Saturday, January 26, 2013

ONTARIO: Out Lesbian Elected Premier

Chris Geidner has the big news at Buzzfeed:
With 1,150 votes to Sandra Pupatello's 866 votes on the third ballot at the Ontario Liberal leadership convention on Saturday, Kathleen Wynne was elected to lead the party and becomes Ontario's first female premier — and Canada's first out LGBT premier. Wynne, 59, is married to Jane Rounthwaite, and the party's new leader said she believed her sexual orientation would not be an issue in the race or going forward. "The province has changed, our party has changed," she said earlier in the balloting. "I do not believe that the people of Ontario … hold that prejudice in their hearts." After the third balloting, Wynne said, "It is a remarkable night for all of us."
Ontario is by far Canada's most populous province. Provincial premiers are the US equivalent of a state governor.  There has not yet been an openly gay state governor in America, unless you count New Jersey's Jim McGreevey, who resigned halfway through his term in 2004 after confessing to cheating on his wife with a man.

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Headline Of The Day

Last week NOM was all over the hate web trumpeting an unsourced poll which claimed that French support for same-sex marriage had "plummeted." Not according to a poll released today.

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Why, Why, Manti?

From Brooklyn's Gregory Brothers.

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NOM Announces DC Hate Rally On Day Of Supreme Court Prop 8 Arguments

And they've launched a site to support their hate rally. March 26th is the day that the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments on Proposition 8.  DOMA will be heard the next day.
Dear Joe, Thank you for your interest in the March for Marriage on March 26, 2013! When the Supreme Court convenes to hear oral arguments in what could be the Roe v. Wade of marriage, we'll be there — and we hope you'll be there with us! We are working hard to finalize all of the plans for this exciting event, and will let you know very soon all the details of the schedule. Again, we're honored by your support and hope that you can show up in person to stand with us on March 26th for what we pray will be an unprecedented outpouring of support for society's most fundamental and sacred institution: marriage between a man and a woman. Together, we'll stand before the Supreme Court and make sure our voices are heard that we will not allow the dismantling of marriage by Judicial fiat to happen on our watch! Thank you for your willingness to stand with us. Gratefully, Brian S Brown.
You may recall that at NOM's most recent hate rally in the Bronx, local Spanish radio bused in tens of thousands of attendees from New Jersey, where they heard one preacher declare that homosexuals "are worthy of death."

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Feminists Are Family-Destroying Whores

According to Christian radio hosts Pastor Kevin Swanson and Dave Buehner, feminists are ugly, narcissistic, family-destroying whores who refuse to submit to a man.  You may recall that Swanson recently blamed Hurricane Sandy on the gays and called for the death penalty for "homo-lover Kermit The Frog" over the Muppets/Chick-Fil-A flap.

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WND: Obama Is Lord Of The Flies

A fly landed on the president this week. Therefore, he is Satan.
One name commonly used to refer to Satan is Beelzebub, which translates from Hebrew into “Lord of the Flies.” A posting at the popular Free Republic Web forum discusses Beelzebub and asks, “Is the White House fly infestation evidence of demonic presence and influence there?” The End Times blog named Obama the “Lord of the Flies.” The blog connects Obama to Beelzebub, writing, “This really isn’t an academic question. The Lord of the Flies is real.” Over at RevalationNow.net, a posting by “editorial staff” muses about whether Obama is possessed by a demonic entity. “I feel like I am watching a horror movie and the secret evil character is revealed by the evil signs around him,” the post reads. Beelzebub is first referenced in 2 Kings 1:2-3, 6, 16, in which Beelzebub is described as the god of the Philistine city of Ekron. Jewish scholars have interpreted the title “Lord of Flies” as the Hebrew way of comparing followers of the Canaanite deity Baal to flies. The name Beelzebub is found throughout the New Testament, mostly as a reference to the prince of demons.
Check out the comments at the above link if you need a refresher course in Christian Love.

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Enter Deadspin Response

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Young Professionals (Band) For Marriage


(Tipped by JMG reader Eric)

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Friday, January 25, 2013

ARIZONA: Republicans Introduce Bill Demanding "So Help Me God" Loyalty Oath For High School Graduation

The above Arizona Republican representatives have introduced a bill requiring that public high school seniors swear loyalty to the Constitution and to God in order to graduate. The wording of the oath is familiar:
I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose or evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge these duties; so help me God.
Hemant Mehta writes at Friendly Atheist:
It’s bad enough the Republicans are demanding loyalty of the kind normally reserved for members of Congress and beyond — but there’s also no way I would say those last four words, and the current text of the legislation does not allow for any alternatives. In other words, if this bill were to become a law, atheists would either not be allowed to graduate… or they would be forced to lie so they could graduate. Neither option is acceptable.
Arizona Business Journal notes:
Jehovah’s witnesses, some Muslims and pacifist Quakers have in the past challenged loyalty oaths imposed by the federal government and other agencies, saying they conflict with their beliefs and religious professions. Similarly, some Arizona students could challenge the proposed high school oath as a violation of their religious liberties and freedom of expression.
The lead sponsor of the bill has also introduced a companion bill demanding that all public school students in grades 1-12 recite the Pledge of Allegiance daily, including the "under God" portion. Students can be excused from that requirement with parental permission. There is no exemption provided for the loyalty oath to be demanded for graduation from high school. (Tipped by JMG reader Homer)

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GOProud At The Anti-Abortion March

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Passion Pit - Carried Away

Featuring a new drug that causes multiplicity, apparently.

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VIRGINIA: Teabagger GOP Rep. Bob Marshall Wants To Bar Feds From Access To State Gun Crime Records

Crackpot Virginia GOP state Rep. Bob Marshall wants to ban his state from sharing gun crime records with the federal government. His bill reads:
Prevent any agency, political subdivision, or employee of Virginia from assisting the Federal government of the United States in any investigation, prosecution, detention, arrest, search, or seizure, under the authority of any federal statute enacted, or Executive Order or regulation issued, after December 31, 2012, infringing the individual Right to Keep and Bear Arms by imposing new restrictions on private ownership or private transfer of firearms, firearm magazines, ammunition, or components thereof.
Today the Virginia House Committee On Militia, Police and Public Safety approved Marshall's bill by a vote of 15-7 and sent it to the full chamber. (Via Think Progress)

PREVIOUSLY ON JMG: In 2011 Marshall claimed it is a felony for a state office to fly the rainbow flag. Marshall has also called on Virginia to issue its own currency, and has claimed that God punishes women who have abortions by giving them deformed children. After the DADT repeal bill passed, Marshall tried to have gays banned from the Virginia National Guard.  More recently, Marshall attempted to block the appointment of an openly gay state judge because the nominee has "an illegal husband."

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Denver Nuggets Star Backs Colorado Civil Unions On Behalf Of His Two Moms


(Via One Colorado)

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Email Of The Day - Eugene Delgaudio

"Dear Joe, It's hard to write you this. My office is in trouble. And I need your help. I have been fighting overtime against the radical Homosexual Lobby and they are making huge gains in Washington. Today, I'm worried. Life here in Washington has been a virtual Hell for me. I put off sending you this letter for a while because I didn't want to worry you. You see, I've gotten death threats and I never take them lightly. But when they go beyond threatening and actually try to kill me, it's a whole different story. There's more my friend. In the past, strangers followed my family around town. Idling cars sit across the street at all hours of the night. The threatening phone calls, the death threats and the outrageous lies... oh, it's endless... but thank the Lord for He truly blessed me with a family so strong, so brave... and yes, so supportive! I've taken precautions to protect my family. Some things I've told you about, but some things I just keep confidential or they'd be in more peril. Will you pray for my family and me? That the Lord would keep us safe? I covet your prayers!" - Eugene Delgaudio, in today's 3000-word money beg.

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President Obama Delivers Video Message To NGLTF National Convention

The National Gay & Lesbian Task Force is holding its 25th annual Creating Change conference in Atlanta this week. Moments ago they played the below video message from President Obama. You can watch today's goings-on at the NGLTF live video stream.

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Tweet Of The Day - Bill Donohue

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$3M In GOP DOMA Dough Could Buy...

Source.

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VIRGINIA: Workplace Protections For State LGBT Employees Passes Senate

Virginia's bill to protect state LGBT employees from workplace discrimination has passed in the Senate by a 24-16 vote. Equality Virginia reports via press release:
We're going to press forward with this momentum," said Senator Adam Ebbin, a chief patron of the bill. "No state employee should ever doubt Virginia's commitment to equal opportunity employment for all. This assures state employees that they will be judged solely on their merits and that discrimination has no place in Virginia." The bill, introduced by Senator Donald McEachin and Senator Ebbin extends protections for sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.

The bill has received support from 46 co-patrons in both in the House and Senate. Equality Virginia has recorded over 11,000 messages being sent in the past two months to the General Assembly in support of SB701 from citizens across the Commonwealth. “SB701 is about fairness and all Virginians deserve equal opportunity, justice and fairness,” McEachin said. “The people must continue to lead the legislature and remind the House that Virginia is an open state and welcoming to all folks as we move this bill ahead.”
Equality Virginia notes that a majority of the state's top 25 private employers already provide similar protections.  Only 21 states provide broad employment protections to public and private gay and lesbian workers. Five fewer states grant such protections to transgender employees.

RELATED: In 2010 GOP Gov. Bob McConnell refused to renew an annual executive order protecting LGBT state employees from discrimination, claiming that there was no evidence that such discrimination even existed. Shortly afterward he also ordered state universities to rescind any such protection policies, saying that they had no authority to enforce them.  One month later he did issue an executive order recognizing Confederate History Month. 

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Microsoft: Child Of The 90s

Nostalgia for the under-30 set.

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Brain "Pacemakers" For Alzheimer's

Fascinating study.

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ADL: Gun Control ≠ Hitler

"We know that the national debate over gun control is one of the most divisive issues in the land, and while Americans are entitled to have strong opinions, there is also language that is inappropriate and offensive in any such discussion. The idea that supporters of gun control are doing something akin to what Hitler’s Germany did to strip citizens of guns in the run-up to the Second World War is historically inaccurate and offensive, especially to Holocaust survivors and their families." - Anti-Defamation League president Abraham Foxman, responding to right-wing claims such as those made by closeted homosexual Matt Drudge, who recently posted photos of Hitler and Stalin to illustrate a story about President Obama's executive orders on gun control.

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SCOTUS Asked Not To Rule On DOMA

SCOTUSblog reports on the latest DOMA wrinkle:
The Supreme Court does not have the power to rule on the case the Justices have agreed to review on the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act of 1996, a Harvard law professor argued in a brief filed Thursday evening. The professor, Vicki C. Jackson, also argued against letting the Republican members of the House of Representatives’ leadership defend DOMA’s validity, saying they do not speak for Congress, or even for the House.

If the Court accepts this advice, it probably would miss its chance to rule during the current Term on DOMA’s Section 3, which defines marriage for all federal purposes as the union of one man and one woman. It has been challenged by same-sex couples who are legally married, as they seek the federal benefits at issue. There is not time, in the remaining months of the Term (unless the Court would really rush things), for review of another DOMA case, even though others are pending.

The Court on December 7 agreed to review the constitutionality of Section 3 in the case of United States v. Windsor (docket 12-307). At the same time, however, it added questions about its authority to do so and then invited Professor Jackson to argue two points: One, whether the Obama administration can appeal a case that it won in a lower court (it believes DOMA is unconstitutional, and the lower court ruled that way). And, two, whether the House’s three GOP leaders could satisfy the Constitution’s Article III requirement that they have a legal right to be DOMA’s defenders in court.
Chris Geidner has more analysis at Buzzfeed:
In discussing why the House Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group — the 3-2 Republican majority of which voted to take up the defense of DOMA after the administration's 2011 decision to stop defending the law — does not have the authority, or standing, to be there, Jackson argued: "It is the Executive Branch, not Congress, that is obligated to "take Care" that laws are enforced. Moreover, any injury that might arise from nondefense of a law would be to the whole Congress, which one House cannot alone assert." The Supreme Court appointed Jackson to argue these positions because, presumably, the justices decided they wanted a view outside of the views presented before lower courts on these questions. By the terms of that appointment, then, it was expected that Jackson would be arguing these views.

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Maine Poll On Marriage: 78% Claim Positive Impact Or "No Impact At All"

Details.

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WYOMING: House Committee To Hear Marriage Equality Bill This Monday

Via press release from the National Center for Lesbian Rights:
Three bills—marriage equality, domestic partnership, and non-discrimination—have just been introduced, and the first committee votes are only days away. At noon on Monday, January 28, the House Corporations Committee will hear testimony on the marriage equality and domestic partnership bills. If one or both pass committee, they will proceed to a vote by the entire House of Representatives a few days later. On Wednesday, Jan 30, at 8 a.m., the Senate Judiciary Committee will hear testimony on the non-discrimination bill.  The votes will be extremely close and we need you, your friends, and your family to help secure a historic victory.
Hit the link for contact details on your Wyoming legislators.

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RUSSIA: 20 Protesters Arrested As Duma Approves Anti-Homosexuality Bill

Today the Russian Duma almost unanimously approved the first reading of the national bill to ban "homosexualist propaganda."
The bill was supported by 388 MPs with one vote against and one abstention. The ban was submitted by deputies from the Novosibirsk Region in Siberia, who had earlier introduced similar local regulations. If approved, it would introduce heavy fines for the promotion of homosexuality among children. Those found guilty of the offence could be fined up to 5000 roubles (about $160), but the fines increase 10-fold for officials and 100-fold for companies.

Hearings were initially scheduled for December, but got postponed twice which caused some MPs to suggest that there must be some kind of a homosexual conspiracy which is desperate to prevent the law from coming into force. Similar laws already exist in several Russian regions, including the country’s second-largest city St. Petersburg. The initiators of the federal ban say that homosexual propaganda in Russia is rife, both through the mass media and public action, and children are especially vulnerable as they cannot critically appraise “the avalanches of gay propaganda that fall upon them every day”.
LGBT activists outside the Duma were assaulted and pelted with eggs by members of the Russian Orthodox Church, but the Associated Press reports that it was "mostly" the gay protesters who were arrested.

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Pope Backs US Pro-Life March

Several hundred thousand anti-abortion protesters are expected today in Washington DC. GOProud is the only "gay organization" taking part.

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Sen. Saxby Chambliss To Retire

RELATED: Longtime JMG readers may recall that Chambliss has a history with this blog.

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Coachella 2013 Line-Up Announced

If you embiggen the image you'll see that one of the bands slated for Friday is Deathfix, the new collaboration between Blowoff DJ/remixer Rich Morel and Fugazi drummer Brendan Canty, who has also toured with Bob Mould.  Spin Magazine describes Deathfix:
Their self-titled LP debut is out February 19 on Dischord, and the first taste comes in the form of "Transmission," a nearly nine-minute slab of forceful psych that takes the listener on a seismic journey through varying terrain. There's chiming glockenspiel, motorik drum crush, swirling vocal harmonies, desolate wordless passages, loud-quiet dynamics, actual saxophone and an explosive finish. Check out the entire Deathfix track list below along with those upcoming tour dates — transmissions like this are born to be witnessed live.
Hit the link for a streaming sample and Deathfix tour dates.

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Poland Rejects Civil Unions

The Polish parliament today narrowly rejected legislation that would grant some relationship rights to same-sex couples.
The lower house of parliament rejected three bills that would have legalized civil unions, including narrowly defeating one proposed by a member of the ruling Civic Platform that would have given limited rights to unmarried partners, including ability to inherit property. The motion to prevent the Civic Platform bill from going to committees for further work was backed by 228 deputies, with 211 against. Prime Minister Donald Tusk spoke out in favor of the reform, but 46 members of his own party, including Justice Minister Jaroslaw Gowin, sided with the conservative opposition and voted against all three bills on their first reading. "You can't question the existence of such people (living in homosexual partnerships) and you can't argue against the people who decide to live in such way," Tusk told the parliament before the votes.
Opponents to the legislation told Reuters that granting recognition to gay relationships "would do nothing" to stem Poland's dwindling population.

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Quote Of The Day - Bobby Jindal

"We've got to stop being the stupid party. It's time for a new Republican Party that talks like adults.  We had a number of Republicans damage the brand this year with offensive and bizarre comments. I'm here to say we've had enough of that." - Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, during yesterday's keynote address to the winter meeting of the Republican National Committee.

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WATCH: RI House Approves Marriage

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AFER Recaps States In Play

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HAWAII: Marriage Bills Introduced

Marriage equality bills were introduced yesterday in Hawaii's Senate and House. The Human Rights Campaign provides some history:
This year marks the 20th anniversary of Baehr v. Lewin, the Hawaii State Supreme Court opinion that sparked our nation's marriage equality movement. In the opinion, Justice Steven Levinson said, “No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, nor be denied the equal protection of the laws, nor be denied the enjoyment of the person's civil rights or be discriminated against in the exercise thereof because of race, religion, sex or ancestry.” Although this opinion opened the door to same-sex marriage in the Aloha State and across the country, voters amended the constitution five years later, giving the legislature the ability to interpret what constitutes a legal marriage in the state.

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TRAILER: Climbing With Pride

A documentary about "the largest LGBT rock climbing convention in the world."

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ACT UP Reacts To Uncle Poodle Story

Earlier this week investigative reporter Todd Heywood raised questions about Here Comes Honey Boo Boo cast member Lee Thompson (known on the show as Uncle Poodle), who claims to have had a former boyfriend sent to prison for five years for infecting him with HIV.

Today ACT UP responded to the story via press release.
While it's unfortunate that Thompson became HIV+, pressing charges against his ex-boyfriend in criminal court makes it sound like he was solely responsible for Thompson's infection and therefore is criminal for mishandling that responsibility.  Sex between consenting adults is a shared decision, and the responsibility for protection against disease should not be borne by one person (ie the HIV+ person). Placing sole responsibility on one person undermines the reality that every person should take responsibility for his/her own sexual health.

Criminal outcomes like this don't encourage people to get tested and know their status. They further marginalize a community that's already misrepresented in the media. While it's morally right to know and disclose your status to your partners, status and disclosure can't effectively be legislated in a court. Increasing sex education and access to testing will help create an environment where people want to know and disclose their HIV status instead of fearing legal retribution for it.

Currently, US Congressman Barbara Lee has sponsored a bill called the Repeal HIV Discrimination Act that would require a review of all federal and state laws, policies, and regulations regarding the criminal prosecution of individuals for HIV-related offenses. This bill will go a long way toward rectifying the outdated practices of criminalizing those with HIV and handing down severe sentences based on outdated information about the virus.

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RANKING: Bible-Minded Cities

From a national survey conducted by the Barna Group. "Individuals who report reading the Bible in a typical week and who strongly assert the Bible is accurate in the principles it teaches are considered to be Bible-minded."
Regionally, the South still qualifies as the most Bible-minded. The top ranking cities, where at least half of the population qualifies as Bible-minded, are all Southern cities. This includes the media markets for Knoxville, TN (52% of the population are Bible-minded), Shreveport, LA (52%), Chattanooga, TN (52%), Birmingham, AL (50%), and Jackson, MS (50%). Other markets in the top 10 include Springfield, MO (49%), Charlotte, NC (48%), Lynchburg, VA (48%), Huntsville-Decatur, AL (48%), and Charleston, WV (47%). The least Bible-oriented markets include a mix of regions, but tend to be from the New England area.

Easily the lowest Bible-minded scores came from Providence, RI (9%) and Albany, NY (10%). To put this in perspective, the most Bible-minded markets are five times more likely to have residents who qualify as Bible-minded than is true in these two Northeastern cities. Though these two cities are the most extreme, none of the cities in the bottom 10 break 20%, where even one in five people could be considered Bible-minded. The New England area is home to most of the markets in the bottom 10 Bible-minded cities, including Burlington, VT (16%), Portland, ME (16%), Hartford, CT (16%), Boston, MA (16%), Buffalo, NY (18%) and New York, NY (18%).
The full ranking is here.

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Perkins Slams Women In Combat

"In another triumph of political correctness over common sense, the Pentagon is lifting its ban on women in combat and direct combat units. Senior officials leaked the news yesterday during the House's Benghazi hearings, making the timing even more suspect. If Defense Secretary Leon Panetta was hoping to distract the country from Hillary Clinton's Libyan testimony, he succeeded. According to leaders, even Congress wasn't warned. Much like the plan to repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' the risks of this integration (physical stamina and injury, emotional stress, sexual assault, pregnancy, adultery, unit readiness, family breakdown) seem secondary to the administration's liberal agenda. How much national security is our President willing to forgo to promote this kind of progressive feminism?" - Hate group leader Tony Perkins, via press release.

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X-Men Stars Are Coming To Broadway

Via the NYT's Arts Beat:
The theater and film stars Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, known for their chemistry in the “X-Men” films as the friends-turned-foes Magneto and Professor Xavier, will return to Broadway together in the fall for an unusual two-play repertory of Harold Pinter’s “No Man’s Land” and Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot,” the producers said on Thursday. Directed by a fellow Englishman, Sean Mathias, the two plays – both bleakly funny existential classics by Nobel Prize-wining writers — will run in rotation, sometimes on adjacent nights and possibly on the same days as matinee and evening performances.

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Thursday, January 24, 2013

LIVE: Rhode Island House Marriage Vote
UPDATE: Marriage Bill Passes 51-19!

Watch it live here.  Things should start at 4pm. Photo source.

UPDATE: The vote tally is here.

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Holy Toner, Monkman

Get your holy toner here!
St. Andrew’s Abbey is a Benedictine monastery, a religious community of Catholic men who are vowed to a life of constant conversion & witness to the Gospel. The monastic community was founded in China in 1929 by the Abbey of Sint Andries Zevenkerken in Brugge, Belgium. The monks prayed, taught, and worked in China until they were expelled by the communists in 1952. In 1955 the community relocated at Valyermo. The monks joyfully follow the ancient Rule of St. Benedict at a hidden oasis in little-known Valyermo, California. Just a 90-minute-drive northeast of Los Angeles, nestled in the San Gabriel foothills of the High Desert, monks have been praying & working for more than half-a-century the way they’ve done it all over the world for more than fifteen-hundred years. Here, twenty Benedictine monks provide & share AND MAKE TONER.

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Zuckerberg To Raise Money For Christie

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg will host a fundraiser for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie in his California mansion.
A Facebook spokeswoman said Zuckerberg appreciates education reform efforts made in New Jersey. "Mark and (his wife) Priscilla have worked closely with Governor Christie on education reform in the Newark school system," Sarah Feinberg said. "They admire his leadership on education reform and other issues and look forward to continuing their important work together on behalf of Newark's school children. Mark and Priscilla are happy to host him at their home to support his re-election."
In the 2012 elections Facebook's in-house PAC spent about evenly between the two major parties.

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BRITAIN: Mussolini's Millions Fund Secret Vatican Real Estate Empire

Here's a fascinating expose by the Guardian:
Few passing London tourists would ever guess that the premises of Bulgari, the upmarket jewellers in New Bond Street, had anything to do with the pope. Nor indeed the nearby headquarters of the wealthy investment bank Altium Capital, on the corner of St James's Square and Pall Mall. But these office blocks in one of London's most expensive districts are part of a surprising secret commercial property empire owned by the Vatican.

Behind a disguised offshore company structure, the church's international portfolio has been built up over the years, using cash originally handed over by Mussolini in return for papal recognition of the Italian fascist regime in 1929. Since then the international value of Mussolini's nest-egg has mounted until it now exceeds £500m. In 2006, at the height of the recent property bubble, the Vatican spent £15m of those funds to buy 30 St James's Square. Other UK properties are at 168 New Bond Street and in the city of Coventry. It also owns blocks of flats in Paris and Switzerland.

The surprising aspect for some will be the lengths to which the Vatican has gone to preserve secrecy about the Mussolini millions. The St James's Square office block was bought by a company called British Grolux Investments Ltd, which also holds the other UK properties. Published registers at Companies House do not disclose the company's true ownership, nor make any mention of the Vatican.
The Vatican has refused to comment on the story. Shocking! (Tipped by JMG reader Danny)

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On Gay Iranians Seeking UK Asylum


(Tipped by JMG reader Robert)

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RUSSIA: Military To Inspect Soldiers' Junk For Evidence Of "Gay Tattoos"

The Russian Defense Ministry has developed a guide for rooting out suspected gay soldiers.  Included is a directive to inspect asses and genitalia for "gay tattoos." The St. Petersburg Times reports:
Special attention is recommended for tattoos near the face, sexual organs and buttocks, as the author believes that such tattoos reveal possible sexual deviations. "The reason for getting tattoos could indicate a low cultural or educational level. If an influence by external factors is determined, for example, persuasion or direct coercion, this indicates the malleability of the young man, his disposition to submit to another's will," the text says.

The guidelines also include a wide range of warning signs indicative of mental instability, including early sexual experience and 'uncontrolled sexual behavior,' both of which are included in the same category as alcohol abuse, running away from home, suicidal tendencies and theft. Officers acting as mentors to new recruits are advised to hold a personal conversation with the conscripts to ask about sexual experience and conduct a physical examination, paying special attention to any tattoos — but only after leading up to such intimate questions by asking about family, everyday life, success in school and attitudes toward alcohol.
An officer quoted in the above-linked article says: "I had one gay contract soldier who joined just to find more partners for himself. For people like that, of course, there's no place in the army."

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Petition Of The Day

Details.

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Today From Rupert Murdoch

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Christianists Attack Dear Abby

Beloved advice columnist Pauline Phillips, whose Dear Abby was the first place many of us read positive mentions of gay people, passed away last week at the age of 94.  Today Christianist and anti-gay World Magazine republished a 2008 "study" which concludes that Phillips dispensed "dangerous advice" on the issue of sexual morality.  The study only examined Dear Abby columns from 2007, long after Phillips's daughter had taken over.
According to the study, 36 columns addressed infidelity. Only 10 of those suggested breaking off an affair, or not getting into an affair in the first place. Abby even appears to condone adultery, as well as homosexual adultery. When "Confused in Illinois" wrote to Abby saying she had no interest in sexual relations with her husband because she was involved in a "passionate sexual relationship" with a female friend, Abby told her to "look at the bright side. At least you now finally understand what has been missing [in marriage]." The study also found Abby does not encourage sexually active teens to stop having sex, finds homosexuality morally acceptable, endorses same-sex marriage, and is permissive and perhaps even amused by traditionally objectionable sexual behavior such as cross-dressing. CMI concludes Dear Abby has dished out bad advice in more than 1,000 newspapers worldwide for well over 30 years. That tradition has only intensified since Jeanne Phillips took up her mother's metaphorical pen.
That 2008 study was the work of the Media Research Center, whose founder and president Brent Bozell appeared on Fox News in December 2011 to declare that President Obama looks like a "skinny ghetto crackhead."

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NEW MEXICO: GOP Bill Would Charge Rape Victims Who Get An Abortion

New Mexico state GOP Rep. Cathrynn Brown has introduced a bill that would charge the victims of rape with a felony for "tampering with evidence" if they get an abortion should their rape result in pregnancy.
“Tampering with evidence shall include procuring or facilitating an abortion, or compelling or coercing another to obtain an abortion, of a fetus that is the result of criminal sexual penetration or incest with the intent to destroy evidence of the crime," the bill says. Third-degree felonies in New Mexico carry a sentence of up to three years in prison. Pat Davis of ProgressNow New Mexico, a progressive nonprofit opposing the bill, called it "blatantly unconstitutional" on Thursday. “The bill turns victims of rape and incest into felons and forces them to become incubators of evidence for the state,” he said. “According to Republican philosophy, victims who are ‘legitimately raped’ will now have to carry the fetus to term in order to prove their case.“
The bill is expected to fail as both New Mexico chambers have Democratic majorities.

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Photo Of The Day

Source. (Via JMG reader David)

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GOP Sen. Ron Johnson: I Shouldn't Have Speculated On Clinton's Emotions

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Wingnut Tweet Of The Day

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FLORIDA: World AIDS Museum Proposed For Tourism Mecca Wilton Manors

Wilton Manors, Florida is arguably the hottest gay vacation spot in the nation and it may one day be home to the World AIDS Museum & Education Center. The proposed museum is the brainchild of local long-term HIV survivor Steve Stagnon, who unveiled the plans at a ceremony this week.

Tony Adams reports at South Florida Gay News:
Having managed the complex challenges of 501c3 incorporation, and having enlisted the support, partnership and funding of community leaders, Stagon led an enthusiastic crowd through a sampling of proposed displays, and through an outline of the structure and purpose of the museum. In his speech, he noted that Fort Lauderdale has eleven museums, but Wilton Manors has none. He made a convincing argument for finding a Wilton Manors location for the project—ideally on Wilton Drive within the cluster of gay shops, bars and restaurants—citing demographics and tourism numbers (a million annual gay tourists spending $1.2 billion).  Although it might be difficult to find anyone in south Florida whose life has not been touched by the disease and who might need convincing (Broward County has the highest new infection rate in the country,) Stagon offered statistics that support the need for an AIDS Museum. “Since 1980, 60 million people have contracted HIV and 25 million people have died of AIDS worldwide,” he said. “Since 1980, more than 600,000 Americans have died from AIDS complications making it a worse killer than World Wars I and II and Vietnam combined. AIDS is still a crisis. People become complacent about it but every year 17,000 people die of AIDS.”
Hit the link for a description of the museum's five proposed galleries.

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Code Pink Protester Interrupts John Kerry's Senate Confirmation Hearing

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Disqus Study: Pseudonym Commenters Post Highest-Quality Messages

According to Disqus, commenters that use pseudonyms post the highest-quality responses according to up and down voting by fellow readers.
The service gives each user the option of commenting with a Disqus account, a social media identity or anonymously. It says 61 percent of commenters use pseudonyms, 35 percent choose to be anonymous and 4 percent use their “real identity” verified by Facebook. It also says those with pseudonyms post the best comments, while anonymous comments are lower quality. One theory: People don’t mind being accountable online, but they don’t want it to blow back on their work or personal lives by using a real identity. A pseudonym protects them while providing a measure of accountability.
(Tipped by JMG reader Bill)

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Gay-Friendly Hip-Hop Duo Tops Chart

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, the hip-hop duo who rocketed to national prominence via Same Love, their message of gay acceptance, today topped Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart with their follow-up single, Thrift Shop.  The track is also #1 on the magazine's R&B/Hip-Hop chart.  If, somehow, you have not yet heard the impossibly catchy Thrift Shop, here it is.


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BRITAIN: Same-Sex Marriage Bill Introduced In House Of Commons

Britain's marriage bill got its official start today.
The government’s Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill for England and Wales has officially been introduced in the House of Commons by Culture Secretary Maria Miller. A full debate by MPs and a vote on the proposals will take place on 5 February, with the bill due to be published ahead of that tomorrow. Following a government consultation, Mrs Miller first outlined the plans to MPs in December. All religious organisations, including the Church of England and Church in Wales, will be legally barred from marrying same-sex couples unless they choose to opt in. The Equality Act 2010 is to be amended to ensure that no discrimination claim could be brought against religious organisations or an individual minister for refusing to marry gay couples (or allowing their premises to be used for this purpose.

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TODAY: Rhode Island House Votes On Marriage, Easy Passage Expected

The next step for Rhode Island is scheduled for 4PM today.
Gay marriage legislation has been introduced every year in the General Assembly since 1997, but Thursday's vote will mark the first time the issue has received a vote in either the House or Senate.  The bill has 42 sponsors in the 75-member House — an indication of just how easily it could pass. The bill's longtime sponsor, Rep. Art Handy, D-Cranston, said he's seen a widespread change of opinion on gay marriage and that even some previously staunch opponents in the legislature may give the bill a second thought when the roll is called.
Things are expected to be tougher in the Senate.

UPDATE: Good As You tips us to NOM's robocall.

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VANCOUVER: Students Stage Anti-Bullying Flash Mob At Pro Hockey Game

The Province reports:
Various videos of the anti-bullying flash mob that stole the show at the Vancouver Giants' game Sunday are popping up on YouTube. Just over 1,800 students, all in pink shirts, were part of a dance number in the north end upper deck to One Direction's What Makes You Beautiful. It was to promote Pink Shirt Day, which is Feb. 27. Giants vice-president of business development Dale Saip said it involved schools from "five or six districts," and Sunday was the first time that the entire group was together. "It was an amazing amount of work and an amazing production and a tribute to the people who put that together," he said. "We're happy to accommodate and it works well with our message of anti-bullying."

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Ranking Of Two-Term Presidents

Nate Silver yesterday contemplated the place that President Obama might one day hold among the presidents that historians consider to be the "greatest."
As common sense might dictate — and as the statistics will also reveal — it is far too soon to conclude very much about this. Second-term presidents may be derided as lame ducks, but it is often in the second term when reputations are won or lost.

Still, we can say this much: Mr. Obama ran for and won a second term, something only about half of the men to serve as president have done (the tally is 20 or 21 out of 43, depending on how you count Grover Cleveland). We can also note, however, that Mr. Obama’s re-election margin was relatively narrow. Do these simple facts provide any insight at all into how he might be regarded 20, 50 or 100 years from now?

In fact, winning a second term is something of a prerequisite for presidential greatness, at least as historians have evaluated the question. It is also no guarantee of it, as the case of Richard M. Nixon might attest. But the eight presidents who are currently regarded most favorably by historians were all two-termers (or four-termers, in Franklin D. Roosevelt’s case).
Hit the link for more graphs and analysis.

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Gary Bauer: The GOP Will Never Surrender On Same-Sex Marriage

"Virtually all the candidates that competed for the GOP nomination this cycle supported traditional  marriage. The party platform unambiguously did, also.  I think that will be the case again in 2016.  Any drift in the GOP is minor compared to the all-out push that the president is making on this issue, even mentioning it in his Inaugural address.  To the extent that young people, including growing numbers of young Christians support same-sex 'marriage,' it’s not a failure of the GOP, it is a failure of the culture and the church." - Former GOP presidential candidate Gary Bauer, speaking to LifeSiteNews.

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AFA Host Buster Wilson: Stonewall Was A Hotel-Full Of Violent Homosexuals

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California School District Buys Assault Weapons To "Protect" Students

The Fontana School District in San Bernadino County, California has purchased fourteen AR-15 assault weapons in order to "protect" students and staffers from potential attacks.
FUSD Superintendent Cali Olsen-Binks approved the acquisition of the rifles, which are being stored on campuses in locked safes for responding police officers in the event of an attack. Fontana Police Chief Rodney Jones and Mayor Acquanetta Warren supported Olsen-Binks’ decision. “It’s unfortunate that we have to have that, but it’s the best message we can send to anybody that thinks to harm our children,” said Jones. “The message we’re sending is…not here, not now, we’re prepared for you. And if you seek to harm our children, we will neutralize that threat and you will most likely be killed.”  Warren said, “Everyone wants children safe. At this time, we as a community, we have to come together and find other ways. But in the interim, our police officers need to be equipped.” School board member Sophia Green, however, doesn’t believe anyone will be safer if weapons are kept inside schools. “If a person who has the intention of coming on campus to kill… knows we have the AR-15s…they might come with something even bigger or better. They will come prepared,” she said.
What could possibly go wrong?

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Headline Of The Day

Details. (Tipped by JMG reader Bill)

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Open Thread Thursday

What's delicious? Share your latest recipes.

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Amazon Staffers: It Gets Better


(Via Towleroad)

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SPOILER: American Horror Story

Stay out of the comments if you've not yet seen last night's season finale. Otherwise dive in and dish.

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Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Colorado Civil Unions Bill Advances

Tonight the Colorado Senate Judiciary Committee, which was impressively chaired by openly gay freshman Sen. Jessie Ulibarri (left), approved its civil unions bill by a vote of 3-2. The bill now moves to the Senate Appropriations Committee.  As a member of the public, Ulibarri had twice before testified in support of earlier failed civil union bills.

Earlier today the Judiciary Committee heard opposing testimony from several religious groups, including Catholic Charities, who raised the same tired arguments we've heard in every other state, such as their threat to shut down entirely rather than be "forced" to serve same-sex couples.

Among the failed attempts to torpedo the bill was an amendment to grant broad "religious liberty" exemptions for business owners who want to refuse to serve gay couples.  That amended failed 3-2 following a really long discussion about evil gays sending cake decorators to jail. Seriously.

Also speaking against the bill were the usual "Adam and Steve" nutjobs and Rosina Kovar, the local anti-gay gadfly dubbed Angry Anus Granny during the 2011 consideration of a similar civil unions bill. You may recall that she then told lawmakers, "Unlike the vagina, nature put a tight sphincter at the entrance to the anus! It's there for a reason. Keep out!" Granny wasn't quite so colorful this time.

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GOP Sen. Ron Johnson: Clinton Faked Emotion To Evade My Questions

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) said this afternoon that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton "planned" her emotional response to his questions about Benghazi. 
"I'm not sure she had rehearsed for that type of question," Johnson told BuzzFeed Wednesday afternoon, after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing. "I think she just decided before she was going to describe emotionally the four dead Americans, the heroes, and use that as her trump card to get out of the questions. It was a good way of getting out of really having to respond to me."  He said it was clear, at other points during the hearing, that Clinton was working off a set of talking points, but that his questions "got under her skin" because "they're just so common sense." "I just don't think she had an answer to that," he said. "Maybe it embarrassed her. Maybe she hadn't thought of it that way." He went on to criticize Clinton for ostensibly taking "full responsibility" for the State Department's handling of the attacks, but then continuing to avoid questions with "theatrics." "She allowed politics to trump getting to the facts," he said.

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Dutch Men Experience Labor Pains

With the help of a device that simulates the contractions. Click on the "CC" button over at YouTube for captioning in English.

(Via Boy Culture)

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NOM Email Of The Day

"Dear Marriage Supporter, We need your help right away! Yesterday, the Rhode Island House Judiciary Committee voted to send to the floor of the House of Representatives a bill redefining marriage. The vote on the floor of the House is scheduled for TOMORROW — Thursday, January 24 at 4:00 PM — so time is of the essence! Please forward this email to all of your friends and family right away, and share it on Facebook and Twitter. We pro-marriage Rhode Islanders need to SHOW UP AT THE STATE HOUSE on Thursday at 3:00 PM for the vote and crowd the galleries with support for marriage, family, the rights of voters, and the well-being of children. With the Supreme Court hearing cases on same-sex marriage in just a few short weeks, the eyes of the nation will be on the Rhode Island legislature to see how they decide this issue. Today, you and other pro-marriage Rhode Islanders need to send a message loud and clear to the political powers in Providence: DON’T MESS WITH MARRIAGE! Marriage is too important a matter to be left to the whims of heavily lobbied politicians and the special interest groups padding their pockets." - Also posted on NOM's Rhode Island website.

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Analyze That

Source. (Via The Friendly Atheist)

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