permit gay weddings to resume pending a ruling. Meeting in closed session, the state high court asked litigants on both sides for more written arguments and scheduled a hearing for next March. The court also signaled its intention to decide the fate of existing same-sex marriages, asking litigants to argue that question.

Today's decision to review the lawsuits against Proposition 8 did not reveal how the court was leaning. The court could have dismissed the suits, but both opponents and supporters of Proposition 8 sought review to settle legal questions on a matter of statewide importance. Some legal challengers also sought an order that would have permitted same-sex couples to marry until the cases were resolved, a position opposed by Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown and Proposition 8 supporters. Only Justice Carlos R. Moreno voted in the private conference to grant such a stay.
So it will be four long months before we get a ruling. Oy.

UPDATE: The California Judicial Council breaks down the situation:
The California Supreme Court today denied requests to stay the enforcement or implementation of Proposition 8, and at the same time agreed to decide several issues arising out of the passage of Proposition 8.

The court’s order, issued in the first three cases that had been filed directly in the state’s highest court challenging the validity of Proposition 8, directed the parties to brief and argue three issues:

(1) Is Proposition 8 invalid because it constitutes a revision of, rather than an amendment to, the California Constitution?

(2) Does Proposition 8 violate the separation-of-powers doctrine under the California Constitution?

(3) If Proposition 8 is not unconstitutional, what is its effect, if any, on the marriages of same-sex couples performed before the adoption of Proposition 8?

The court issued its order in three cases filed on behalf of a variety of parties, including same-sex couples who seek to enter into marriage despite the passage of Proposition 8, a same-sex couple who married in California prior to the adoption of Proposition 8, and a number of cities and counties whose officials seek to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Petitioners in each of these cases seek an order directing the relevant state officials to refrain from implementing, enforcing, or applying Proposition 8.

In response to the petitions, the Attorney General filed a preliminary opposition, in which he urged the court to assume jurisdiction over these cases to decide the important legal issues presented, but also argued that the court should not stay the operation of Proposition 8 pending the court’s resolution of the issues. The proponents of Proposition 8 also responded to the petitions, seeking to intervene as formal parties in the action and also urging the court to accept the cases for decision. The court’s order granted the motion to intervene filed by the proponents of Proposition 8.

In its order, the court established an expedited briefing schedule, under which briefing will be completed in January 2009 and oral argument potentially could be held as early as March 2009.

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PhoboQuotable - Michael Glatze

"As I watch 100,000 people pile together shouting, 'Gay, Straight, Black, White: Marriage is a Civil Right,' begging to be allowed by law to participate in a life of homosexual behavior, I am impressed by how desensitized we have come as a society.

"When I get despondent and feel that the voice of life in our American culture is threatened by what seems to be an avalanche of desensitization and death, I remember Gov. Sarah Palin appearing out of nowhere with uncanny political and leadership skills and a message of God and love. And, I remember how violently I protested – like the 100,000 – for 'my RIGHTS!' to freely participate in homosexual activity without any reminder of a conscience only a few years ago.

"I had the intent, without doubt, to silence every last individual whose message might suggest my homosexual activity was anything less than entirely equal to heterosexuality. Anyone who so much as intimated that there could be a health-related, psychology-related or self-worth-related impact to homosexuality that did not exist with heterosexuality was, merely, a bigot who needed my ever-present vigilance to turn his or her backward mind to the "liberated" present.

[snip]

"That is why these disgusting rallies make me inspired, more than ever, to speak the truth and offer my love and help to the many human beings trapped by flawed viewpoints and incomplete logics. Not because I want to win an argument – God knows, in today's climate of groupthink, that's hardly ever possible – but, because I do love every human being equally, and believe we all have the same potential. Some of us have more difficulty, for a myriad of reasons, rising to our fullest potential than others; but, we all have potential.

"I believe every human being has the potential to rise out of their confusion, break out of the shackles of groupthink, stand up proud and free, and see things clearly. I believe this is the case, because it happened to me." - Michael Glatze, from his WingNutDaily piece My Disgust With The "Gay" Rallies. Glatze is the "ex-gay" former publisher of Young Gay America, who found Jeebus when he feared death due to heart palpitations. Last year Glatze converted to Mormonism.

NOTE: I know some of you don't like reading the words of "ex-gay" idiots like Glatze or James Hartline, but I think it's important to recognize that these guys are lionized by the Christianists as shining examples of what is possible for all gay people. That's why these relative nobodies get so much ink in right-wing publications.

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Huckabee: Gays Haven't Been Beaten Up Enough To Be Compared To Blacks


Huckabee: "People who are homosexuals should have every right in terms of their civil rights, to be employed, to do anything they want. But that's not really the issue. I know you talked about it and I think you got into it a little bit early on. But when we're talking about a redefinition of an institution, that's different than individual civil rights. We're never going to convince each other...But here is the difference. Bull Connor was hosing people down in the streets of Alabama. John Lewis got his skull cracked on the Selma bridge."

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The Bro Or The Manziere?

Gizmodo dug up this Japanese ad for a product designed for those with flopping moobs. But, uh, these things look a teensy bit delicate and feminine and seem more for cross-dressers than your average active bear.

(Via - Towleroad)

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eHarmony Forced To Love The Gays

Thanks to a lawsuit filed in New Jersey, eHarmony has been forced to drop their "no gays, no way" policy and beginning next year gay folks can use the service.
Internet matchmaker eHarmony.com will provide same-sex matching services in 2009 under the terms of a settlement reached today in New Jersey. The online dating service, founded in 2000 in California, has 20 million clients, according to its website. Eric McKinley, a gay man from New Jersey, filed a discrimination suit against eHarmony Inc. in 2005 after the service refused to take his personal advertisement. McKinley's suit triggered a N.J. state investigation of the service. Under the terms of the settlement, eHarmony agreed to provide a new service for gay men and lesbians by March 31 under the headings "male seeking male" and "female seeking female." In return, the complaint against eHarmony was dismissed by the N.J. Division on Civil Rights. The company and its founder, Neil Clark Warren, were absolved of any liability.
I say fuck those douchenozzles anyway. Use Chemistry.com or one of the other services that has welcomed homos from Day One.

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Live Puppy Cam!


This is for all the Michelle Malkin fans who are coming over today to read the "insane rage" of JMG readers. (Note: the live stream goes off the air every now and then when they have to clean up puppy poo.)

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Bat Boy Hates Prop 8

Via World Weekly News:
NEW YORK, NY - Bat Boy was spotted taking part in Proposition 8 protests this past weekend. All across the country, citizens united in protest of California’s Proposition 8 to strictly define marriage between a man and a woman, as well as other anti-same-sex marriage laws that were passed on November 4. Bat Boy was seen outside City Hall with “PROP 8″ with an X through it painted across his chest. While Bat Boy was unable to convey his feelings through words, he did send his high-pitched squeaks of dissent echoing across the plaza. Many mutants turned out for these protests. Mutant rights organizers explained that a number of mutants, such as the Manigator, are born from interspecial relations. Legalizing gay marriage is one step closer to allowing these unconventional unions to be officially recognized. Manigator was not present at the rallies, as he was too busy getting “tore up” with his sewer alligator cousins.
(Tipped by JMG reader JPM)

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Guns 'N Roses 'N Gays

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Ali Forney Center Holiday Giving

Please click the box at the top of my far right ad column and consider making a holiday donation to the Ali Forney Center, NYC's homeless shelter for LGBT youth.

In addition to accepting cash donations online, the Ali Forney Center has a lengthy list of desperately needed everyday items such as socks, underwear, toiletries, cleaning supplies, new and "gently used" clothing, and non-perishable food.

Donate online or mail your checks and donated goods to:

The Ali Forney Center
224 West 35th St., Suite 1102
New York, NY 10001

If you are interested in volunteering, the Ali Forney Center needs help with holiday meal planning, special events, field trips and other important activities. To help, contact Bill Torres.

Bill Torres
Director of Community Resources
Phone: (212) 991-0853
E-mail: btorres@aliforneycenter.org

The Ali Forney Center is facing a major budget crisis with Mayor Bloomberg's recently announced cutback of their funding. Please make a holiday donation today.

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Wig Force 2: Electric Boogaloo

Chuck Norris, 2008 Nightmare Hairpiece Olympics gold medalist, thinks that protesting against the result of Prop 8 is anarchy.
Regardless of one's opinion of Proposition 8, it is flat-out wrong and un-American to intimidate and harass individuals, churches and businesses that are guilty of nothing more than participating in the democratic process. Political protests are one thing, but when old-fashioned bullying techniques are used that restrict voting liberties and even prompt fear of safety, activists have crossed a line. There is a difference between respectfully advocating one's civil rights and demanding public endorsement of what many still consider to be unnatural sexual behavior through cruel coercion and repression tactics. One thing is for sure: The days of peaceful marches, such as those headed up by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., seem to be long gone.

The truth is that the great majority of Prop. 8 advocates are not bigots or hatemongers. They are American citizens who are following 5,000 years of human history and the belief of every major people and religion: Marriage is a sacred union between a man and a woman. Their pro-Prop. 8 votes weren't intended to deprive any group of its rights; they were safeguarding their honest convictions regarding the boundaries of marriage.

On Nov. 4, the pro-gay community obviously was flabbergasted that a state that generally leans left actually voted right when it came to holy matrimony. But that's exactly what happened; the majority of Californians -- red, yellow, black and white -- voted to define the margins of marriage as being between one man and one woman. California is the 30th state in our union to amend its constitution in doing so, joining Florida and Arizona in this election. Like it or not, it's the law now. The people have spoken.

Norris leads off his piece with a mention of Styrofoam Cross Lady, who has become the go-to example "gay extremism" thanks to a couple of idiots in Palm Springs. Norris has become a popular columnist on right-wing sites such as Townhall and WingNutDaily. For those keeping track of those so in love with "traditional marriage", Norris is twice-married with five kids, including a bastard child from an adulterous affair. His present wife, 28 years younger than Norris, is also younger than two of his children. He does not believe in evolution, but does believe in the Hair Club For Men.

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The Onion On Prop 8

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It's Official: Ted Stevens Has Lost

Seven-time felon Sen. Ted Stevens was officially declared the loser in his reelection bid yesterday. This brings the Democratic count in the Senate to 58 seats, with Al Franken's contest still to be called. And it also means that Caribou Barbie is staying in Juneau.

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Major Service Cutback At MTA

The economic crisis has prompted NYC's transit authority to announce major budget and service cutbacks. The NY Daily News ticks off the damage:
Positions: More than 1,500 axed - including approximately 350 administrators and managers; approximately 700 station agents and bus drivers combined.

Subways
  • W and Z lines shut down completely.
  • No more express J-train service, makes all local stops.
  • G line nearly halved with the northern terminal being Court Square, Long Island City, Queens, at all times. No more service from Court Square to Forest Hills.
  • M line halved, making stops only between Metropolitan Ave., Queens, and Broad St., Manhattan.
  • B line trains arrive every 10 minutes weekends, up from 8 minutes.
  • Overnight: Scheduled gaps between all trains running between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. increased to 30 minutes from 20 minutes.
  • Midday: Schedules changed - less frequent trains from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. - system wide so that trains carry more passengers: 125% of the seating capacity, up from current guideline of 100%.
Buses: A few dozen bus routes eliminated overnight and weekends, including X27 and X28 weekends. Bus routes targeted for less frequent service generally are those with lower ridership numbers or where subway trains are an option. A few routes running weekdays axed.

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The "Elijah-Jezebel" Showdown

Under the title The Elijah-Jezebel Showdown, wingnut anti-gay preacher Lou Engle has posted a lengthy diatribe/sermon about Friday night's incident in the Castro. Engle is the architect of the massive anti-gay rally at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium. (The clips were sent to me by a straight Mormon woman who says she's left her church in outrage over their assault on LGBT rights.) Here's a 10-minute excerpt from Engle's sermon in which he brings up a young Christianist woman who tearfully recounts her experience in the Castro.

At the 35-minute mark in the much longer clip linked above, the young woman calls for a "mass exodus from the demonic influence of the Castro."

Lou Engle is a pastor with Joel's Army, a group that demands that the United States be ruled by strict Biblical principles. From the Southern Poverty Law Center:
Joel's Army believers are hard-core Christian dominionists, meaning they believe that America, along with the rest of the world, should be governed by conservative Christians and a conservative Christian interpretation of biblical law. There is no room in their doctrine for democracy or pluralism.

Dominionism's original branch is Christian Reconstructionism, a grim, Calvinist call to theocracy that, as Reconstructionist writer Gary North describes, wants to "get busy in constructing a Bible-based social, political and religious order which finally denies the religious liberty of the enemies of God."

Notorious for endorsing the public execution by stoning of homosexuals and adulterers, the Christian Reconstructionist movement is far better known in secular America than Joel's Army. That's largely because Reconstructionists have made several serious forays into mainstream politics and received a fair amount of negative publicity as a result. Joel's Army followers eschew the political system, believing the path to world domination lies in taking over churches, not election to public office.

Another key difference between the two branches of dominionism, which maintain a testy, arms-length relationship with one another, is Christian Reconstructionism's buttoned-down image and heavy emphasis on Bible study, which contrasts sharply with Joel's Army anti-intellectual distrust of biblical scholars and its unruly style.
Some Castro residents have described the group that was chased out of the neighborhood as "peaceful and harmless", but their affiliation with Lou Engle and Joel's Army is chilling indeed. Joel's Army is a militantly dangerous group that will settle for nothing less than the complete end of secular Democracy in America.

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Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Eric Holder Tapped For Attorney General

Word leaked today that Barack Obama has selected Eric Holder as his Attorney General.
If the appointment is confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Holder would be the first African-American to head up the U.S. Justice Department. Officials say Mr. Obama's aides have been talking with senators to determine whether they would support the selection. At issue is Holder's involvement in the controversial 2001 pardon of a fugitive financier, Marc Rich, by the Clinton presidency. At the time, Holder said he was neutral and leaning towards favoring the pardon.

Officials say the former deputy attorney general is anxious to reform the Justice Department's reputation, after controversies surrounding its hiring practices and anti-terror regulations. Holder helped investigate candidates to become Mr. Obama's vice presidential running mate. He is a former judge and is a private practice attorney in Washington.
Holder became Bill Clinton's Deputy Attorney General in 1997 when Jamie Gorelick retired. It will be interesting to see how many former Clintonites make it back to power under Obama.

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HomoQuotable - Rex Wockner

"The organization No On 8 failed us. Before the TV ad war started, we were up 14-17 points in the polls. Then No On 8 spent some $37 million of your money to spam the California airwaves with really lousy ads, while the other side spent a similar amount to spam the California airwaves with ads that were, whatever else they may have been, effective. While the bad TV ads were not the only component of our loss (last-minute preaching from the pulpits was a factor), had our ads been good ads, we would have held onto our lead. And producing those mindnumbingly expensive ads (which I and many others publicly criticized as they were airing) was one piece of the war that No On 8 had 100% control over.

"Although the HRC-like Equality California group is not solely to blame, it's likely fair to say EQCA was the biggest component of the No On 8 coalition, along with such entities as the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center, the San Diego Gay and Lesbian Center and others.

"But, as Wayne [Besen], Andrew [Sullivan] and Markos [Zuniga] (combined, they have a massive readership) essentially say: That was then, this is now. We have now indeed entered Activism 4.0 or whatever the hell you want to call it. Our "leaders" let us down and you -- you, the average gay or lesbian citizen who just wants to have equal rights and maybe even get married -- you have seized power by using Facebook and your blogs, e-mail and Twitter, MySpace and text-messages to launch a new gay movement -- one that can get 25,000 gays and lesbians into the streets of sleepy San Diego on a Saturday morning, one that got 12,000 people into the streets of New York to protest something that happened in California.

"A movement that got gay and lesbian Americans to stage simultaneous protests two days ago in hundreds of American cities and towns -- including in Allentown, Fargo, Fayetteville, La Crosse, Macon, Shreveport and Missoula -- and, in California alone, in Alameda, Bakersfield, Berkeley, Big Bear Lake, Chico, Claremont, Colton, Costa Mesa, Delano, Escondido, Eureka, Fairfield, Fresno, Hemet, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Mariposa, Marysville, Merced, Modesto, Monterey, Moorpark, Moreno Valley, Mountain View, Napa, Oakland, Palm Springs, Pasadena, Pomona, Porterville, Rancho Cucamonga, Redding, Redlands, Riverside, Sacramento, Salinas, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, San Luis Obispo, San Rafael, Santa Barbara, Santa Clarita, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, Sonoma, South Lake Tahoe, Stockton, Temecula, Tracy, Turlock, Ukiah, Vacaville, Ventura, Victorville, Walnut Creek and Yucca Valley.

"Wow.

"You don't have to listen to the gay "leaders" who failed you anymore, you don't have to give them any more money, you just have to figure out what you want to do next with the power that now is yours -- to get what you want: Full equality. I am intensely eager to see your next steps. It is an exciting time indeed." - Veteran gay reporter Rex Wockner from his blog essay The Day The Music Died For Gay Leadership.

Go here to read the entire essay including the above-linked quotes. Wockner emphasizes that his is not an "across-the-board assault on every non-grassroots gay entity" and points to the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the ACLU, and Lambda Legal as continuing to do the heaving lifting in this fight.

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In Which My Grinchy Heart Breaks

OMFG, get out a Kleenex for this one. Yesterday on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, 7 year-old piano prodigy Emily Bear performed her original composition Once Upon A Wish for Ellen "because you got your wish and got married." Start the clip at the 4:00 mark.

I have a feeling that we'll be hearing this song at a LOT of gay weddings to come. Emily is releasing Once Upon A Wish on CD on November 25th.

(Tipped by JMG reader Tom F.)

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You Gotta Fight...
For Your Right ...
To Maaaaaarry!!!

From the Beastie Boys Blog:Intergalactic planetary, planetary intergalactic!

(Via - Good As You)

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Pressure Rises Against NY Sen. Ruben Diaz Over Marriage Equality

The NY Daily News reports today that the Spanish-language newspaper El Diario/La Prensa has called out NY Sen. Ruben Diaz (D-Bronx) for blocking progress on marriage equality. El Diario:
"Rev. Diaz and others are supposedly not for denying rights to gays and lesbians but believe that marriage should be between a man and woman. Yet, it’s this very discriminatory position that serves to exclude lesbian and gay couples from obtaining the rights, benefits and standing that heterosexuals take for granted.

"This use of religious beliefs to block basic civil rights undermines the separation of church and state in this nation. The basis of that separation lies in the experience of early American colonists who had fled religious persecution elsewhere to pursue tolerance, acceptance and freedom in the “new” world. Latinos, as well as other groups, should have an honest conversation about homophobia. Discrimination, whether within or outside of our communities, on the basis of color, immigration status, gender or sexuality is just not acceptable."

The News also notes the anti-Diaz campaign on Facebook.
Diaz is also the target of another kind of (probably unwelcome) attention from a new (and rather exhaustively-titled) Facebook page called "Stop a Marriage Referendum in New York: Malcolm Smith for Majority Leader." Officers of the group include a number of well-known LGBT activists like Ethan Geto, Stonewall Democrats Matthew Carlin, Corey Johnson, and the page's creator, Jeff Campagna, a producer and activist, who wrote:
"I am furious that the obstacle standing between us and marriage equality is a Democratic state senator named Ruben Diaz Sr., from the Bronx, who with his two friends Senators Carl Kruger and Pedro Espada Jr., also Democrats, is threatening to stand with the Republicans to block Malcolm Smith from becoming Senate Majority Leader in January. Why would Ruben Diaz Sr. do this? Because he says he refuses to back a Senate Majority Leader like Malcolm Smith, who supports marriage equality and who will finally put the issue to a vote. But Ruben Diaz Sr. isn’t just threatening to block Malcolm Smith from being majority leader. He’s so obsessed with gay marriage that he’s trying to figure out how to bring Proposition 8 to the ballot in New York. Maybe Senator Diaz thinks that we’re all going to let this pass and walk on eggshells as he plays power games with his Senate colleagues. We have before. Remember when we cheered the passage of a sexual orientation non-discrimination act that was stripped of protections for gender expression because we didn’t want to rock the boat?"

Both on Facebook and at an anti-Prop 8 rally outside City Hall last week, Campagna urged gay marriage supporters to contact Diaz Sr. and urge him to support Smith. At the rally, he called on everyone present to pull out their cell phones and program in the senator's office number, which he yelled out from the podium.

Gov. David Paterson has met with Diaz to discuss his recalcitrance on marriage equality.

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Swag Tuesday

Courtesy of the Karpel Group, today's Swag Tuesday giftie is the long-awaited DVD release of Boys In The Band, the classic and ground-breaking William Friedkin film now available nationwide.
A sensitive yet humorous adaptation of the stage play, this 1970 film directed by William Friedkin (The French Connection, The Exorcist) is one of the first films to openly address gay issues in a matter-of-fact style that largely avoids stereotyping. Shot on one set and featuring a birthday party as the festive setting, a group of friends assemble to celebrate, reminisce, and discuss their lives and the travails of being gay, even as one friend insists he's straight. The night turns from a light celebration to a sometimes-vindictive ordeal of revelation and betrayal, as each man in turn must confess his true feelings. Performed by the original cast of the stage production, the film may feel dated to some, but it still manages to be truthful and entertaining as it explores a subject that to this day is not often addressed
Enter to win the DVD by commenting on this post. Only enter once and please remember to leave an email address you check frequently. Publicists: if you'd like to take part in Swag Tuesday on JMG, please email me.

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Layoffs At Focus On The Family

File this under "Boo Fucking Hoo":
Focus on the Family is poised to announce major layoffs to its Colorado Springs-based ministry and media empire today. The cutbacks come just weeks after the group pumped more than half a million dollars into the successful effort to pass a gay-marriage ban in California.

Critics are holding up the layoffs, which come just two months after the organization’s last round of dismissals, as a sad commentary on the true priorities of the ministry. “If I were their membership I would be appalled,” said Mark Lewis, a longtime Colorado Springs activist who helped organize a Proposition 8 protest in Colorado Springs on Saturday. “That [Focus on the Family] would spend any money on anything that’s obviously going to get blocked in the courts is just sad. [Prop. 8] is guaranteed to lose, in the long run it doesn’t have a chance — it’s just a waste of money.”
It's a hate industry meltdown!

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Storming The Gates

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