Rick Perry: I'm Still Standing

A Room With A View

Submitted Without Comment

Rugby Men Pose For...Fap Fap Fap

Fans Ask Tebow For Anti-Bullying Clip

Helped along by gay activists, a group of Denver Broncos fans are petitioning star quarterback Tim Tebow to make an It Gets Better video.

More than 3,000 people have signed the petition started by Andy Szekeres, a Denver man who is also a political fundraiser. "The campaign is reaching people and changing lives," says Szekeres, 28. "Within the gay community and with a lot of straight allies it's making a difference and raising critical issues. "It would really be an amazing thing for Tebow and the Broncos to do to really say 'We may have differences on abortion and gay marriage, but stopping kids from killing themselves is an issue we can all get behind.'" Szekeres says Tebow is furthering his brand by staying away from gay issues and that he is unsure if the QB will oblige. "I don't know if he will sign up," Szekeres says. "A lot of my gay and lesbian friends support him and think he's doing a great job as a quarterback. This is an easy way to show support for the LGBT community that is not divisive."

I wouldn't hold my breath.

Afternoon View - Porky's Seafood Shack

On Marathon Key, we've stopped at our usual on-the-way to Key West spot for conch fritters, oysters, and pulled pork. That's Father Tony in the shadows with the pig. (That sentence may also apply at other times in the coming week.)

California LGBT Rights Group Approved To Gather Prop 8 Repeal Signatures

California LGBT rights group Love Honor Cherish has been approved to begin gathering signatures to place a repeal of Prop 8 on the 2012 ballot. They now have until May 14 to collect 807,615 voter signatures.

Love Honor Cherish submitted the proposed initiative in October after Equality California, the state's largest gay rights group, said it was not prepared to lead a campaign to overturn Proposition 8. In 2008, the measure's supporters and opponents spent $83 million campaigning for and against the amendment, making it the most expensive political race on a social issue in the nation's history.

A federal appeals court in San Francisco has been reviewing a lower court's decision from last year that struck down Proposition 8 as a violation of the civil rights of gay and lesbian Californians. Watson said that if the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upholds that ruling and lifts its injunction barring same-sex couples from marrying, the repeal initiative would no longer be needed.

But if neither the 9th Circuit nor the U.S. Supreme Court reinstate marriage rights for same-sex couples early next year and instead seek to keep the ban in place while the case works its way through the legal system, Love Honor Cherish would move forward with trying to qualify the repeal measure and campaign for its passage, Watson said. .

Ladybird's Plan As First Spouse

Should the entire nation be dosed with a massive hit of acid and Michele Bachmann wins the White House, Ladybird already has a plan of action.

“I’ve decided my cause is not going to be happy meals,” he said during a stop at the Family Table Restaurant here, apparently a dig at Mrs. Obama. "We are going to be the message-givers,” said Mr. Bachmann, who runs a Christian counseling service that has been accused of trying to “heal” gays by persuading them to become heterosexual. “We are going to get this message across,” he said. “Marriage is between one man and one woman. We are going to promote families.”

Google Map: Santas Vs Zombies

This is a project by semi-serious scientists:

Mark Graham and the team at the Oxford Internet Institute (who've mapped zombies, every geotagged picture on Flickr and languages used on Wikipedia) looked at key words geotagged on Google map as part of their research into the state of the internet. Graham, who also runs the blogs floatingsheep.org and zerogeography.net worked with Monica Stephens, Taylor Shelton, and Matt Zook to look at the amount of content indexed by Google Maps at each location containing the term "Santa" and then comparing it. To zombies and Satan.

More maps at the link. (Tipped by JMG reader Joe)

Azis - Sen Trope

Bulgaria's Gypsy drag bear chalga pop star is back.

(Tipped by JMG reader Bob)

Which Ban?

American Family Association Calls For Criminalization Of Adultery And Sex Outside Of Marriage

Jeebus Sent Him To The Gay Repair Shop

His "brokenness" was cured with a $5 bill Jeebus left on the sidewalk for him. Or something! And now he totally knows about "true masculinity." Ahem.

USPS Caves To FRC

Morning View - Fort Lauderdale Beach

Father Tony and I are about to embark on a trip across the gorgeous Overseas Highway on our way to gay gay gay Key West, where you can expect a week of slightly drunken poolside blogging from the lovely Island House. Our fourth visit in about 18 months!

Who Needs Three Branches?

"I hold a biblical view of law. If you look at the original constitution and the founding documents of our country, it was clear that the founders wanted to separate power, they wanted to separate the presidency from the Supreme Court and from the Congress, because they thought that the Congress should be the most powerful of all the people’s voices because the people would have the ability to change out the members of the House every two years, originally the state legislatures would chose the Senators and they would have the state’s interest in mind, and the President was meant to execute the laws that Congress would put into place. The courts had a relatively minor function, it was to take current facts and apply it to the law that Congress had passed. So it was really a beautiful system that set up but it’s been distorted since then, and that’s what we need to do, get back to the original view of the Founders because it worked beautifully." - Michele Bachmann, promising to gut the federal judiciary.

MINNESOTA: GOP Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch Resigns in Adultery Scandal

Defender of marriage and Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch (R) has resigned her post in disgrace after allegations of an affair with a Senate staffer. Koch, who is is married with one child, was one of the proponents of Minnesota's 2012 anti-gay marriage constitutional amendment. [Update below]

At a Capitol news conference Friday, Sen. Geoff Michel (R-Edina) said Senate staff recently brought up allegations of an “inappropriate relationship between Majority Leader Koch and a Senate staffer.” "We sit here with a lot of humility, sadness, and shock,” Michel said. Michel said multiple staffers reported allegations to Senate leaders. He said he doesn’t know how long the relationship was going on and legally cannot discuss the name of the Senate staffer involved with Sen. Koch. The Edina senator could only specify that it was “inappropriate” a “conflict of interest” and created an “unstable work environment for staff.” On whether or not the relationship was sexual, Michel said "I think there's only two people who could fully characterize that,” but GOP leaders said they never heard the word “sexual” used when the allegations surfaced.

And another anti-gay hypocrite bites the dust! Below is a bit of the May vote to place the anti-gay amendment on the 2012 ballot. UPDATE: Late this afternoon the media learned that while Koch has stepped down as majority leader, she may continue as a state senator. She did say that she will not seek reelection in 2012. Koch was the first female majority leader of the Minnesota Senate and her tenure was the shortest in its history.

AbFab Dishes The Kardashians

FLASHBACK: Hitchens On Dead Falwell

LESSON: If You're A Closeted GOP Mayor, Don't Embezzle Money For Gay Porn

Raw Story has the dirt:

A Republican mayor in Mississippi admitted this week that he was gay after an audit revealed that he spent taxpayer money at a gay adult store in Canada. Greg Davis was elected as the mayor of Southaven in 1997 on a platform of conservative “family values,” but he says he recently realized that he was gay. “At this point in my life and in my career, while I have tried to maintain separation between my personal and public life, it is obvious that this can no longer remain the case,” the mayor, now in his third term, told The Commercial Appeal. “While I have performed my job as mayor, in my opinion, as a very conservative, progressive individual — and still continue to be a very conservative individual — I think that it is important that I discuss the struggles I have had over the last few years when I came to the realization that I am gay,” he added.

Asshat Of The Day - Michael Brown

"[Hillary Clinton's] speech, which was hailed by gay activists worldwide, was an exercise in hypocrisy, not to mention an insult to several billion people worldwide. Mrs. Clinton had the audacity to compare religious or cultural objections to homosexual practice to 'the justification offered for violent practices towards women like honor killings, widow burning, or female genital mutilation,' as if the religious and moral objection to men having sex with men is somehow equivalent to the Muslim practice of honor killings or the Hindu practice of burning widows. [snip]

"She stated that 'opinions [on homosexuality] are still evolving', just as opinions evolved over time with slavery, and 'what was once justified as sanctioned by God is now properly reviled as an unconscionable violation of human rights.' In other words, if you have an issue with the lewd sexual displays at your city’s gay pride parade, or if you’re not comfortable with a man who dresses as a woman using the ladies bathroom, or if you don’t want to see a kid raised by two lesbians and thereby deprived of having a father, or if you believe that God made men to be with women, then you are the moral equivalent of a slave trader or a slave owner." - Michael Brown, writing for Town Hall.

Afternoon View - The Island City

Although it's a couple of miles inland, gay gay gay Wilton Manors calls itself "The Island City," because its boundaries are defined by canals.

Wilton Manors is known as a gay village, although its population is extremely diverse. Wilton Manors ranks 2nd in the U.S. for its percentage of gay residents as a proportion of total population, with 140 gay residents per 1,000 residents. The Fort Lauderdale area ranks 4th in metro areas (per capita). Neighboring Oakland Park is ranked sixth on the list. Wilton Manors has approximately 1270% more gay men per capita than the national average.

CONNECTICUT: Governor Names Gay-Married Man As Chief Of Staff

Connecticut Gov. Daniel Malloy has named former deputy comptroller Mark Ojakian (above left) to be his chief of staff. The Hartford Courant notes without comment that Ojikian acknowledged his husband during the appointment announcement.

Stepping to the microphone, Ojakian said, "While it has been an incredibly challenging year — and it has been, I didn't think my hair could get any grayer, but it has over the last year — it has been an honor'' to serve in the administration. He added, "We still face many challenges in the weeks, months, and years ahead'' on a wide variety of issues. Known as "OJ'' inside the state Capitol, Ojakian has worked with all of the key players in the administration. Besides thanking members of Malloy's inner circle, Ojakian, 58, also thanked his husband, Jason Veretto of West Hartford, whom he introduced at the press conference.

(Tipped by JMG reader Cody)

NME's Best Singles Of 2011

At least I know #10 from that Victoria's Secret ad. NME's best albums chart has some interesting entries, including PJ Harvey at the top.

MINNESOTA: Anti-Gay Marriage Bigot Explains His Scientific Views

Hitchens' Greatest Quotes

Buzzfeed has a long list.

NEW YORK: Students Suspended Over "Tebowing" Prayer Demonstrations

Four Long Island high school students have been suspended for creating a "hallway hazard" when dozens of other students mimicked their pious public display and fell to one knee.

“It was basically just a tribute to Tim Tebow,” Carroll Connor, 17, who planned the prank with his brother and friends, told The Post. “It was more than a religious thing. There was some of that involved obviously, because he prays. I guess it was basically like a moment of silence. “I just don’t think it’s fair,” said Connor, a senior linebacker, of the school throwing the penalty flag. “We were never given any warning. They said they did, but that’s completely false.” The brothers have to serve their suspensions; the others were rescinded because the other participants had not been given warnings, officials said. About 40 students had been gathering in the hallway all week emulating Tebow.

The school's principal says the repeated demonstrations were slowing the class changes and constituted a fire hazard. Stand by for the screams of religious oppression.

Daily Grumble

I find it deceptive that Orbitz doesn't alert its customers that Spirit Air will demand an extra $35 for each carry-on bag. You only discover this charge when checking in online. At the airport, the carry-on fee is $40. When checking in online you'll also discover that Spirit wants up to $20 to select your own seat. Together those charges are a potential extra cost of $120 per trip. Which I might have been OK with, had I been told in advance and therefore made comparisons to the competition. Is the failure to disclose theses fees a common industry practice, or is it just Orbitz?

Third Russian State Sees Anti-Gay Laws

The Russian oblast of Kostroma is considering legislation banning the "promotion of homosexuality." Local activists say such laws effectively outlaw gay pride parades, gay publications, and gay websites.

The amendments proposed by the the Committee on Labor, Social Policy and Health are to outlaw any action aimed to promote pedophilia, homosexuality (sodomy and lesbianism), bisexuality, transsexuality to minors. The parliament is expected to consider the amendments before year end. The authors of the bills noted that "such legislation is already operating successfully in some regions of the country." According to MPs, a ban would protect the morals of the family, to preserve the physical, mental and spiritual health of young people. Even though such laws are an abvious restriction of the right to freedom of expression guaranteed by the Constitution, the Constitutional Court said the opposite in its decision delivered in January 2010 against activists of GayRussia who were arrested and charged for propaganda of homosexuality in Ryazan.

Earlier this year a similar bill was approved in the oblast of Arkhangelsk. Still pending is the "don't say gay" bill in St. Petersburg.

Quote Of The Day - Rep. Allen West

"If Joseph Goebbels was around, he’d be very proud of the Democrat Party, because they have an incredible propaganda machine. Let’s be honest, you know, some of the people in the media are complicit with this and enabling them to get that type of message out. You have the president, who has an incredible megaphone and a platform, and he has people all across this country believing that the only people on Capitol Hill are House Republicans. He’s not talking anything about his controlled Senate. So, it’s a great propaganda machine. And I have to give him kudos for being able to leverage that." - GOProud hero Rep. Allen West. Jewish groups are demanding an apology.

The Rise And Fall Of The Goatee

The 12 Days Of Christianism

MINNESOTA: Catholic Bishop Issues Prayer Against The Civil Rights Of Gay Americans

The Star-Tribune reports:

In an effort to promote the passage of the marriage amendment to the state's Constitution, Twin Cities Archbishop John Nienstedt wants Catholics to recite a special prayer during mass. He’s also urging area Catholics “to embrace Fridays as a particular day of prayer and sacrifice for the success of this most current struggle to defend marriage with our civil constitution. Without such deliberate prayers and sacrifices, our efforts will be in vain. But with God, all things are possible.”

“Much rides on the success of our struggle to defend marriage,” according to Nienstedt, who made the comments in a letter posted on the archdiocese’s website. It’s the latest effort by Minnesota church leaders urging Catholics to support passage of the proposed amendment, which calls for a ban on gay marriage. This fall, the state’s Catholic bishops took the unusual step of directing parish priests across the state to form committees to help get the marriage amendment passed by voters in November 2012.

(Tipped by JMG reader South)

Exxon Makes Gay History

Exxon Mobile has received the first-ever negative score on the HRC's annual Corporate Equality Index. Dallas Voice reports:

Exxon Mobil failed to meet any of the criteria for the 2012 Index, and had points deducted for engaging in activities that undermine LGBT equality. As a result, the company received a score of minus-25 from HRC. Before Exxon and Mobil merged in 1999, Mobil offered domestic partnership benefits and had an employment nondiscrimination policy that included sexual orientation. However, ExxonMobil did away with both the benefits and the policy after the merger, and has repeatedly resisted shareholder efforts to amend the policy to protect gay employees. The 2012 Index marks the first year HRC has handed out negative scores, and Exxon Mobil was the only company to receive one.

In better news, far more companies received a perfect 100% than in years past. Their corporate ranking report is considered by many to be the most useful product of the Human Rights Campaign.

Frothy Slams Mittens On Gay Marriage

Frothy sez Mittens "personally, as governor, issued gay marriage licenses!" Romney says he was just obeying court orders.

NC Haters Launch Anti-Marriage Site

Jeremy Hooper reports at Good As You:

The best these folks can offer North Carolina's voting public is a smiling family in need of "protection"? Why do they always lobotomize their movement every time a campaign rolls around?!?! The answer is of course obvious: When they need to move the general voting public and not just hyper-motivate their base, the "pro-family" folks put on a "nice, sweet, it's just about marriage" mask. So the real question for us: ARE WE GOING TO LET THEM GET AWAY WITH THIS, YET AGAIN!?

NASA's Photo Of The Day

Description:

The dark, inner shadow of planet Earth is called the umbra. Shaped like a cone extending into space, it has a circular cross section most easily seen during a lunar eclipse. For example, last Saturday the Full Moon slid across the southern half of Earth's umbral shadow, entertaining moonwatchers around much of the planet. In the total phase of the eclipse, the Moon was completely within the umbra for 51 minutes. Recorded from Beijing, China, this composite eclipse image uses successive pictures from totality (center) and partial phases to trace out a large part of the umbra's curved edge. Background stars are visible in the darker eclipse phases. The result shows the relative size of the shadow's cross section at the distance of the Moon, as well as the Moon's path through Earth's umbra.

Tweet Of The Day

If you don't know the backstory here, do yourself a favor.

Ladybird Caves To Truth Wins Out

Marcus Bachmann has backed down on his demand that a Truth Wins Out undercover reporter pay for "reparative therapy" sessions that he booked but didn't attend.

"The last thing we expected was for Marcus Bachmann to behave rationally and abandon his specious and spiteful claim that we owed him money,” said Truth Wins Out Executive Director Wayne Besen. “It is a shame that he wasn’t foolish enough to allow a $150 billing dispute to turn into free publicity that highlighted the harm caused by ‘ex-gay’ programs.” "We feel vindicated that Marcus Bachmann has ended his vindictive campaign to punish us for exposing his clinic’s ‘ex-gay’ therapy practice,” said Truth Wins Out’s Communications Director John Becker. “Reason triumphed over retaliation today — Bachmann made a wise decision to move on with his life and avoid further damage to his reputation.”

HOLLAND: Catholic Abuse Scandal Widens

Holland's massive child molestation scandal continues to widen as investigators identify hundreds of perpetrators within the Catholic Church.

Tens of thousands of children have suffered sexual abuse in Dutch Catholic institutions since 1945, a report says. The report by an independent commission said Catholic officials had failed to tackle the widespread abuse at schools, seminaries and orphanages. But the report also found that one in five children who attended an institution suffered abuse - regardless of whether it was Catholic. Allegations at a Catholic school in the east Netherlands triggered the inquiry. The commission, which began work in August 2010, sought to uncover what had gone on and how it had happened, and examined what kind of justice should be offered to victims. It studied 1,800 complaints of abuse at Catholic institutions, identifying 800 alleged perpetrators, just over 100 of whom are still alive.

STUDY: Gay Marriage Improves Health?

A just-published study indicates that gay men who live in states with legalized same-sex marriage may have fewer health problems.

During the 12 months after the 2003 legalization of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, there was a significant decrease in medical care visits, mental health visits and mental health-care costs among gay and bisexual men, compared to the 12 months before the law changed. This led to a 13 percent reduction in health-care visits and a 14 percent reduction in health-care costs. The health benefits were similar for single gay men and those with partners. No reduction was seen in HIV-related health visits by HIV-positive men, which suggests that those in need of HIV/AIDS care continued to use needed health-care services, the researchers said.

Perry: I'm The Tim Tebow Of The GOP

BOOK: Rick Perry's Secret Gay Life?

Just posted in e-book format only on Amazon.

“On June 23, 2011 a national reporter called Glen Maxey, the first and only openly gay state legislator in the history of Texas. Rick Perry was making noises about running for president, and the reporter asked about rumors that Perry possibly may have had homosexual sex. Glen had heard the rumors before but never investigated them. Now curious, Glen sent out messages to his wide network of gay and political contacts. Within hours, he received astonishing information from multiple sources. For the next five months, Glen’s life was consumed with investigating the rumors and stories about Perry. Did Rick Perry have sex with men? Read this remarkable book and decide for yourself.”

Comments on the above link are interesting...

New From Frothy Mix

He'll save you from Iran!

God Hates Goat Fucking

The Family Research Council would like you to thank God for preventing men in uniform from fucking goats. Glory! Today's prayer:

Thank God for the stalwart conservative members of Congress who prevented our government from authorizing bestiality, a threshold our nation cannot endure. Thanks, too, for their holding the line on these other issues (Lev 18:23-26; Rom 1:18-19, 32; Eph 5:11-13; Heb 11:33; Rev 12:11-12).

Wingnut Radio Host Denounces Perry

"When you put someone in place in your organization, regardless of whether they’re a practicing homosexual, a polygamist, a pedophile, a thief, a rapist or any other form of behavior that violates the natural law, you are empowering people within your organization that are lawbreakers. We are all lawbreakers to some extent, but there’s a difference between recognizing that and going to God for grace and mercy, as opposed to saying you have to change the law and your tradition because of who I am right now, I don’t have to change, you must all change for me." - Iowa radio host Steve Deace, on Rick Perry's hiring of a gay campaign strategist.

FRC: The Poor Aren't That Poor

Bachmann Vs. Newt On Freddie Mac

Gingrich: Courts Are Too Powerful

Christopher Hitchens Dies At 62

Famed atheist, author, and curmudgeon Christopher Hitchens has died of cancer at the age of 62.

Hitchens was diagnosed with advanced esophageal cancer in June 2010, when his memoir, "Hitch-22," hit the bestseller lists. He wrote and spoke unflinchingly of his grim prognosis and acknowledged that years of heavy smoking and drinking had placed him at high risk for the aggressive disease. His openness about having cancer elicited thousands of letters and e-mails to Vanity Fair, where he was a longtime contributor. Many of the well-wishers offered prayers for the famously atheistic author, who had made his case against religion in the 2007 book "God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything." He maintained that his illness had not changed his mind about religion and, borrowing from Shakespeare, asked believers not to bother "deaf heaven" with their "bootless cries."

If you haven't read God Is Not Great, you should.

Andrew Sullivan Endorses Ron Paul

"I regard this primary campaign as the beginning of a process to save conservatism from itself. In this difficult endeavor, Paul has kept his cool, his good will, his charm, his honesty and his passion. His scorn is for ideas, not people, but he knows how to play legitimate political hardball. Look at his ads - the best of the season so far. His worldview is too extreme for my tastes, but it is more honestly achieved than most of his competitors, and joined to a temperament that has worn well as time has gone by.

"I feel the same way about him on the right in 2012 as I did about Obama in 2008. Both were regarded as having zero chance of being elected. And around now, people decided: Why not? And a movement was born. He is the "Change You Can Believe In" on the right. If you are an Independent and can vote in a GOP primary, vote Paul. If you are a Republican concerned about the degeneracy of the GOP, vote Paul. If you are a citizen who wants more decency and honesty in our politics, vote Paul. If you want someone in the White House who has spent decades in Washington and never been corrupted, vote Paul." - Andrew Sullivan, writing on his blog.

How disappointing.

Gingrich Signs NOM's Hate Pledge

Gingrich joins Romney, Santorum, Perry, and Bachmann in vowing to thwart the civil rights guaranteed to LGBT Americans by the U.S. Constitution. The only remaining holdout is Ron Paul.

Afternoon View - Ripley's Box

As I mentioned this morning, I'm spending a few days at the Fort Lauderdale home of my ex and his partner. While they were at work today I noticed that they'd placed the Xmas stocking embroidered with my late cat's name on the box containing his ashes. (We always had stockings for the pets.) I left Ripley with Ken when I moved and he passed away just a few months ago after 20 years of being a spectacularly weird and happy cat. It's a good thing I was alone when I found the box.

You Are Gay By Choice, Just Like Priests Choose To Lie About Being Celibate

Newt Gingrich has it all figured out:

"I don’t believe in genetic determinism and I don’t think there is any great evidence of genetic determinism. There are propensities. Are you more likely to do this or more likely to do that? But that doesn’t mean it’s definitional. Look, people choose to be celibate. People choose many things in life. You know, there is a bias in favor of non-celibacy. It’s part of how the species recreates. And yet there is a substantial amount of people who choose celibacy as a religious vocation or for other reasons."

Tweet Of The Day - Andy Borowitz

HomoQuotable - Timothy Kincaid

"GOProud is a rightwing political organization masquerading as a gay group. Yes, there are gay members – at least three – but their goals, intentions, and actions reveal them to be interested in gay issues only in the context of how they can be spun for partisan advantage. [snip] Sure gay groups have straight members. Some are in leadership. And that is part of inclusiveness. But when you choose a not-openly-gay person to head the board because you don’t actually have any other gay people, you don’t get to call yourself a gay group anymore. At this point I think perhaps we should treat GOProud like PFOX: an irrelevant group claiming to represent people who don’t know or care that they exist. Jimmy and Chris, your little stunt was fun while it lasted, but it’s time you just went home and did something productive with your lives." - Timothy Kincaid, writing for Box Turtle Bulletin.

Read the entire article.

Gay Dads Get Big News

JMG reader Subtle Knife commands you to watch this!

Wild Flag - Romance

You Thought You Were Second Class? Romney Has A Third Class For Gays

After suffering national embarrassment at the hands of a gay-married Vietnam veteran, Mitt Romney has issued his new plan for marriage in which gays aren't just second class, some of us are third. The Boston Herald notes:

[Romney] expressed support for a constitutional amendment that could create a complex three-tier system of marriage — maintaining marriage rights for straight couples, allowing gays who have already married to remain married, but barring future same-sex marriages. "I think it would keep intact those marriages which had occurred under the law but maintain future plans based on marriage being between a man and a woman,” Romney said.

He's talking out of his ass, of course, as this sort of federal plan would never be instituted. Maybe he thinks this makes him look like less of a meanie after that takedown by Bob Garon.

Asshat Of The Day - Joe Dallas

"Satan’s strategy is leading humans astray, whether the arena is doctrinal or moral, is to deceive an individual into thinking that what God has forbidden is not really wrong or destructive, but is, in fact, life enhancing. So it was I the garden when Satan tempted Eve; so it may well be with your loved one. The sin of homosexuality is human nature, but the belief that sin is not really sin comes not from human nature alone but from an ancient and evil messenger. [snip]

"And as you know, if you took the Bible hard enough you could make it say whatever you want it to, cults can do that, Nazis did that and I’m afraid it’s being done today under the guise of civil rights and gay liberation." - Former Exodus International leader and alleged former homosexual Joe Dallas, who says he wants to be "nowhere near" openly gay Bishop Gene Robinson when God judges him.

RELATED: You can learn more about "gays are from Satan" and "gays are like Nazis" by reading the loving Christian website of Joe Dallas.

San Francisco Asks Appeals Court For Advance Notice On Prop 8 Verdict

Via Ian Millhiser at Think Progress, we learn that the city of San Francisco has sent an unusual request to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Clearly, they fear civil unrest in the event of a decision against equality.

In several prior instances when decisions have been issued relating to the marriage rights of same-sex couples, there have been large gatherings, including protesters, at the courthouses and in the Civic Center area of San Francisco. . . . In any instance where crowds of protesters gather, and particularly where the issue is as emotional and contested as this one, it is helpful for the San Francisco Police Department to be aware of the gathering in advance to plan for and deploy an adequate number of officers to the areas where protests are likely to occur. We would therefore be grateful if the Court could provide advance notice of its intention to issue its decision in this case.

View the letter.

Giuliani Slams Mitt Romney

Somebody wants to be Newt's veep.

They're Sexy And They Know It

From the men of the U.S. Air Force Academy.

(Via - Towleroad)

RELATED: The original video by LMFAO has over 161 million views on YouTube. Two of the members of LMFAO are the son and grandson of Motown founder Berry Gordy.

No Good Deed, Etc...

JMG reader Mike wrote to the Tennessee Equality Project to ask why they'd made no mention of our successful fundraising campaign to pay for the funeral of gay bullying victim Jacob Rogers. With Mike's permission, here's the bulk of their response to him.

We generally do not repost such fundraising efforts because they are not within our organization's control. We typically do not have any way of knowing how those funds will be distributed. With regard to Dan Savage, Joe My God and Towleroad we could not in good conscience condone their efforts out of respect for Jacob and his family. That may seem counter-intuitive on the surface. So allow me to explain.

Each of these bloggers pledged to donate part of the contributions received for the funeral to other organizations. Had they pledged to only raise money for the family, we might have considered re-posting their efforts. Dan reports that the goal was to raise $5000 for Jacob's funeral. They raised $9000. That means that $4000 will be divided between GLSEN, the Trevor Project, and the ACLU's LGBT Youth Project. Will these organizations spend that received money to confront anti-LGBT bullying and harassment and advance policy and legislation to support that effort in Tennessee? We simply don't know. We do know the past practice of many national groups and celebrities outside of Tennessee. Without mentioning names, many national organizations in 2011 used the passage of the Don't Say Gay bill in the Senate and the workplace discrimination law we call the "Special Access to Discriminate" Act (HB600/SB632) to raise funds for their organizations. We know of several examples where these organizations and individuals received such funds and did not reinvest in efforts to promote safe schools or workplace equality in Tennessee.

TEP has been very careful about providing a positive way to respond to this tragedy without making an "ask" of contributions to TEP or other organizations. TEP's email alert about our petition to the Cheatham County School Board did not include any of our standard links to donate to our organization. We believe that it is unethical and morally wrong to raise funds for TEP or other organizations following the news of a tragedy. I do believe that Mr. Savage, Mr. Towle, and Joe.My.God have good intentions, but we could not condone their approach in this situation.

Dan Savage responds: "How many schools in Tennessee has GLSEN worked with? How many calls from Tennessee has Trevor taken? How many cases has the ACLU queer youth project taken on in Tennessee? And how many kids in Tennessee have been reached by the It Gets Better Project?"

As noted on all three blogs that day, our donation buttons were yanked once we reached the goal of $5000. But due to the overwhelming response, a total of $9000 had flooded in by the time we updated our posts. Through the accounting office of Seattle's Stranger, $5000 was delivered to the Tennessee funeral home hired by Jacob's grandmother, whom he'd been living with after reportedly being kicked out for being gay. The remainder was divided equally to the above four organizations, also as promised that morning.

He Fucked With The Wrong Lesbian

Via the Bellingham Herald in Washington state.

A 22-year-old man was arrested for an alleged hate crime against a lesbian couple early Sunday, Dec. 11, after he yelled slurs at them and smashed in the window of a victim's car, but was then pinned to the ground by one of the victims, police said. William Adam Lane confronted the couple outside a bar early Sunday in the 200 block of Chestnut Avenue when he saw them embracing, said Bellingham police spokesman Mark Young. Lane made profane, derogatory comments about the couple's sexuality, but the women "expressed no interest in having a conversation," Young said. Lane then smashed in the rear window of the Toyota they'd arrived in, causing about $600 damage, Young said. One of the women tackled the suspect and pinned him to the ground while she waited for help from a bouncer at the nearby bar.

Lane was charged with malicious harassment. Our hero was uninjured.

Newt Will Save Your Marriage!

Brilliant!

Families Now Safe From Mariah's Titties

As long as those families only watch ABC's Family Channel. But anyway..VICTORY! Praise! Glory!

Kelly Clarkson - Stronger

The Pledge Must Be In English?

A California Republican group is going after schools that allow bilingual students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in Spanish. Because you can't be patriotic unless you say so in English.

"What's the most important here on this issue is that you're asking children to stand, put their hand over their heart, and pledge; that's a promise," notes Cathy Carlson of the California Republican Assembly (CRA). "To me, it's different if they're sitting at their desk and looking up with a dictionary different words on how to translate." KGET notes that the region is 97 percent Hispanic, and the bilingual pledge has become a tradition. In fact, Carlson tells OneNewsNow that many schools are using a Scholastic Spanish translation. "I believe that's the translation that mis-translates 'indivisible' and also leaves out the phrase 'for which it stands.' If you don't have those, it changes the meaning," she contends.

Jose, can you see?

Golden Globes Nominations

This year's Golden Globe nominations were announced in Los Angeles early this morning.

The silent-era tale "The Artist" heads the Golden Globes with six nominations, among them best comedy or musical, and acting honors for its French stars, Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo. Tied for second-place with five nominations Thursday are the 1960s tale "The Help" and George Clooney's "The Descendants." Both films are up for best drama, while Clooney was nominated for best dramatic actor and "The Help" earned acting slots for Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer and Jessica Chastain.

Also competing for best drama: Martin Scorsese's Paris adventure "Hugo"; Clooney's political thriller "The Ides of March"; Brad Pitt's baseball chronicle "Moneyball"; and Steven Spielberg's World War I epic "War Horse." Joining "The Artist" in the best musical or comedy category are the cancer story "50/50"; Kristen Wiig's wedding romp "Bridesmaids"; Woody Allen's romantic fantasy "Midnight in Paris"; and Michelle Williams' Marilyn Monroe tale "My Week With Marilyn."

Lots more at the link.

Rosie Sends A Gaydar Gun To Bachmann

Kayak.Com Caves To Florida Hate Group

Right Wing Watch reports that the online travel site Kayak has joined Lowe's in caving to the Florida Family Association.

Yesterday the company, citing concerns about “specific content” (which it didn’t identify) admitted that it had joined Lowe's in pulling ads from the show. Kayak later posted an explanation of its actions, but instead of simply apologizing and reinstating the ads, Chief Marketing Officer Robert Birge decided to keep digging, claiming that the blame should go to TLC, which “wasn’t upfront about the nature of the show.” Since the complaints from the Florida Family Association are that the show portrays Muslims as ordinary, peaceful Americans, it’s hard to take Birge’s explanation seriously. The name of the show is, after all, “All American Muslim.” What exactly did Birge expect? Did he want more stereotypical anti-Muslim caricatures, like the FFA did? Birge goes on to say that he’d never actually watched the show before, but now that he’s seen it, he insists that, “The show sucks.”

How To Nominate A GOP Candidate

Morning View - Watch For Gators

I'm in Fort Lauderdale, where I usually stay with Father Tony over on the beach. But since my ex and his husband have just returned from their five-year exile to Pennsyltucky, I'm spending a couple of days at their condo in a sprawling complex wrapped around an inland golf course. I'm told the above sign serves to remind residents to keep Fluffy and Fido away from the water.

VIRGINIA: State Board Allows Adoption Agencies To Discriminate Against Gays

The Virginia Board of Social Services has voted 5-1 to allow adoption agencies to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation and political beliefs.

Board chairwoman Bela Sood noted before the decision that while society considers a mother and a father “a normal parenting unit,” scientific evidence doesn’t support some religious and conservative groups’ claims that they make better parents than same-sex couples do. “There are discussions and arguments that can be made on both sides,” she said before casting the lone dissenting vote. Virginia allows married couples and single people to adopt or become foster parents, but bars unmarried couples from doing so. Then-Gov. Timothy Kaine’s Democratic administration added the anti-discrimination provision in 2009, but it didn’t become a flashpoint for public debate until this year, when conservative legislators and groups complained.

The ruling comes at the prodding of Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a virulently anti-gay Christianist. Cuccinelli has refused to follow tradition and resign after declaring his plan to run for governor in 2012. Therefore all his legal actions (such as this one) can be seen in the light of how they will affect his campaign.

Donald Trump: An Online Candidate?

Donald Trump now says he's considering running as an independent with the help of a group that will choose its candidate online rather than in a national convention.

"Thousands of e-mails from folks urging me to seek the Americans Elect Presidential nomination," Trump tweeted from his @realDonaldTrump Twitter account Wednesday morning. Americans Elect is the first online, independent presidential nominating convention that aims to gain ballot access in all 50 states. According to Elliot Ackerman, the group's chief operating officer, Americans Elect is not a third party , but a second way to nominate a presidential candidate. They have already secured a spot on the 2012 general election ballot in 11 states, are waiting for confirmation on their submitted petition signatures in three states and are in the process of collecting signatures in 15 others. So far 2.1 million people across the country have signed the Americans Election petition in support of ballot access.

Polls have suggested that most support for Trump would come at the expense of the GOP.

Today In Creepy Robots

U.S. Forces Flag Lowered Over Iraq

Mission accomplished, right?

Cardinal Sin: New Banksy Sculpture References Catholic Molestation Scandals

Famed pop artist Banksy references the ongoing molestation scandals in the Catholic Church with a new sculpture on display in a London museum.

Cardinal Sin is a bust with its face sawn off and replaced by blank tiles, designed as a response to the child abuse scandal in the Catholic church. In a statement, Banksy said: "I'm never sure who deserves to be put on a pedestal or crushed under one." The sculpture was unveiled at the Walker Art Gallery, where it is sitting alongside 17th Century religious art. The bathroom tiles have been put in place of the priest's face to create a pixelated effect."The statue? I guess you could call it a Christmas present. At this time of year it's easy to forget the true meaning of Christianity - the lies, the corruption, the abuse." Cardinal Sin is now in a room with an altarpiece painted for the Archbishop of Seville by the Spanish artist Murillo in 1673 and Rubens' painting The Virgin and Child with St Elizabeth and the Child Baptist.

(Tipped by JMG reader Julian)

Fox News Host: I Can't Let You Denigrate The Name Of Jesus On My Show

Of course we hear from whackjob Rep. Louie Gohmert.

Headline Of The Day

As I predicted, the repulsive Duggars are already exploiting the miscarriage of what would have been their 20th child. Stand by for the above image to appear on coffee mugs and mousepads.

New From Newt Gingrich

Open Thread Thursday

Yesterday TIME named "the protester" as their 2011 Person Of The Year. Who is the LGBT Person Of The Year for 2011?

Notice Anything?

Defining The Oblivious

Clip description: "In a culture of chaos, one little girl seeks to define a politically correct word while competing in her school spelling bee. Is truth relative? Can foundational words like marriage and person be redefined?"

Chris Barron Steps Down At GOProud

After a week of relentlessly bad publicity for the organization he co-founded in 2009, Chris Barron is stepping down as chairman at GOProud. Here's the spin from their press release.

Today GOProud, an organization of gay and straight Americans seeking to promote freedom by supporting free markets, limited government, and a respect for individual rights, announced that they were restructuring their Board of Directors. “Given the tremendous growth and success of GOProud in our first two and a half years of operation, we are restructuring and expanding our Board to meet the needs of a bigger organization,” said Christopher R. Barron, co-founder and outgoing Chair of the GOProud Board. Barron’s term as Board Chairman expires on December 31, 2011.

“My role in the day to day management of GOProud will continue as the organization’s Chief Strategist and I will remain on the Board as Chairman Emeritus,” continued Barron. “It is with great excitement that I announce that conservative coalition builder and former CPAC Director Lisa De Pasquale has been elected interim Chairman of the GOProud Board of Directors. Lisa brings a lifetime of experience within the conservative movement and is the perfect person to oversee the expansion and restructuring of GOProud’s Board, as well as to help in refining GOProud’s mission and to aid in building a bigger, better and stronger organization.”

Is anybody buying this? Anybody? I'm betting that one of GOProud's backers forced this change after the Rick Perry scandal.

As noted above, Barron's replacement will be Lisa De Pasquale, whose Wikipedia entry describes her as an event planner and the director of CPAC from 2006-2011.

“I am truly honored to be elected interim chairman of the GOProud board,” said De Pasquale. “The next several months will be important for their growth. Along with the GOProud staff, the Board will help refine the organization’s mission, develop a strategy for making Obama a one-term president, do substantive activities across the country, and build coalitions with conservative organizations, lawmakers and activists.” “One of the first steps the new GOProud Board will be taking is to expand,” continued De Pasquale. “We will be inviting many of our Advisory Council members to join the Board of Directors. We need their support, their talents and their advice in a more formal capacity to continue to be able to build on the successes of the last two and a half years.”

Strictly For Pastafarians

Let the Flying Spaghetti Monster tree topper embrace your holiday with His noodly appendages. Only $8.50. Includes adjustable eyes so that He may watch over you. (Via - Friendly Atheist)