Obama Welcomes Gay Games Participants

"I know some of you have come from places where it requires courage, even defiance, to come out - some times at great personal risk. You should know that the United States stands with you and for your human rights - just as our athletes stand with you on the field at these Games. After all, the very idea of America is that no matter who you are, what you look like, where you come from, or who you love - you can make it if you try. That's who we are and that's who we should continually strive to be." - President Barack Obama, in a welcoming statement played tonight at the opening ceremonies of the Gay Games in Cleveland.

Gay Games 9 Open In Cleveland

The opening ceremonies are underway at this writing. Follow along at the Twitter hashtag #GayGames.  The Windy City Times is live-tweeting as well.

Just Because...

American Family Association: Obama Is Protecting Satan Worshippers In Iraq

Brian Tashman writes at Right Wing Watch:

American Family Association spokesman Bryan Fischer is outraged that the U.S. is intervening in Iraq to stop ISIS, who has been attacking Christians and other Muslims throughout the country. Fischer believes that President Obama only intervened to stop the extermination of the Yazidis, who practice an ancient religion yet are considered by ISIS fighters and others to be “devil worshipers.” He began today’s edition of “Focal Point” by railing against Obama, saying the president only decided to launch airstrikes in Iraq in order to defend “devil worshipers.” “They go after devil worshipers and all of the sudden the entire weight of the United States government is sent in there to relieve them and to avenge them,” he said. “Those are the Yazidis.”

Matt Barber: I'm Wanted For Hate Crimes

Yesterday I reported that a human rights complaint has been filed against a Newfoundland magazine for publishing a vicious two-page anti-gay screed by Matt Barber. Last night Barber went full-on crazy martyr on Twitter, sending out no fewer than 40 links to the same World Net Daily column in which he claims to be personally sought by Canadian authorities on hate crime charges.

You could’ve timed their response to a stopwatch. Want to see a collectivist conniption? Drop an unvarnished truth bomb in the middle of Canada, most of Europe or blue-state USA and sit back for the mouth-frothing. It’s quite a show. The bright light of salty truth both blinds and burns those given over to reprobation. CBC News, the “largest news broadcaster in Canada,” reported on both my column and the ensuing response: “Members of a Newfoundland and Labrador Pride group were so outraged about a two-page anti-gay [read: Christian] letter to the editor published by an entertainment magazine in the province, they filed a human rights complaint.” The Telegram, another mainstream Canadian publication, further reported that both my column and the fact that the Newfoundland Herald published it each constitute “a hate crime under the Criminal Code of Canada.” (Ahh … don’t you love the smell of tyranny in the morning? Come and get me, you homofascist Canucks.)

The complaint, as noted above, was filed against the Newfoundland Herald, not Matt Barber. But that whopping lie wasn't enough, as you see above in Barber's claim about the Telegram. Actually, that paper quoted the complainant and did not themselves declare that Barber's words were hate speech.

Western Pride NL has filed a complaint with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary alleging that The Newfoundland Herald has propagated hate against the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender queer and/or questioning) community by publishing an article that speaks of the "evil homosexuals." They say the publication of the blog article "The Coming Christian Revolt," from the fundamentalist Christian blog site Barbwire is a hate crime under the Criminal Code of Canada.

There really is nothing they won't lie about in order to advance their anti-gay agenda.

CALIFORNIA: GOP "Christian Soldier" Candidate For Governor Arrested For Shooting Man And Killing Horse

A registered sex offender who ran in this year's California GOP gubernatorial primary as a reformed "Christian soldier" has been arrested for shooting a man and killing a horse.

Tye "Glenn" Champ, 48, was arrested without incident a day after Fresno County Sheriff's officials say he opened fire during a dispute with his neighbor in Prather, a community about 30 miles northeast of Fresno. Lt. John Golden said Champ drew a pistol on his 40-year-old neighbor and the neighbor's 13-year-old son over work being done on a private road, and shot the man. He is also accused of killing a nearby horse that belonged to the injured man. It was not immediately clear whether Champ had an attorney. Officials said he fled from the shooting in a blue Volkswagen sedan, and deputies in neighboring Tulare County arrested Champ on Friday morning during a traffic stop. He was wanted on suspicion of attempted murder, child endangerment and animal cruelty. The shooting victim underwent surgery and is expected to survive, Golden said.

During a stump speech at the California GOP convention earlier this year, Champ said, "A man of God cannot be bought by money, because we've already been bought by the blood of Jesus Christ. I do not want anybody else to be enslaved because of lack of knowledge, and that's what our government is trying to do."

Michael Sam Makes NFL Debut

Michael Sam made his NFL debut last night in a preseason match between the St. Louis Rams and the New Orleans Saints. Via Bleacher Report:

On Friday evening , the rookie defensive end for the St. Louis Rams finally got the chance to see some game action in the National Football League, and while Sam didn't exactly light the world on fire, he did accomplish one very important goal: Michael Sam showed that he belonged in the NFL. Actually, it was more than a little interesting that Sam entered the game as early as he did. When the Rams' first "official" depth chart was released a few days ago, Sam was listed as a third-stringer, but he entered the game with the twos. Sam played the rest of the first half, finishing with one solo tackle, one quarterback hit and one quarterback hurry. With rushing the passer being Sam's forte, he clearly looked most comfortable while going after the quarterback, even if he wasn't able to seal the deal. At this point, there's still a very real chance that Sam won't make the team. But, if and when that day comes, it doesn't mean Sam doesn't belong. It just means he doesn't belong on the 2014 St. Louis Rams (a team not exactly hurting for defensive line help).

Matt Alber - House On Fire

NC Diner Drops Prayer Discount

Last week a North Carolina diner gained national headlines after a Christian radio station posted the above receipt which notes the discount granted to patrons who pray before their meals. Despite the owner's claims that the discount was randomly granted even to those to simply meditate or have an "attitude of gratitude," the discount has been dropped.

Elizabeth Cavell, staff attorney at the Freedom From Religion Foundation, began hearing complaints about the discount from state and national members. The Freedom From Religion Foundation is the largest national association of freethinkers, or people of no religious beliefs. She then wrote a letter to the diner’s owner, Mary Haglund, on Aug. 4, asking her to stop offering the discount. “As a place of ‘public accommodation,’ it is illegal for Mary’s Gourmet Diner to discriminate, or show favoritism, on the basis of religion,” the letter said. “Your restaurant’s restrictive promotional practice favors religious customers, and denies customers who do not pray and nonbelievers the right to ‘full and equal’ enjoyment of Mary’s Gourmet Diner.” On Thursday (Aug. 6), a handwritten board near the front door announced that the restaurant would no longer offer the prayer discount. “While you may exercise your right of religious freedom at this restaurant by praying over your meal to any entity or non-entity. We must protect your freedom from religion in a public place,” the sign said.

The Anti-Defamation League weighs in:

Fed­eral pub­lic accom­mo­da­tion laws, which cover restau­rants and din­ers, pro­hibit unequal treat­ment of cus­tomers in the enjoy­ment of goods and ser­vices based on reli­gion, as well as on race, color, or nation ori­gin. The dis­count may have vio­lated the law because it effec­tively favored reli­gious cus­tomers over non-believers or other cus­tomers who — for what­ever rea­son — choose not to pray in public. The mar­ket­place brings together Amer­i­cans of all races, reli­gions and back­grounds. In addi­tion to likely being ille­gal, com­mer­cial dis­counts based on reli­gious prac­tices are divi­sive, anti­thet­i­cal to our plu­ral­is­tic soci­ety, and sim­ply an ill-advised busi­ness prac­tice. The diner did the right thing in dis­con­tin­u­ing the dis­count it was offering.

(Tipped by JMG reader Andi)

NOTE: Looking up the original news item for this post, I came across an email from a longtime JMG reader in North Carolina who says he is a regular patron of the diner. An excerpt:

"This whole thing has been blown out of proportion and it has to hurt Mary just a little. So it hurts me. She isn't a bigot or a racist or a homophobe. She doesn't care about what religion you worship or if you worship at all. She really doesn't. I'm an atheist and I despise Christian hypocrisy. This incredibly kind, generous woman has been maligned. I got my discount handed to me by my favorite gay waiter today at her restaurant. I don't know why they call it a diner it had well over 100 people enjoying delicious food with well over 100 people enjoying delicious food with a half hour wait all morning."

POLL: 50% Of Hispanics Back Marriage

From a CBS poll issued this week:

Hispanics are more in step with a majority of Americans on the issue of same sex marriage. More Hispanics think same-sex marriage should be legal (50 percent) than not legal (44 percent). Fifty-four percent of non-Hispanics think it should be legal, compared to 39 percent who say it shouldn't be. As is the case with the public overall, younger Hispanics are more likely than those who are older to support same-sex marriage. Among Hispanics, views on these issues differ depending on whether they were born in this country, or immigrated here from somewhere else. Those born in the U.S. are more supportive of abortion rights and same-sex marriage.

HomoQuotable - Matt Moore

"Neither you nor your psychologist nor your pastor nor your doctor will ever fully know why your kid is attracted to the same sex, but you can know that it isn’t your fault. Yes, you are a sinner and yes, you have sinned against your kids… and yes, you do need forgiveness for that — and you have it fully if you’re in Christ. But don’t blame yourself for their broken sexuality. There are a million different sinful things inside and outside of them (the main three being the flesh, the world and Satan) that have continually worked to shape, feed and further distort their sexual desires.

"I know this blog isn’t a fully comprehensive overview of the doctrine of original sin, etc., but I just wanted to briefly tell the parents out there to stop beating yourself up. Please, hate sin and hate all of it’s workings and twistings and distortions in your own heart and in your kid’s heart — but don’t hate yourself for your kid’s sexuality. You are not to blame for this. Pray for you kid. My grandmother prayed and prayed and prayed for me, and the Lord moved on behalf of her prayers for His glory. They may be out and proud and accepting of their broken sexuality now, but I can tell you from my own experience that the Lord can change their minds (and hearts)… and He can do it instantaneously." - Alleged "ex-gay" Matt Moore, in an open letter to the parents of gay kids that was published today on the website of hate group leader Matt Barber.

PREVIOUSLY ON JMG: In June of this year Moore declared that transgender kids are possessed by demons. In February 2013 Moore was spotted on Grindr in New Orleans at the same time he was writing vicious "ex-gay" screeds for the Christian Post. After being confronted, Moore confessed that it was a "major disobedience to Christ" to have been cruising for huge uncut cocks on Grindr. He then declared that he had sold his computer and "put a lock on my phone" so that he wouldn't succumb to the delicious temptations of huge uncut cocks. The following week he posted a now-deleted YouTube video in which he declared that he rejects the term "ex-gay" because he's just as attracted to huge uncut cocks as when he found Jesus.

VIRGINIA: AG Asks SCOTUS To Review Fourth Circuit Court's Marriage Ruling

As he announced he would earlier this week, this afternoon Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring formally filed his request that the US Supreme Court review the overturn of his state's same-sex marriage ban by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Chris Geidner reports at Buzzfeed:

What distinguishes Herring’s filing, representing Virginia State Registrar of Vital Records Janet Rainey, is that his is the first request to the Supreme Court by a party that backs the position of same-sex couples that the ban is unconstitutional. Of the reason for hearing the claim, Herring’s filing, led by Virginia Solicitor General Stuart Raphael, argues that the Supreme Court should accept certiorari in the case because “[t]he question presented is vital to a large population of same-sex couples, to their children, and to their fellow Americans who believe that discriminating against gay people is both unfair and unconstitutional. They may fairly call this ‘the defining civil rights issue of our time.’”

As to why the Supreme Court should hear the case challenging the Virginia ban, specifically, the brief states, “Virginia’s same-sex-marriage ban is one of the most stringent in the country. It goes further than [California’s] Proposition 8 by barring and refusing to recognize civil unions and by preventing same-sex couples from adopting children. It also goes further than Utah’s ban, which at least preserves contractual rights exercised independently of the same-sex-marriage restriction. Virginia law voids ‘any contractual rights created by’ same- sex marriages entered into in another State.”

Last week the Alliance Defending Freedom filed notice with the Fourth Circuit that they will appeal to SCOTUS on behalf of a Virginia county clerk. That appeal has not yet been filed. The ADF has already filed their appeal to SCOTUS on behalf of an Oklahoma county clerk.

Read Herring's full filing.

One Million Moms Vs Black Jesus, Part 2

Just in via email:

Joe,  Religious mockery, blasphemy and extreme profanity, all directed at the Christian faith flooded the airwaves last night. Turner Broadcasting System (TBS) did not hold back its disdain for Jesus, as TBS's Cartoon Network delivered on its promise to be offensive and vile. "Black Jesus" was even worse than its promotions portrayed in the trailer leading up to the broadcast. In the 30-minute premiere, Jesus is recruited by his friend's mother to buy a block of "weed" for a party. He is the "only one" she trusts with the $2,000 she gets as her tax-refund check. When the drug deal goes bad, his friends riding in the car with him abandon him and escape police, while Jesus is arrested. In the end, he is released from prison when the marijuana miraculously turns out to be salad greens.

In this episode entitled "Smokin', Drinkin', and Chillin'":  88 profanities are used, including God's name in vain (MA-L rating).  Jesus uses the f-word multiple times, uses God's name in vain.  Jesus smokes marijuana and complains about having to share it. Jesus is arrested when a drug deal he is leading goes bad. The Jesus character irreverently refers to God as "Pops," himself as "lord and savior," and is continually obsessed with alcohol and drugs. TAKE ACTION: Contact the companies who actually sponsored TBS's anti-Christian "Black Jesus." American Eagle, Foot Locker, AutoTrader.com, Haribo Candy and Radio Shack were the major advertisers who paid corporate dollars to promote its products in association with the content of the program. Let these companies know that their advertising dollars are supporting bigotry and animosity toward people of faith.

Interestingly, Catholic League blowhard Bill Donohue seems to like the show.

Media Matters: Fox News Loves FRC

Christian Group: Cut Up Your Target Cards

The American Decency Association has issued a call for its supporters to boycott Target and mail the chain their destroyed charge cards. Lisa Van Houten writes for the group:

Someone should explain to Target that “equality” doesn’t mean sameness. I as a female may be equal in worth to a man, but I am not the same. There are many things we as individuals are not legally allowed to do without meeting certain criteria – that does not mean we aren’t treated equally under the law. And certain criteria and limitations have always applied to marriage in this nation of freedoms. Any adult can be married – as long as they meet the criteria. And the criterion that has stood since God ordained the institution of marriage is the union of a man and a woman. As we see those beliefs under attack with growing intensity each day, I pray we will wake up, speak out, and act in defense of biblical Truth – and that includes applying biblical stewardship to where we shop. Besides not shopping at Target, here a couple of other suggested actions to take: If you have a Target credit card, cut it up and return it to the company, or send copies of past receipts, with a note expressing your displeasure at the company’s choosing to align with the LGBT agenda instead of remaining neutral on this issue. If you know of a family member planning a wedding or expecting a baby, urge them not to use Target’s bridal and baby registry.

They've posted a complaint letter to Target for its followers to sign. Oh look, you can edit it.

Matt Barber: Boycott Target

"It is just poor business. Target, just like other corporations across the country, should at least remain neutral in this ongoing culture war. And at best, they should be endorsing the age old institution of natural marriage, which is the cornerstone to any healthy society. I hope people will go into Target stores across the country and tell them that they are no longer going to buy products there because Target has joined in the attack on the institution of natural marriage. They need to let it be known that they will take their business elsewhere and tell why they are doing so. That's what individuals can do about this." - Hate group leader Matt Barber, who has characterized boycotts led by the LGBT community as "economic terrorism."

REMINDER: When powerful national Christian groups with millions of members call for boycotts, that is a righteous use of the free market in order to preserve morality, marriage, family, and the American way. But when the gay community calls for a boycott, THAT is homofascist intimidation, intolerance, bullying, a stifling of religious liberty, and an attempt to deny the freedom of speech. And don't you forget it.

FLORIDA: AG Pam Bondi Tells State Appeals Court To Hold Off Until SCOTUS Rules On Same-Same Marriage

Filing separate motions in both the Monroe County and Miami-Dade County cases, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi has asked a state appeals court to continue those counties' stays on marriage ban overturn rulings until the US Supreme Court rules on one of the cases already presented to it.

"Neither this Court nor the Florida Supreme Court can decide this federal issue with finality,” Bondi wrote in a filing late Thursday to the state’s 3rd District Court of Appeal. “The United States Supreme Court, however, ‘has the final word on the United States Constitution.’” Bondi told the appeals court she expects the U.S. Supreme Court will act soon on the gay marriage issue. She cited filings this week from the states of Utah and Oklahoma asking their gay-marriage cases be heard by the nation’s highest court. “A ruling from the United States Supreme Court would end the constitutional debate, end this appeal, and end all related cases,” Bondi wrote. “The State of Florida will respect the United States Supreme Court’s final word. In the meantime, this Court should preserve taxpayer and judicial resources by staying briefing until the United States Supreme Court rules.”

Bondi's motions came in response to a request made by Monroe and Miami-Dade plaintiffs to have their cases joined for presentation to the Florida Supreme Court. Bondi has agreed to the consolidation of the cases, but now wants the state appeals court to just sit on them indefinitely - without ruling and without kicking them upstairs to the state Supreme Court. Neither of yesterday's filings address the marriage rulings in Broward and Palm Beach counties.

Stevie Nicks - The Dealer

From 24 Karat Gold: Songs From The Vault. Due in October.

This Is A Major Network News Reporter

OKLAHOMA: Christian Missionary Says Demon Made Him Molest African Orphans

From the New York Daily News:

An accused child molester from Oklahoma is claiming that a demon named Luke forced him to commit disturbing sexual acts against children. Matthew Lane Durham, 19, faces life in prison for allegedly raping and molesting up to 10 Kenyan orphans during a missionary trip to the Upendo Children's Home near Nairobi between April and June of this year. In oral and written statements, the Edmond teen allegedly confessed that he spanked, caressed, and engaged in sex acts with young girls and boys at the orphanage. He also wrote that he would force the children to watch while he touched himself. In chilling text messages between Durham and unnamed friends, obtained by KFOR, the teen reveals that he believes he’s a victim of demonic possession. “How can i not hate this thing inside of me? It takes me at night and i am powerless over what luke wants. Yes i named him i know how crazy that is. He whispers in my ear all day and hes so hard to resist” [sic] Durham wrote in text messages released by prosecutors. The teen claimed he tried to pray the demon away, but the spirit wouldn’t budge. “You honestly have no idea...i’ve prayed so much, but every night luke gets what luke wants,” [sic] Durham wrote.

An Oklahoma grand jury has indicted Durham on multiple felony charges including traveling to Kenya "for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with persons under 18 years of age." The charges were requested by the US embassy in Nairobi.

Headline Of The Day II

From Christian Today. (Tipped by JMG reader Peter)

CANADA: Human Rights Complaint Filed After Magazine Publishes Letter From Hate Group Leader Matt Barber

A humans rights complaint has been filed against the Newfoundland Herald after it published an anti-gay screed titled The Coming Christian Revolt from hate group leader Matt Barber.

Western Pride NL member Kyle Curlew, who initiated filing the complaint, said his "jaw dropped" when he first saw the two-page letter.​ "I couldn't even believe that it was published in the Herald. It was a rallying call for people to stand against LGBT rights. Essentially, hate propaganda," Curlew told CBC. Curlew said after reading the letter, he decided to take the matter to police. "We filed a human rights complaint under C-46, Section 19, which is 'propaganda and the incitement of hate towards an identifiable group.' So we are hoping to press charges." Curlew said he feels the long-time publication stepped a little too far outside its role in local media. "Letters to the Editor in a Newfoundland and Labrador magazine should, for one, include letters from our community here on this island. Not someone who is completely removed from our politics in the [United] States. The other thing, The Newfoundland Herald is a television guide, not a political magazine or a religious magazine. I don't think that kind of discourse belongs in a television guide."

The magazine says that Barber's letter spawned more responses that any others in the title's history. The managing editor has promised to publish some of those reactions in its next issue. Here's how Barber's piece begins:

From behind a smoking sniper rifle high atop his ivory tower peers the secular “progressive.” He surveys his many victims, strewn across the American landscape below and mockingly sneers, “War on Christianity? What war on Christianity?” He then resumes shooting, all the while insisting that those uncooperative Christians who scatter for cover behind the word of God and the U.S. Constitution somehow suffer from a “persecution complex” (the baker, the photographer, the florist, the innkeeper, the Christian school administrator, etc.). Let’s see if we can make this abundantly clear. Christians, true Christians – regenerate, Bible-believing Christians who strive their level best to maintain fidelity to the word of God and honor His commands – will not, indeed cannot, participate in, approve of, facilitate or encourage certain behaviors deemed by the Holy Scriptures to be immoral or sinful. This is both our constitutionally affirmed human right and our Christian duty.

(Tipped by JMG reader David)

FLORIDA: Church Cancels Man's Funeral After Learning That He Was Gay

Via Tampa's WFLA-TV:

Julie Atwood was standing at her son's casket when the phone rang. The church where her son's funeral was scheduled to be held the next day decided to abruptly cancel the service, after the pastor learned the deceased was gay and his obituary listed a surviving "husband." Atwood said she was told it would be "blasphemous" to hold the services at the church because her son, Julion Evans, 42, was gay. "It was devastating," she said. "I did feel like he was being denied the dignity of death." Evans' husband, Kendall Capers, says the pair were partners for 17 years and married last year in Maryland. Evans died at home after a 4-year battle with a rare illness called Amyloidosis, which destroys organs in the body. He says the obituary named him as "husband," and that their marriage was no secret. "Everyone who knew us knew about our relationship," he said. "We didn't keep secrets."

Pastor T.W. Jenkins says that he didn't know that Evans was gay until members of the congregation called to complain after seeing his husband named in the obituary. Jenkins: "Based on our preaching of the scripture, we would have been in error to allow the service in our church. I'm not trying to condemn anyone's lifestyle, but at the same time, I am a man of God, and I have to stand up for my principles."

Headline Of The Day

Details.

TENNESSEE: Author Of "Don't Say Gay" Bill Trounced In State Senate Race

And some actually excellent news out of Tennessee. Viciously anti-gay GOP state Sen. Stacey Campfield was trounced yesterday in his reelection bid.

With all precincts reporting, Richard Briggs had 13,977 votes, or 66 percent, compared with Campfield's 5,824 votes, or 28 percent. The primary was expected to be tough for Campfield, a highly visible lawmaker who often drew attention and sometimes ridicule for his polarizing comments, as well as sponsoring contentious bills on social issues. They included one ridiculed as the "Don't Say Gay" bill and another that would cut welfare benefits to parents whose children aren't doing well in school. Most recently, Campfield made national news when he compared the federal health care law to the forced transportation of Jews to concentration camps during the Holocaust in a blog post. "Democrats bragging about the number of mandatory sign-ups for Obamacare is like Germans bragging about the number of mandatory sign-ups for 'train rides' for Jews in the 40s," he wrote. The misspelling of "mandatory" appeared in the original text.

PREVIOUSLY ON JMG: Shortly after the Boston Marathon bombings, Campfield included a photo of a pressure cooker in a blog post attacking US Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Campfield's "Don't Say Gay" bill first passed before the Tennessee Senate Judiciary Committee in April 2011, and then passed out of the House Education Committee in February 2012. It did not pass before either full chamber. In January 2012 Campfield was booted out of a Knoxville cafe by its owners, who were angry about the bill. Also in January 2012 Campfield appeared on the Michelangelo Signorile Show to declare that "straight people don't get AIDS." In January 2013 Campfield reintroduced his "Don't Say Gay" bill with an added portion that requires teaches to out gay students to their parents. Later in 2013 Campfield introduced a bill that would cut public assistance to families if their children get low grades.

TENNESSEE: Victoria Jackson Loses Primary Race For County Commissioner

Some good news out of Tennessee.

Victoria Jackson, the former “Saturday Night Live” cast member who has made a name for herself as an active tea party participant, conservative activist and outspoken opponent of President Barack Obama, has lost her bid to win a spot on the Williamson County Commission. Jackson received 632 votes, losing out to Judy Lynch Herbert, with 1,422 votes, and Betsy Hester, with 1,380 votes. There were also nine write-in votes. The County Commission has 12 districts with two commissioners in each district.

(Tipped by JMG reader Mike)

CHATTANOOGA: Voters Repeal Domestic Partners Ordinance In "Landslide" Result

Via Chattanooga television:

The Domestic Partnership ordinance loses in Chattanooga. With 100% of the vote reported: Against the Ordinance - 13685, For the Ordinance - 8184. Last year the Chattanooga City Council voted to allow the partners of city employees in domestic partnerships to get equal benefits. But the measure was forced to a public vote, and it appears the public disagrees with the 5-4 council vote. The measure would have provided health benefits to the same-sex partners of city employees. Following the vote Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke said, “I have no doubt Chattanoogans value fairness and equality, and I am proud of the volunteers who spent nights and weekends to ensure our employees are treated equally. The City of Chattanooga’s non-discrimination ordinance was repealed tonight, but I want every City employee to know one thing -- your work is valued and you are important to the future of our community. Regardless of the results tonight, my Administration will continue to hire and promote the best people who provide excellent service to our constituents."

Chattanooga Tea Party President Mark West (seen above): "What we want them to take away from this is that the people have spoken."

The Human Rights Campaign reacts via press release:

"Despite this hurtful and disappointing result tonight, we know that fair-minded Chattanoogans and people across Tennessee are ready to keep fighting until full equality reaches every corner of the state and every corner of this country. As LGBT equality moves forward across this country, this work isn't over until every American can expect the same decent treatment under the law."

NEW YORK CITY: 2000 AIDS Quilt Panels To Be Displayed August 11th & 12th

Via press release:

The AIDS Memorial Quilt returns to New York City for a two-day public display, featuring 260 12-foot-by-12-foot sections of this internationally celebrated, handmade tapestry. Presented as a gift to the city by Kiehl's Since 1851, the Governor's Island display will begin with a special opening ceremony/press opportunity at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 11. This opening dedication is a part of the fifth annual Kiehl's LifeRide for amfAR, a charity motorcycle ride that raises funds and awareness for amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, which is dedicated to ending the global AIDS epidemic.

The Quilt display is free and open to the public and will be on view from 10 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. on August 11 and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 12. The display will feature more than 2,000 panels honoring over 5,014 individuals including many created by and for individuals who call New York home as well as panels created by leading fashion houses like Giorgio Armani, Anna Sui, Ralph Lauren and BCBG to honor those in the industry who were lost to the pandemic. In recognition of the annual Kiehl's LifeRide for amfAR, a new panel for The Quilt created by Kiehl's will also be unveiled and dedicated at this event.

Governor's Island is accessible by ferries.

Note to younger readers: If you've never seen the Quilt, please consider going. You will find it overwhelmingly moving.

Abbey's Third Letter To Tony Abbott

A little terse this time, huh? Source. Second letter. First letter.

Brian Brown: Boycott Target Even Though All The Other Companies We Boycott Don't Give A Shit What Hate Groups Say

"Dear Marriage Supporter, On Tuesday, the retail giant Target signed on to an amicus brief for the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in two pending cases challenging the definition of marriage in Indiana and Wisconsin. Target joins with a number of other companies in signing the brief, including the Starbucks Coffee Company. But it is the spirit behind the brief, and its language, which are most noteworthy. The brief uses extremely charged language to refer to laws defining marriage as the union of a man and a woman. It calls them "the states' bans [on same-sex marriage]" and, even more radically, 'marriage discrimination' laws!

"Without providing any rationale at all, the brief states bluntly that 'Same-sex couples should have the same right to marry as opposite-sex couples,' and refers to Indiana and Wisconsin's traditional marriage laws as 'an unproductive, inequitable, and unjust status quo.' Perhaps most ridiculously, the brief—while touting the benefits of pro-LGBT businesses—presents the claim that 'corporate cultures that don't encourage openness and inclusiveness leave employees feeling isolated and fearful.' Well, tell that to the employees at Chase bank.

"Join me in telling Target today that they are out of touch with consumers and they have insulted the millions of Americans who have voted to uphold marriage as the union of a man and a woman—tell them how much we resent being fashioned 'bigots' and 'haters' for doing so! Click here to pledge to take your business elsewhere. Target and its peers in the corporate world need to realize that the countless Americans who believe in marriage as the union of a man and a woman will not stand for being insulted and demeaned. The rash of corporate meddling in the politics of marriage and family will only continue if we do not stand up and say enough is enough. Please join me in this boycott today, and please forward this message to your family and friends urging them to do the same." - Hate group leader Brian Brown, launching his group's fourth hilarious boycott of a major corporation.

Here's what the letter to Target says:

To whom it may concern: I am writing today to pledge that I will be joining a boycott against Target announced by the National Organization for Marriage in response to Target’s insults against pro-marriage Americans in the amicus brief to which the company signed in the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. Those who believe in marriage as the union of one man and one woman are not bigots or haters. Rather, they recognize the essential meaning of marriage, and stand by the common sense principle that kids do best with a loving mom and dad. Because your company has chosen to support this radical agenda, and to insult me and other pro-family Americans like me, I will be taking my business elsewhere.

NOM's ongoing boycotts of Starbucks, General Mills, and JP Morgan Chase have all been entirely laughable disasters. Stand by for Target's stock to shoot through the roof!

Tweet Of The Day

Kevin Spacey For Entertainment Weekly

FRC: Pray Against The Sixth Circuit Court

Here's the Family Research Council's prayer of the day:

Circuit Court to Decide on Marriage in Four States - A three judge panel of the Sixth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals in Cincinnati heard cases today that challenge traditional marriage amendments in four state Constitutions: Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. Each of the Amendments, duly passed by a majority of voters in each state according to their own Constitutional process, was ruled unconstitutional in federal district courts. The Appeals Court will consider all four as a single case. In nearly every federal jurisdiction, it seems activists can find liberal district judges who agree with the argument that same-sex “marriage” is a fundamental right by expanding the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. 

Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever! Your design for marriage is not only divine law and points to the union between Christ and the Church, but it has tremendous social benefits. Man may try to change it, but to do so it is to invite the sad consequences. May your people stand, proclaim truth lovingly, and refuse to bow to the lie, however craftily presented. Please move the Appeals Court to reverse these tyrannical and immoral rulings that usurp the clear intention of God, the expressed will of the people, their duly enacted state constitutions, their history and heritage! (Pr 22:8; Jer 18:14-18; Mt 19:4-6; Acts 4:31; Eph 5:32; Heb 13:8; Rev 3:8)

(Via Good As You)

Sen. John Walsh (D-MT) Drops 2014 Relection Bid Over Plagiarism Scandal

Via the Washington Post:

It's a scenario that is extremely unusual, not only in Montana but nationally: a sitting senator who has won his party's nomination withdrawing from contention before the general election. That's what Sen. John Walsh (D-Mont.) did Thursday. It prompts two questions: How will he be replaced on the ballot, and by whom? Walsh was appointed by Montana Gov. Steve Bullock (D) to fill the remaining term of former senator Max Baucus (D), who stepped down to become U.S. Ambassador to China. On June 3, Walsh won the party's nomination for a full term. It was going to be an uphill fight no matter what happened; he always trailed Steve Daines, the Republican nominee, in polling. And then the floor collapsed, with Walsh's admission that parts of his dissertation had been plagiarized. This week, his campaign had been canceling scheduled campaign stops and events; on Wednesday, he "took a personal day," according to campaign staff. And then he dropped his campaign on Thursday.

Hit the link to learn about the confusing process to replace Walsh on the ballot.

MISSOURI: Baptist Church Leader Charged With Attempting To Fuck A Dog

The president and CEO of Missouri's Windermere Baptist Conference Center has been busted in a Craigslist sting after posting a message in which he solicited sex with a dog and another animal of an undisclosed species.

Jerald L. Hill of the 500 block of Forest Circle in Roach was arrested in Columbia at 11:35 a.m. yesterday on suspicion of attempted unlawful sex with an animal and attempted animal abuse, Boone County sheriff’s Detective Tracy Perkins said in a news release. Hill was released from the Boone County Jail after posting bond totaling $1,000. The investigation began last week when the task force got a tip that someone had posted an ad on Craigslist looking for two types of animals with which to have sex, Perkins said. One of the animals he sought was a dog. Perkins declined to say what other type of animal Hill sought. A detective with the task force exchanged emails with Hill under the guise of offering a dog that Hill could have sex with, Perkins said in a news release. Hill made arrangements to travel to Columbia to have sex with the dog. Hill was arrested without incident in the 1600 block of Business Loop 70 West, where he met the deputy.

Windermere Baptist's board of directors met yesterday and decided, hey - maybe it's time for a new president.

Windermere board members discussed the arrest by telephone on Aug. 6, Chairman Arthur Mallory said Aug. 7. “The board is very supportive of him and grateful for his work at Windermere,” he said. Mallory added the board sees the action as “a personal issue with Jerry” and that trustees are concerned about both Hill and the conference center. “We are concerned for the well-being of Jerry...and we are also concerned with the well-being of Windermere,” Mallory said. “Windermere will continue to function in a good way.... It is a significant piece of God’s kingdom’s work.” The board will meet next week on the center’s campus on the Lake of the Ozarks. “We will be in the process of looking for a new president and CEO,” Mallory said.

Windermere Baptist's sprawling facilities include a church, a water park, a marina, a paintball course, auditoriums, convention space, and several lakefront lodges. There is no petting zoo. (Tipped by JMG reader JW)

FLORIDA: Charlie Crist Tells Gov & AG To Stop Defending Gay Marriage Ban

Via Steve Rothaus at the Miami Herald:

Charlie Crist, Florida's former Republican governor and attorney general, says current Gov. Rick Scott and Attorney General Pam Bondi don't have to defend the state's 2008 gay marriage ban in court. Crist, who is running to become governor again (this time as a Democrat), spoke Thursday as he accepted LGBT-rights group SAVE's endorsement at City Hall the Restaurant in Miami. "It’s unfortunate that Rick Scott and Pam Bondi feel this way about gay marriage and are not embracing or tolerant of it. It’s embarrassing, frankly," Crist said. "The rest of America is moving forward and they’re still on the wrong side of history on this issue. But we can fix it and they call it an election. Only 89 days away, so help is on the way. "What would I do differently as governor? Everything. To this issue, specifically, he shouldn’t be fighting it through the attorney general’s office. They should cease and desist on fighting gay marriage -- same-sex marriage -- and equality. The time has passed to do that."

Crist supported the ban when governor but reversed his position after leaving the GOP and becoming a Democrat. Recent polls show him tied with Scott in the gubernatorial race.

Climatologist: We Might Be Fucked

Climatologists such as the one above are not mincing words after a huge blow-hole appeared in the Siberian tundra. The deep cavern, they believe, was caused by the venting of methane. Via Salon:

The study concerns the large deposits of methane (CH4) — a greenhouse gas over twenty times more potent than CO2 — known to be buried beneath the Arctic. Stockholm University researchers found that some of that methane is leaking, and even making it to the ocean’s surface. They called the discovery “somewhat of a surprise,” which, according to [Jason] Box, doesn’t quite communicate its importance. “The Arctic is our most immediate carbon concern,” Box said, referring also to the CH4 escaping from the melting permafrost. But the sentiment can be expanded to all of climate change: “We’re on a trajectory to an unmanageable heating scenario, and we need to get off it,” he said. “We’re fucked at a certain point, right? It just becomes unmanageable. The climate dragon is being poked, and eventually the dragon becomes pissed off enough to trash the place.”

More from an Australian news outlet:

Siberia’s Yamal region contains some of Russia’s largest gas reserves. It’s little coincidence that the first vent hole appeared about 40km from the nation’s largest gas field — Bovanenkovo. Since then another crater has been identified nearby. This one is smaller: Some 15m in diameter. Locals first found it in September last year, but it has only now come to the attention of authorities. A third — this time only 4m wide — was found several hundred kilometres away on the Taymyr Peninsula. Russian scientists examining the first blowhole found it to be 60-80m wide and some 70m deep. It runs into the permafrost of ice and mud. There is an icy lake at its bottom. Methane. It’s the lasting remains of an event which happened some 50 million years ago. An outbreak of a tiny green weed transformed the Earth from a virtually lifeless greenhouse by sucking the carbon out of the air and pumping oxygen back into it. It was a process which took millions of years to create the world as we know it. But the methane left trapped under the Arctic permafrost is a ticking time bomb — set to send the world into a mass extinction and set the climate clock back by millennia. “We have been too long on a trajectory pointed at an unmanageable climate calamity; runaway climate heating,” Dr Box writes.

Ann Coulter: Christians Should Just Let Africans Die Of All Those Horrible Diseases

"I wonder how the Ebola doctor feels now that his humanitarian trip has cost a Christian charity much more than any services he rendered. What was the point? Whatever good Dr. Kent Brantly did in Liberia has now been overwhelmed by the more than $2 million already paid by the Christian charities Samaritan's Purse and SIM USA just to fly him and his nurse home in separate Gulfstream jets, specially equipped with medical tents, and to care for them at one of America's premier hospitals. (This trip may be the first real-world demonstration of the economics of Obamacare.) Why did Dr. Brantly have to go to Africa? The very first 'risk factor' listed by the Mayo Clinic for Ebola -- an incurable disease with a 90 percent fatality rate -- is: 'Travel to Africa.' Can't anyone serve Christ in America anymore? All our elite cultural institutions laugh at virginity and celebrate promiscuity. So no, there's nothing for a Christian to do here." - Ann Coulter, adding that Christian missionaries only send doctors to Africa because they are accused of being homphobic bigots in America. (Tipped by JMG reader Blair)

NOTE: Charity Navigator gives Samaritan's Purse its highest rating of four stars, reporting that 89% of its $400M annual budget is spent on the "programs and services it delivers." It should be noted, however, that the chairman and CEO of Samaritan's Purse is the viciously anti-gay Franklin Graham.

UGANDA: Lawmakers Launch Campaign To Reinstate Anti-Homosexuality Act

As many had expected they would, Ugandan legislators have launched a campaign to reinstate the brutal Anti-Homosexuality Act, which was struck down last week on a technicality.

It was not immediately clear whether President Museveni would support the bill a second time, if passed by parliament again. “We’re mobilizing members to pledge their support for reintroduction of this bill when the House comes back from recess [in about two weeks’ time],” Abdu Latif Ssebaggala, [PHOTO] told Reuters. Ssebaggala said he had started collecting signatures on Tuesday of members of parliament in favour of reintroducing the bill and that he expected to have over 200 – in a house of 383 members – by the end of Wednesday. Homosexuality is taboo in much of Africa and is illegal in 37 countries there. But the punishments in Uganda were among the harshest.

According to the African news outlet Mail & Guardian, observers claim that Uganda's president was secretly behind the ruling that struck down the bill.

Observers say that it was a “wily piece of realpolitik” managed by Uganda’s longtime leader amid aid cuts by international donors, allowing him to avoid appearing to cave in to foreign pressure. “This is good news for Museveni, who has been able to say to a lot of supporters: ‘Listen, I did what I could, I stuck my neck out’, while at the same time, potentially allowing for some aid money to return,” said Harry Verhoeven, a doctoral researcher at Oxford University’s department of politics and international relations. The law caused an international outcry when Museveni signed it in February, with the United States secretary of state John Kerry likening it to anti-Semitic legislation in Nazi Germany. Critics said Museveni signed the law to win domestic support ahead of a presidential election scheduled for 2016, which will be his 30th year in power. But it lost him friends abroad, with several international donors freezing or redirecting millions of dollars of government aid, saying the country had violated human rights and democratic principles.

The ruling came just two days before Museveni's visit to Washington DC for a State Department summit with officials from African nations. A photo of Museveni posing this week with President Obama and the First Lady has outraged some LGBT activists. The photo was posted to the official Flickr account of the State Department.

Rand Paul Waffles On Marriage

"The party can’t become the opposite of what it is. If you tell people from Alabama, Mississippi or Georgia, ‘You know what, guys, we’ve been wrong, and we’re gonna be the pro-gay-marriage party,’ they’re either gonna stay home or — I mean, many of these people joined the Republican Party because of these social issues. So I don’t think we can completely flip. But can we become, to use the overused term, a bigger tent? I think we can and can agree to disagree on a lot of these issues. I think the party will evolve. It’ll either continue to lose, or it’ll become a bigger place where there’s a mixture of opinions." - Sen. Rand Paul, in a lengthy New York Times Magazine feature on the state of the libertarian movement.

Yesterday Paul spoke about same-sex marriage during an appearance before a Kentucky Republican group.

Asked whether he would support a constitutional amendment defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman, Sen. Rand Paul said Wednesday he supports the idea of traditional marriage but thinks Washington shouldn’t be involved in the issue. “I’m in favor of the concept,” the Kentucky Republican told an audience in Iowa. “I am in favor of traditional marriage, and I think that’s been the foundation for civilization for thousands of years.” In tune with his libertarian leanings, Paul reiterated that he supports the idea of removing the federal government from marriage. “I don’t want to register my guns in Washington or my marriage,” he said. “That may not please everybody but historically our founding fathers didn’t register their marriage in Washington. They registered it locally at the courthouse. I’d rather see it be a local issue, not a federal issue.”

Human Rights Campaign spokesman Fred Sainz reacts via press release:

“I can’t decide whether to be disturbed or pleased, so I’ve settled on confused. I just hope that when the libertarian from Kentucky heads to Iowa and New Hampshire, he doesn’t leave his love of liberty at home. The Republican party must move forward on this issue. The clock is ticking, three marriage cases have already reached the Supreme Court, and there is no doubt that this issue will cause the GOP enormous pain in 2016 if they don’t engage in a meaningful way, and fast.”

LOS ANGELES: Porn Shoot Permits Drop 90% After Condom Use Mandate

In November 2012, Los Angeles County voters approved a bill that mandates the use of condoms in all porn video shoots. The Associated Press reports today that local applications for porn filming permits dropped by more than 90% last year. But that doesn't mean that condom-less filming isn't still taking place.

So where are those hundreds of films available for instant download on the Internet coming from? Many are still coming from right here, say industry officials, acknowledging that when Los Angeles County voters cracked down on filmmakers in November 2012 with an ordinance requiring that actors use condoms, quite a few filmmakers went underground. "A lot are simply shooting in out-of-the-way places where they won't be caught," says Mark Kernes, senior editor at Adult Video News, which tracks industry trends. "Normally it's in people's homes who are willing to rent them out for a day. Sometimes it's out in the woods. There are vacation cabins far away from anything that you can shoot a movie at."

Others have traveled outside of Los Angeles County, either to neighboring counties or sometimes even out of state. Diane Duke, executive director of the Free Speech Coalition, an industry advocacy group, said she knows of a handful that have moved to Las Vegas, although none want to be mentioned by name for fear of bringing condom activists after them. Although a few porn producers do require that actors use condoms, the majority do not, saying fans have made it clear they don't want to see them. Wherever the filmmakers are working now, only 20 have applied for permits so far this year, according to Film LA, which issues them. Last year 40 adult filmmakers took out permits, compared with 485 in 2012, the last year before the ordinance took effect.

RELATED: The Los Angeles County ordinance was spearheaded by the combative and controversial AIDS Healthcare Foundation. Today the AHF issued a press release declaring that it has filed an OSHA complaint against a San Francisco-based porn company that is filming in Nevada.

“Under the guise of his various Kink and Kink.com, adult film businesses and brands, owner Peter Acworth, thinks he and his companies can simply ignore the Federal OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens Standard with regard to required condom use in his adult film productions shot in Nevada. This new complaint in Nevada is based on the simple fact that they cannot hide from federal law there, or anywhere in the U.S.,” said Michael Weinstein, President of AIDS Healthcare Foundation. “When we first proposed the Los Angeles City bill, the industry said they’d film in other L.A. cities. When we proposed Measure B for L.A. County, the industry said they’d film in other counties. And when we proposed AB 1576, the industry said they’d film outside of California. Here, Mr. Acworth will no doubt find out that both Nevada and Federal OSHA statutes apply as well. Are workers in Nevada any less entitled to protection from harm than those in California?”

ALSO RELATED: This week the AHF sued the city of San Francisco for blocking its plans to open a pharmacy in the Castro. According to the AHF, local AIDS activists are behind the denial because they are furious with the AHF for opposing the use of Truvada as a daily HIV preventive.

"At the behest of San Francisco Supervisor Scott Wiener, The City rammed through, at lightning speed, an interim zoning law specifically targeting AIDS Healthcare Foundation," claimed Laura Boudreau, chief of operations for AHF. "The clear and sole purpose of that action was to discourage the organization from relocating and opening a nonprofit safety-net clinic and pharmacy in the Castro." But City Attorney spokesman Matt Dorsey called the civil rights violation charge "absurd." "AHF is asking the court to find a constitutional right to build whatever it wants wherever it wants, and that's just not something courts have allowed," Dorsey said.

Boudreau claims the motivation for The City's actions came from the foundation's position on PrEP -- an HIV treatment drug which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and others have advocated for as a preventative tool, but which the group opposes as a widespread HIV prevention tool, arguing its efficacy is debatable. While a local HIV activist said the AHF's position on HIV prevention is not popular among many in San Francisco, he and Wiener point out that the main issue with the group, which has 33 locations nationwide, is that it operates a chain. The city's formula retail rules define chain stores as any with 11 or more locations. "AHF tried to game our formula retail law by tweaking its name and then claiming it wasn't actually formula retail," Wiener said. "Under AHF's approach, any chain store could come into San Francisco, tweak its name, and claim that it isn't formula retail."

Harlem Hate Pastor James Manning: All Those Who Support Homosexuality, Be Thou Cursed With Ebola

Harlem hate Pastor James David Manning today posted the below video in which he says that he stands with Liberia's Christian leaders. Manning goes on to call on God to give ebola to all homosexuals and their supporters. "All the world needs to know that sodomy and homosexuality is more deadly than the ebola virus that is spreading all over the world. Everybody who stands up and embraces sodomy, BE THOU CURSED WITH EBOLA! Cursed be ye for embracing this!" Stand by for Manning to add ebola to the above sign he posted last week. Note: There's some screaming at the end, check your volume.

LIBERIA: Christian Leaders Say God Is Cursing Nation With Ebola Because Gays

The above headline is from the Washington Post:

According to Front Page Africa and the Daily Observer, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf called on Tuesday for all residents to fast for three days and pray for forgiveness. “Relying on His divine guidance for our survival as a nation,” she announced, “I call on all Liberians to observe three days of national fast and prayer to seek God’s face to have mercy on us and forgive our sins and heal our land, Liberia, as we continue to fight against the deadly Ebola virus.” That followed a recent recommendation by the Liberian Council of Churches, which said in a statement last week the outbreak has Biblical implications. “God is angry with Liberia,” the religious leaders said, according to the Daily Observer. “Ebola is a plague. Liberians have to pray and seek God’s forgiveness over the corruption and immoral acts (such as homosexualism, etc.) that continue to penetrate our society. As Christians, we must repent and seek God’s forgiveness.”

It should be noted that Sirleaf, who not incidentally is the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize winner, has not personally linked ebola to homosexuality. Here's an excerpt from the unanimously approved resolution by God's Gentle People at the Liberian Council of Churches:

The men of God, meanstream Episcopalians and non-denominational evangelicals alike, unanimously endorsed the following resolution: That God is angry with Liberia, and that Ebola is a plague. Liberians have to pray and seek God's forgiveness over the corruption and immoral acts (such as homosexualism, etc.) that continue to penetrate our society. As Christians, we must repent and seek God's forgiveness. That a three-day indoor fast and prayer across the nation be observed, commencing next Wednesday, August 6th, and concluding Friday, August 8th. That an inter-denominational committee be constituted to present said resolution to government. That if government is in agreement, the Republic of Liberia be locked up for three days of fast and prayer. All movement should be restricted during those three days. People should stay at home for three days of silence, fasting and prayer.

"Meanstream Episcopalians." If the above isn't bad enough for you, US-based white supremacists are reveling in both the ebola deaths in Africa and its linking to homosexuality.

Open Thread Thursday

Time for our quarterly book report. What are you reading?

Pastor Rick Wiles: Ebola Could Solve America's Problem With Gays & Atheists

HomoQuotable - Andrew Sullivan

"One of the greatest bodily regrets of my life – apart from having my foreskin chopped off as an infant because it was allegedly too ample – is that I have no back hair. My brother? An ape. God knows why this aspect of manhood has loomed so large in my erotic imagination … but there we are. The earliest porn I ever saw I had to create myself. I drew sketches of the men I longed for in a scrapbook and they were all covered in fur. Maybe it’s because body hair is such a powerful visual indicator of testosterone and maleness; maybe I’m just a perv. Or maybe because when a man allows his body to be what it is, and doesn’t try to micromanage every inch of it, he’s inherently sexier than the manscaped, plucked and trussed twink version." - Andrew Sullivan, responding to Slate writer Mark Joseph Stern's embrace of his back hair.