Gay Marriage: Opportunity for Democrats and Liability for GOP as Acceptance Grows

It would be a fitting irony if the Republicans from Karl Rove down who used anti-gay rhetoric to help the Chimperator win re-election in 2004 may have in the longer term set the stage for on-going GOP defeats at the polls. An article in Yahoo News suggests that that is perhaps precisely what is occurring and that the growing acceptance of gays - at least outside of the most backward states in the South - may prove to be an opportunity for Democrats and a growing liability for the GOP. Karl Rove wanted to create a permanent GOP majority and simply be too delicious if he instead planted the seeds for a permanent GOP minority. As I have noted many times before, the majority of the younger generation is accepting of gays and supportive of gay marriage. As the older bigoted and reactionary generations die off, the GOP will need to change or die. Here are some story highlights (I hope Obama wakes up to this reality):

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WASHINGTON – Gay marriage legalization in several states and the public's growing acceptance of same-sex unions have Democrats sensing political opportunity and some Republicans re-evaluating their party's hard-line opposition to an issue that long has rallied its base.

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In recent weeks, Vermont and Iowa have legalized same-sex marriage, while New York, Maine and New Hampshire have taken steps in that direction. Polls show younger Americans are far are more tolerant on the issue than are older generations. For now at least, the public is much more focused on the troubled economy and two wars than on social issues. In addition, over the past decade, public acceptance of gay marriage has changed dramatically.

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With congressional elections next year, Republicans, Democrats and nonpartisan analysts say the changes benefit Democrats, whose bedrock liberals favor gay unions, and disadvantage Republicans, whose conservative base insists that marriage be solely between a man and a woman. "This is not a sea change. This is a tide that is slowly rising in favor of gay marriage," creating a favorable political situation for Democrats and ever-more difficulty for Republicans, said David McCuan, a political scientist at Sonoma State University in California.

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Democrats have a broader base filled with more accepting younger voters, as well as flexibility on the issue. . . . Conversely, the GOP base is older, smaller and more conservative. Republicans have no place to shift on the issue but to the left, because the party has been identified largely with its rock-solid opposition to gay marriage and civil unions.

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But as more states accept gay and lesbian unions, there is a debate inside the party over how it should position itself on the issue. The dispute is just one part of a broader struggle within the out-of-power GOP over its identity and whether it should focus on rallying conservatives or attracting supporters from across the political spectrum. Some prominent Republicans are backing away from cut-and-dried opposition, and some party operatives say it's only a matter of time before others follow suit because the country is changing.

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Personally, unless and until the Christianists are driven from their stranglehold on the GOP, I doubt there will be much movement on the GOP's position on gay marriage and as the make up of the voting public continues to trend towards gay-acceptance, the GOP will find itself more and more at odds with the general population.

Carrie Prejean's Centerfold Values

I had pretty much decided to say nothing further about Carrie "I'm A Gay Hating Valley Girl" Prejean figuring that her 15 seconds of fame will likely burn out. But then I saw this post by Timothy Kincaid at Box Turtle Bulletin which wonderfully showcases the hypocrisy that has become the hallmark of the professional Christian and "family values" set. Apparently, it's fine to be slutty and sleazy with fake breasts as long as you hate the gays. And people wonder why Christianity is gaining an increasingly bad name among the younger generation? Here are highlights from Timothy's column (the photo he references is posted above):

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Many in the world of anti-gay conservative Christianity have praised Miss California, Carrie Prejean, as having courage, belief, convictions and Christian values.

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Maggie Gallagher: Her example resonates, especially to many young Americans, because she chose to stand for truth rather than surrender her core values.

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Family Research Council’s Tony Perkins: Prejean’s Christian beliefs were no secret to the organization; she quotes a biblical passage in her official bio on the Miss California USA website, citing Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” as a daily source of inspiration.

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American Family Association’s Tim Wildmon: What I was most impressed with was Miss California’s courage, as she knew her answer could very well cost her the opportunity to fulfill her dream to be Miss USA. But she went ahead and expressed her convictions.

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Carrie Prejean: We have to be strong and true to our faith and our beliefs.

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Carrie has become the poster girl for Christianity - or at least the anti-gay variety. And this pictorial from the center fold of B!isss Magazine must be the new look of Conservative Christian values.

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One can only wonder what convictions Carrie truly possesses other than shameless self-promotion and presenting a fake facade in more ways than one. Oh, and what do Maggie Gallagher, Ton Perkins and Tim Wildmon have to say about Carrie's decision to pose for such a photo? These people are truly disgusting.

Saturday Male Beauty

Mormons Had Hand in Torture Policies

I mentioned yesterday how a survey found that the majority of white evangelical Christians supported the Bush/Cheney torture policies that increasingly seem to have been war crimes under the Geneva Conventions, thus raising a serious question of just how far Christian dogma has been perverted by those who are generally the most self-congratulatory over their own perceived piety. It turns out that many Mormons are on the same page with those who support torture. In fact, a new Salt Lake Tribune story looks at the significant role that Mormons played in establishing and applying the torture program. WWJD? It s a lengthy article but one that definitely deserves a full reading. Here are some story highlights:

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An overheard conversation among several women at a local deli: "I can't believe this country elected Obama as president; it must be a sign of the end times when the Constitution will hang by a thread." The irony of this uniquely Utah political thread about church elders saving the Constitution might have shocked the lunch bunch had they read The Dark Side by Jane Mayer (Doubleday, 2008). Reading Mayer's disturbing book is likely to lead to the conclusion that the Constitution is more imperiled than ever; but it also reveals the troubling fingerprints of several of my fellow Mormons whose handiwork, not the Obama election, did so much to create the present crisis.

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Although the decisions which put us in the grim business of torture, body-snatching, extraordinary renditions, making people disappear, indefinite confinement without charges and warrantless wiretapping were made by the president and vice president, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints served as helpful enablers. Not only did they provide the legal architecture, they provided the "scientific" patina for the plunge into the barbaric business of torture.

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Take Latter-day Saint Timothy E. Flanigan, deputy White House counsel, who, along with David Addington, John Yoo, Alberto Gonzales, and Jim Haynes comprised the secretive "War Council" of lawyers -- a self-appointed group Mayer describes as having virtually no experience in law enforcement, military service, counterterrorism or the Muslim world. Together, they were the brain trust that devised the legal cover that Vice President Dick Cheney needed to work his will. They secretly crafted the warrantless surveillance program which allowed the National Security Agency to intercept telephone calls and e-mails to and from American citizens within the United States.

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They secretly devised the Bush military commissions, which were essentially kangaroo courts and legally insufficient to satisfy the minimal adjudicatory standards required under the Geneva Conventions, which, as provided by the Constitution and Congress, constitute the supreme law of the land. They secretly conspired to ignore the law and frame interrogation techniques around the methods of the Spanish Inquisition, the Soviet KGB and Chairman Mao.

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BYU law school graduate Jay S. Bybee was the assistant attorney general directing the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Counsel. At the instigation of Addington and Yoo, Bybee issued official legal opinions that redefined the crime of torture to make it all but impossible to commit. Barbarity was not torture unless it created pain equal to death or organ failure. A newly-declassified Bybee memorandum lists 10 previously top-secret interrogation techniques approved for use by the CIA, including waterboarding.

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Incredibly, Bybee seems to have been unaware that the United States had prosecuted waterboarding as a war crime after World War II. In 2003, before his role in authorizing U.S. torture was known, Bybee was given a lifetime judicial appointment on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Had his role in torture been known, it is unlikely he would have been confirmed.

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Two devout Mormons also engineered the more grisly wet work. . . . two psychologists, James E. Mitchell and John B. Jessen, who had worked with the Air Force's Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape programs. Neither had an intelligence or interrogation background or had experience with Muslim terrorists, but, according to the FBI, they had experience in designing, testing, implementing and monitoring torture techniques that were illegal in the United States and elsewhere in the civilized world. . . . they built the CIA's surreal secret interrogation program around the same brutal coercion that had successfully forced American POWs to lie to their North Korean and Chinese captors. In other words, they assumed that the very brutality which had forced American soldiers to lie would magically force a Muslim terrorist to tell the truth, even if he had to be waterboarded 183 times.

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My reaction? God protect us all from the self-anointed godly Christians and Mormons.

Peevish Christianists

I apparently touched a sensitive nerve with the homo-haters at The Family Foundation - the Virginia arm of Daddy Dobson's snake oil show, Focus on the Family. What touched this nerve so resoundingly? I called Victoria Cobb and her compatriots "Christianists." Here is the whining remark about my comments in this "homosexual-oriented" blog:

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“Christianist“? Who’s using the pejoratives, who’s stereotyping, who’s staking the claim to righteousness? Not only did this blog take a slap at us Sunday, it attacked Family Foundation President Victoria Cobb.

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I guess I hit a little too close for comfort for Ms. Cobb and company. Wikipedia defines "Christianism" as follows:

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the belief that Christianity is superior to all other religions; prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism against a religion or person practicing a religion, other than Christianity, based on the belief that Christianity is superior to all other religions; . . . . the quest to establish global Christian domination in all areas of world religious and secular society; Dominionism, political activism based on conservative Christian principles.

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Having followed Ms. Cobb (pictured above) and The Family Foundation's ("TFF") activities for nearly a decade, "Christianism" accurately describes the organizations efforts. Virtually every anti-gay measure in Virginia has been resoundingly backed by The Family Foundation and Ms. Cobb tirelessly lobbies the Virginia General Assembly to oppose legislative measures that would give LGBT Virginians equality under the civil laws and I suspect she would, if she could, advocate for the re-enactment of the sodomy statute struck down by Lawrence v. Texas. Indeed, The Family Foundation would prefer if gays simply ceased to exist and that Virginia remained in the 19th Century. Here are some of TFF's favorite issues on which it labors continually:

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Homosexuality in Schools—Homosexual advocates are working through school curricula and student groups such as “Gay-Straight Alliances” to bring their message to children in Virginia. Legislation is needed to bar these groups from promoting risky sexual behavior in our public schools.*

Domestic Partner Benefits—Homosexual advocates have worked to diminish the status of marriage by providing marriage benefits to any relationship. Already, private companies in Virginia can do so. Efforts are underway to expand this to state and local government.

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Adoption—Although it has been shown that the most beneficial structure for a child to be raised in is a stable family with one mother and one father, homosexual advocates in Virginia have worked to allow adoption by homosexuals

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Principle - Marriage, as the lifelong union between one man and one woman, is an institution of God and a foundation of civil society.

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Teaching History—Virginia is the home of religious liberty in our nation. Efforts to educate Americans on our history, funded by taxpayer dollars, must be honest and accurate and should clearly show our rich Judeo-Christian heritage.

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I think you get the drift of where Ms. Cobb and company are headed in their efforts. The agenda does NOT include tolerance or religious freedom for others who might just have a different belief system. As I said in the comment I left on TFF's blog, I will continue to tell the truth about them as long as they continue to tell lies about LGBT Americans. I also left the following question for Ms. Cobb's consideration:

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P.S. While you are discussing the 2009 elections, you might want to ask Bob McDonnell why he covered up for former Congressman Ed Schrock for nearly 8 months after he was told about Schrock trolling for gay hook ups on “Mega Phone.”

Friday Male Beauty

Supreme Court Justice Souter to Retire

In what will set the stage for the first test of what kind of justice Barack Obama will nominate to the United States, Justice David Souter has announced that he intends to retire at the end of the current term of the Court. Souter has been a liberal to moderate justice and we can only hope that Obama selects someone of a similar judicial temperament. Having suffered personally at the hands of judges who in my opinion cannot separate their personal religious views from the administration of the civil laws, I hope Obama makes sure his nominee understands the concept of separation of church and state. Thank God there is no Republican the White House currently. Here are some highlights from NPR:

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NPR has learned that Supreme Court Justice David Souter is planning to retire at the end of the current court term. The vacancy will give President Obama his first chance to name a member of the high court and begin to shape its future direction.

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At 69, Souter is nowhere near the oldest member of the court. In fact, he is in the younger half of the court's age range, with five justices older and just three younger. So far as anyone knows, he is in good health. But he has made clear to friends for some time that he wanted to leave Washington, a city he has never liked, and return to his native New Hampshire. Now, according to reliable sources, he has decided to take the plunge and has informed the White House of his decision.

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Factors in his decision no doubt include the election of President Obama, who would be more likely to appoint a successor attuned to the principles Souter has followed as a moderate-to-liberal member of the court's more liberal bloc over the past two decades.

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Possible nominees who have been mentioned as being on a theoretical short list include Elena Kagan, the current solicitor general who represents the government before the Supreme Court; Sonia Sotomayor, a Hispanic judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit; and Diane Wood, a federal judge in Chicago who taught at the University of Chicago at the same time future President Barack Obama was teaching constitutional law there.

Churchgoers More Likely to Back Torture

You have to love the headline of this CNN piece that confirms what I've said for sometime: far too many of today's "Christians" have utterly perverted Christianity and turned it into something horrible. These nasty folks think as long as they are anti-abortion and anti-gay they have a free pass to engage in and support almost any kind of horrible actions that I cannot help but believe Christ would condemn. After, all these people are the bulk of the Republican party base and the most loyal supporters of the Chimperator and Emperor Palpatine Cheney. The question is, when are the non-insane, non-hating Christians going to start speaking out and reclaiming Christianity from the hate merchants? Here are some story highlights:

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WASHINGTON (CNN) — The more often Americans go to church, the more likely they are to support the torture of suspected terrorists, according to a new analysis. More than half of people who attend services at least once a week — 54 percent — said the use of torture against suspected terrorists is “often” or “sometimes” justified. Only 42 percent of people who “seldom or never” go to services agreed, according the analysis released Wednesday by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

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White evangelical Protestants were the religious group most likely to say torture is often or sometimes justified — more than 6 in 10 supported it. People unaffiliated with any religious organization were least likely to back it. Only 4 in 10 of them did.

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The analysis is based on a Pew Research Center survey of 742 American adults conducted April 14-21. It did not include analysis of groups other than white evangelicals, white non-Hispanic Catholics, white mainline Protestants, and the religiously unaffiliated, because the sample size was too small.

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What would Jesus do?

The Vanishing Young Republicans

Even as we continue to daily witness the often vile anti-gay agenda of Christianists and anti-gay Republicans like Ms. Virginia Foxx from North Carolina, comfort can be found in new data that shows that the far right is slowly but steadily destroying its own future by driving younger voters to liberalism in droves. Indeed, the politics of hate and division are taking their toll: the gap between members of the younger generation that identify as Democrats versus those identifying as Republican is at near all time highs. As I have stated numerous times previously, the problem for the GOP is that its base is now comprised of those who care nothing for objective facts and figures and who are moved only by their fanaticism which is increasingly religious based. Thus, pulling out of the death spiral will be difficult for the GOP and may leave what few rational Republicans who remain with little place to go other than to exit from the party. Here are some highlights as presented by Kristen Soltis:

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Yesterday's departure of Sen. Arlen Specter from the Republican Party re-opened the debate over the ideological direction of the Republican Party. Did the GOP move away from Specter, or was it Specter that left the GOP? Where do the American people fall?

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My focus on this site over the last few weeks has been on young voters. And most of the news I have had for the Republican Party has been bad news, presenting a picture of a young cohort less convinced of the virtues of limited government, more supportive of gay marriage, and more inclusive of minority groups less prone to voting Republican.

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The 2008 shift is most concerning for the Republican Party in two ways. First, it shows the highest proportion of young voters identifying as Democrats since 1972. Second, it shows the largest gap between 18-29 year old party ID and overall party ID in that same time frame. Consider 1976, when the post-Watergate voters abandoned the GOP.

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As it turns out, young voters began abandoning the Republican Party long before Barack Obama was even a serious contender for the presidency. Those pinning the Republican Party's poor fortunes among young voters on the Obama candidacy miss the source of the problem and certainly underestimate its severity.

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Another bit of conventional wisdom I hear from my fellow Republicans about the youth vote is that they need to vote Democratic twice before they are "locked in for life", supporting the notion that there is still time to turn the tide among this generation. Unfortunately, given that the shift began in 2006 and not 2008, for many voters the GOP may simply be too late. For the rest, if the Republican Party does not take immediate action to repair its brand, this generation may exhibit similarly low levels of Republican identification for years to come.

More Thursday Male Beauty

Current GOP Insanity Versus What Once Were GOP Values

Lon, a reader from GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann's 6th District of Minnesota sent me an e-mail earlier today bemoaning the embarrassment of Ms. Bachmann's ignorance and homophobic venom. One does have to wonder how individuals who are so untethered from reality manage to get themselves elected to high office when and insane asylum would be a more appropriate place for them to be holding court. Lon was especially miffed at Ms. Bachmann's comments in opposition to the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Bill. Here's a sampling of Ms. Bachmann's verbal diarrhea via C-Span:

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"[A]pparently people who are practicing pedophiles would be considered protected under this legislation, but not, I understand, veterans, not, I understand, pregnant women, not, I understand, 85-year-old grandmothers would be protected under this law," she said. "But who would be protected? A pedophile, someone who considers themselves gay, someone who considers themselves transgender, someone who considers themselves a cross-dresser? That is who is protected."

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Once upon a time the GOP stood for individual rights and recognized that extreme religious views should not govern the civil laws and that legislators should rebuff attempts to intimidate their voting decisions on legislation. Moreover, the "conservative" thing to do was to call out those who sought to subvert freedom of religion and to condemn their efforts. This was the Republican Party that I grew up in and it is a memory of a Republican Party that has ceased to exist currently. Andrew Sullivan has a marvelous quote from Barry Goldwater that mkaes this case all to eloquently and directly:

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"There is no position on which people are so immovable as their religious beliefs. There is no more powerful ally one can claim in a debate than Jesus Christ, or God, or Allah, or whatever one calls this supreme being. But like any powerful weapon, the use of God's name on one's behalf should be used sparingly. The religious factions that are growing throughout our land are not using their religious clout with wisdom. They are trying to force government leaders into following their position 100 percent.

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If you disagree with these religious groups on a particular moral issue, they complain, they threaten you with a loss of money or votes or both. I'm frankly sick and tired of the political preachers across this country telling me as a citizen that if I want to be a moral person, I must believe in 'A,' 'B,' 'C,' and 'D.' Just who do they think they are? And from where do they presume to claim the right to dictate their moral beliefs to me? And I am even more angry as a legislator who must endure the threats of every religious group who thinks it has some God-granted right to control my vote on every roll call in the Senate. I am warning them today: I will fight them every step of the way if they try to dictate their moral convictions to all Americans in the name of 'conservatism,'" – Barry Goldwater, Congressional Record, September 16, 1981.

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One can only assume that Goldwater - and I suspect even Reagan are rolling over in their graves over the vile, religious party the GOP has become. The Christianists have utterly subverted the principles that once defined the Republican Party.

Miss California USA Exposed - Fake Breasts and All

Now that Carrie Prejean, Miss California USA, has signed onto the anti-gay agenda of the Christianists hook line and sinker - U.S. News & World Report is reporting that she's hired the same PR firm that represents pathological liar Rick Warren, and the insanely homophobic Southern Baptist Convention - it is only appropriate that she is being exposed for what she truly is: an artificial, vapid, self-congratulatory "godly Christian" who seems to be all so typical among the professional Christian organization women (like Concerned Women for America's current president): Big poofed out hair, breast implants and trained to mindlessly parrot discredited lies about LGBT Americans. Apparently the Miss USA Pageant is none to happy with the divisive twit that Ms. Prejean is proving herself to be. In fact, the Pageant has confirmed that it paid for her new breasts and that it's none too happy that she is not fulfilling her duties as Miss California. She might even lose her crown - the horror!! Here are some highlights from AccessHollywood:

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Shanna Moakler, Co-Executive Director of the Miss California Organization, has confirmed the group behind the pageant paid for Miss California Carrie Prejean’s breast implants, weeks before she competed in Miss USA. In a new interview with Access Hollywood’s Billy Bush, Shanna confirmed the news. “Did you guys pay for it?” Billy asked Shanna directly. “Yes,” Shanna said. “We did.” The organization paid for Carrie’s breast enhancement prior to her competing in the Miss USA pageant, which was held in Las Vegas, almost two weeks ago.

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Carrie is still involved in a media frenzy, sparked by her controversial response at the Miss USA pageant, and Shanna claims the young woman has been avoiding responding to her Miss California bosses.

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“We’ve tried really hard [to get in contact] and she keeps referring us to her mother and her PR person,” Shanna claimed. “That’s also sad for me… because, you know, there’s no hate here. I don’t hate Carrie Prejean. I supported her and I still stand behind her.”

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When asked if stripping Carrie of her crown was a possibility, Shanna said they need to see how things work out. . . . . “Since you can’t communicate, when do you say, ‘Alright, come back and follow the Miss California itinerary and get on board or we’re going to fire you?’” Billy asked. “I guess we’re all going to have to wait and see how that plays out because I don’t have the answers for that,” Shanna said.

Thursday Male Beauty

GOP's Big Names Try to Forge New Agenda

Apparently, some in the top levels of the GOP are beginning to realize that a new agenda is needed if the party is to revive its chances of remaining a national party. They will certainly have their work cut out for them as they seek to rein in the Frankenstein monster the party leadership created in the form of the insane and delusional Christianist led party base. With moderates having fled the party in huge numbers over the last 5 plus years, I can just imagine the wingnuts who may show up at the planned town hall meetings only to argue that the party is not sufficiently reactionary and that the party's main platform MUST continue to embrace Kool-Aid drinkers' religious principles. Opportunists in the GOP leadership some years back thought that tapping into the religious nutcase crowd was brilliant/expedient, and now it has come full circle and is biting them in the ass. Sometimes you need to be careful what you set in motion. I wonder if Rep. Virginia "Matthew Shepard Murder Was a Hoax" Foxx will be invited? Here are some Washington Post highlights on the"National Council for a New America" effort:

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Looking to rebrand a struggling Republican Party, a group of party heavyweights including former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) are launching a new group that will hold town halls around the country and look to produce GOP ideas on issues like education and health care. Republicans will announce today the creation of the "National Council for a New America," a group led by congressional party leaders that includes Bush, McCain, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal as its "national panel of experts."

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"The NCNA will bring together citizens from across the country to begin a dialogue with the American people through a series of forums, town halls, and an online effort that will engage people in a discussion to meet our common challenges and build a stronger country through common-sense ideas," the letter [announcing the group's creation] says.

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The new initiative comes in the wake of a difficult 100 days for Republicans, who have watched Obama's poll ratings remain high while their own dip. Democrats moved toward a 60-seat majority in the Senate this week after Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter left the GOP. The new group says it will focus on developing Republican ideas on energy, education, health care, national security and the economy. Its first town hall session will be Saturday at a restaurant in Northern Virginia. Cantor, Romney, Bush and other congressional leaders will attend.

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Somehow, I suspect it will be very, very difficult to muzzle the "God, guns, right to life and gay bashing" factions of the GOP which operate in a world devoid of objective reality no matter what the NCNA tries to do. These comments from a New York Times article show what the few sane members of the GOP will be facing in this effort:

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Mr. Cornyn said, adding, “Some conservatives would rather lose than be seen as compromising on what they regard as inviolable principles.”
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Senator Lindsay Graham, Republican of South Carolina, said: “We are not losing blue states and shrinking as a party because we are not conservative enough. If we pursue a party that has no place for someone who agrees with me 70 percent of the time, that is based on an ideological purity test rather than a coalition test, then we are going to keep losing.”

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Personally, I hope the Kool-Aid drinkers continue to hold sway because only by destroying the GOP will they ultimately destroy their own influence and convince the rest of the country that they are truly crazy fanatics.

Spain to Move Forward on War Crimes

As many in the USA - particularly former Bush/Cheney hacks and pundits of the far right - make up lame excuses for violations of international law Spain is about to move forward with investigations against the Chimperator, Emperor Palpatine Cheney and their willing minions who made a mockery of the Geneva Conventions and advanced a regime of torture against detainees. Yes, such an investigation will be very messy and if Bush and Cheney become full blown targets even unprecedented, but this MUST be done in order to (i) restore the soul of the USA and (ii) fully expose the full depravity of Cheney and the far right/Christianists that held sway over the nation for 8 years. If the USA will not prosecute its leaders for criminal acts, then other will have to do it. Here are some highlights from the Daily Beast:

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In a ruling in Madrid today, Judge Baltasar Garzón has announced that an inquiry into the Bush administration’s torture policymakers now will proceed to a formal criminal investigation. The ruling came as a jolt following the recommendation of Spanish Attorney General Cándido Conde-Pumpido against proceeding with a criminal inquiry, which was reported in The Daily Beast on April 16. Judge Garzón previously initiated and handled investigations involving Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, Argentine “Dirty War” strategist Adolfo Scilingo and Guatemalan strongman José Efraín Ríos Montt, often over the objections of the Spanish attorney general.

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Now, Garzón has announced a preliminary criminal inquiry into the Bush administration torture policy, specifying the evidence that a crime had been perpetrated against Spanish subjects, but not yet specifying the specific targets of the investigation. Judge Garzón’s decision revealed a deep engagement with documents which had been released in Washington in the last two weeks, particularly a group of memoranda prepared by lawyers in the Bush Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, a report of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and a memo released by the Senate Intelligence Committee, making it likely that he would focus on the authors of the torture memoranda and other lawyers who worked with them.

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Garzón is also seeking to have the criminal complaint of a Spanish human-rights organization against the Bush Six—six top Bush administration officials—recently reassigned by the chief judge of the Audiencia Nacional to Judge Eloy Velasco, referred back to him for purposes of consolidation with his new preliminary investigation.

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Spanish lawyers close to the case tell me that under applicable Spanish law, the Obama administration has the power to bring the proceedings in Spain against former Bush administration officials to a standstill. “All it has to do is launch its own criminal investigation through the Justice Department,” said one lawyer working on the case, “that would immediately stop the case in Spain.”

More Wednesday Male Beauty

Male model, Thomas Ivasaki

Dining Out For Life - Hampton Roads

The boyfriend and I will be hosts for Access Aids Care/Dining Out For Life tomorrow evening at 99 Main, located at 99 Main Street, Newport News, Virgina (Phone: 757-599-9885). Twenty Five percent (25%) of the evening proceeds will be donated by the restaurant to ACCESS AIDS Care which provides programs and services to individuals and families impacted by HIV/AIDS in Hampton Roads. The mission of ACCESS AIDS Care is to promote the dignity and wellness of adults, families, youth and children affected by HIV/AIDS through quality support and prevention services so they may live healthy lives.

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This is a wonderful event and roughly 80 local area restaurants will be participating. I urge local readers to come by 99 Main and dine with the boyfriend and me or visit one of the other participating restaurants scattered all across the Hampton Roads area. A list of these restaurants can be found here. It is a wonderful opportunity to meet people and contribute to a most worthy cause. The participating restaurants cover the entire spectrum of types of cuisine. Should any of you come by 99 Main, PLEASE introduce yourself if I do not already know you.

GOP Congresswoamn Says Matthew Shepard Murder a Hoax

In a statement that is shocking even by homophobic Republican standards, in the debate on the Hate Crimes bill in the House of Representatives, Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) claimed that Matthew Shepard's death was “a hoax.” I am stunned and cannot decide whether Ms. Foxx is just an utterly ignorant fool or if she is so consumed by hatred of gays that facts simply do not matter. In either case, the State of North Carolina and her district in particular should be ashamed to be represented by such an ignorant ass. I can only wonder whether Ms. Foxx believes the earth is flat and that the sun revolves around the earth. The media needs to run with this heinous statement and make sure that it reverberates all over the air waves and the Internet because Ms. Foxx and her statement are the true face of today's GOP. The public really needs to be educated as to just how horrible these people really are. Here's America Blog's take on Foxx's assine statement:

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You will recall that Matthew Shepard was the young gay man in Laramie, Wyoming who, a decade ago, was tied to a fence, Jesus-like, pistol whipped in the head some 50 times, then left for dead in the cold fall night, only to be found a day later clinging to life. Shepard died five days later. Even though Shepard's murderers admitted that they killed him because he was gay, the far-right bigots who control the Republican party couldn't resist the opportunity to gay-bash Shepard one last time. Now by referring to his brutal murder as a hoax.

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The Human Rights Campaign likewise did not mince its words in response Virginia Foxx's hateful statements. Here are some highlights:

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While Matthew’s mother, Judy Shepard looked on from the House gallery, Foxx, who managed the floor for those opposed to the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, spoke saying, “the hate crimes bill that’s called the Matthew Shepard Bill is named after a very unfortunate incident that happened where a young man was killed, but we know that that young man was killed in the commitment of a robbery. It wasn’t because he was gay. This – the bill was named for him, hate crimes bill was named for him, but it’s really a hoax that that continues to be used as an excuse for passing these bills.”

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“Vile lies, like the one spread by Rep. Foxx today on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives about Matthew’s brutal hate-fueled murder, continues to underscore how extreme anti-LGBT opponents have become,” . . . . Media Matters for America has posted video of Rep. Foxx’s remarks today and background information regarding widespread acceptance among the media and others that Matthew’s murder was motivated by hate violence. To view the video and read the background, go to: http://mediamattersaction.org/items/200904290005 .

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Fortunately, the bill passed the House by a wide margin despite the lies put out by Ms. Foxx. Bottom line: if you want to be represented by bigoted, ignorant asses, the GOP is your party. If you have a brain and can process thoughts and information, then you need to be a Democrat or an Independent. The knuckle dragging Neanderthals have truly taken over the GOP.

Wednesday Male Beauty

DC Anti-Gay Marriage Protest Bombs

Maggie Gallagher's wingnut allies among the preacher set in Washington, D.C., held a protest yesterday to protest the tentative approval of recognizing same-sex marriages from states where such marriages are legal. The organizers touted that they'd have a large turn out, but in reality, the event bordered on a farce. As the Washington Post is reporting, instead of thousands turning out, the protest gathered only about 150 attendees. With so many truly pressing problems in the country and in the black community in Washington, D.C., the event's failure to mobilize more than a token turn out hopefully demonstrates that public support is increasingly not behind these bigoted events. Here are some highlights:

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Freedom Plaza was transformed into an intersection of faith and protest yesterday as about 150 people rallied to denounce support for same-sex marriage in the District. "We have to say no to same-sex marriage," said the Rev. George Gilbert, pastor of Holy Trinity United Baptist Church in Northeast Washington, who concluded his remarks by leading a chant: "Not on our watch! Not on our watch! Not on our watch!"

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The Stand Up for Marriage rally was held across the street from the John A. Wilson Building, the seat of city government, and was organized by Bishop Harry Jackson Jr., pastor of Hope Christian Church of Beltsville. Jackson has held similar rallies across the country.

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The mayor said he thinks residents are much more worried about what's happening in their own homes than about same-sex marriage. "They don't have enough time in the day to discriminate or worry about someone else," he said. He reiterated his support of gay marriage. "Everybody is entitled to the same rights," he said.

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A number of gay rights activists attended the rally, standing to the side. Jeffrey Richards, president of the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, took exception to the singing of "We Shall Overcome," an anthem of the civil rights movement, at the conclusion of the rally. He said the gay community is facing discrimination like that opposed by the civil rights movement of the 1950s and '60s. "It is about civil rights. It is about human rights. It is about what is fair," Richards said.

Finding Gay Friendly Legal Counsel

As one of only two attorneys in the area who is openly "out" and not hiding behind the "gay friendly" label, I receive many calls from LGBT residents seeking legal representation in areas of the law that I do not handle. I endeavor to refer these people to other counsel that I know are both competent and gay friendly if not actually gay. Lately, I have been hearing tales of opposing attorneys - particularly in divorce cases - who advertise themselves as "gay friendly" yet who willingly and viciously play the gay card to harm their client's gay former spouse to the maximum extent possible in the divorce case. Obviously, most attorneys who do this hope to prejudice the court and/or brutalizing the opposing party. In this vein, I received a call yesterday from a gay man whose estranged wife is being represented by an allegedly "gay friendly" attorney with a large area firm that advertises on Equality Virginia's legal resource page. This attorney reportedly is playing the gay card for all it is worth in the divorce hearings - even to the point of representing that the gay father can only have supervised visitation. Moreover, he is with a law firm that, in my opinion, is not only extremely homophobic, but would never have an openly gay attorney in its employ.

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Unfortunately, as the economy has nose dived, cynical attorneys and firms that are seeking to bolster falling revenues are waking up to the fact that the gay community is a potentially lucrative market niche. These attorneys and firms in reality care NOTHING for the LGBT community or individual LGBT clients and are after one thing only: gay dollars. As a result, they are not invested in seeing that LGBT clients receive justice in the courts. It's all about money and when a client comes along who wants to engage in vicious gay bashing to win in a case, these attorneys and firms quickly jump right on board (even though such conduct is probably a violation of the Code of Ethics).

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With the growing awareness of the size and purchasing power of the LGBT community, numerous websites are springing up that allow attorneys to advertise themselves as gay friendly (some sites allow the attorney to advertise that they are gay and out) . Similarly, some LGBT organizations such as Equality Virginia, provide legal resource listings as well. The problem is, no one seems to check behind attorneys and firms seeking to be listed. In the situation I mentioned, the Virginia Beach firm has itself listed as a legal resource on Equality Virginia's website.

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So what should the LGBT client seeking legal counsel do? The first advice is to check behind the listing with people in the LGBT community. Is the attorney advertising to the LGBT market out professionally? If not, does the attorney claiming to be "gay friendly" support local LGBT organizations as a member, sponsor or through other means? If in doubt, the LGBT client should call local LGBT organizations to see what, if anything, is known about the attorney advertising to the community. Likewise, call other advertising attorneys in other areas of legal specialization to determine what they know of the attorney/law firm in question. Bottom line: do your homework to make sure you will truly be hiring an attorney who will advocate your case and who is not afraid to call out the opposing counsel and/or the presiding judge if they engage in or allow gay bashing to occur in the case. Gay bashing and playing the gay card is NEVER appropriate. Do not allow yourself to fall victim of a cynical and opportunistic attorney who only wants your money and who will disparage you behind your back while happily taking your money.

Stand By Your Word Mr. President

I am sure that some readers may think me a broken record on the topic of Don't Ask, Don't Tell ("DADT"), but living in an area with a high number of military personnel and knowing a significant number of gays in the military and seeing what this religious based policy does to their lives makes it difficult to remain quiet. In numerous campaign speeches - including one I witnessed in person - Obama gave good lip service to ending DADT. But now that he is in office, it seems that what we got on the campaign trail is another example of the saying "talk is cheap." The lives of honorable members of the military are disrupted and careers continue to be ruined so that frigid Christianists like Elaine Donnelly can feel superior and self-satisfied and reactionary senior military officers can avoid being held accountable for their bigotry. It's not right and it's not fair and the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network ("SLDN") has again called Obama to live up to his promises on the campaign trail. Yes, repealing DADT will take some courage and the reactionary elements will wail and lament, but it's the right thing to do. Here are highlights from SLDN's open letter to Obama:

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There is, however, one campaign promise he's been silent on since he was elected in November: the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell." It's still up there on the White House website. "President Obama agrees with former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff John Shalikashvili and other military experts that we need to repeal the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy," it says. "The key test for military service should be patriotism, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve. Discrimination should be prohibited. The U.S. government has spent millions of dollars replacing troops kicked out of the military because of their sexual orientation. Additionally, more than 300 language experts have been fired under this policy, including more than 50 who are fluent in Arabic. The President will work with military leaders to repeal the current policy and ensure it helps accomplish our national defense goals."There is no ambiguity in that statement.

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If I had five minutes of your time, Mr. President, I would make three points. I would say to you that "don't ask, don't tell" is the only federal law on the books today under which a service member can be discharged for one reason only: because he's gay. He may be the best Arabic translator on the planet, the best pilot, the best battlefield surgeon - but if he's openly gay he runs the risk every day that he'll be reported and discharged - by law - for that reason alone. . . . "This is not a matter of Left and Right. It is not a liberal issue or a conservative issue. It's a matter of what is morally right."

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In order to get rid of it, send your Defense budget to Congress next month without the authorization to enforce this shameful testament to prejudice. Tell Congress "don't ask, don't tell" should go the way of the Jim Crow laws. Defense Secretary Gates and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral Mullen, can't do it for you. In fact, it's obvious they're not going to volunteer for this assignment unless you ask. But almost certainly they will join you if you, as their Commander-in-Chief, propose it.

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It is true that some retired admirals and generals in their 70s and 80s still have the mindsets of the 1950s or before, and it is true that with Elaine Donnelly conducting from the wings they have made some harrumphing noises. Elaine Donnelly probably cares more about keeping gays and lesbians out of the military than anyone in the United States, . . .

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Keep your promise, Mr. President, and ask Congress and the American people to join you in standing against this reprehensible law that tortures every day so many young men and women who want to serve our country. Consign it to the dustbin of history where it belongs.

More Tuesday Male Beauty

Why Women Are Leaving Men for Other Women

Just when the Christianists already have their panties in a total wad over gay marriage, Opray.com and CNN are putting out an article bearing the title of the caption of this post. Personally, I find it hilarious and maybe - if we are lucky - Maggie Gallagher, Matt Barber, Porno Pete and their allies will blow a gasket and keel over. Truth be told, thinking, rational Americans are increasingly accepting legitimate medical and mental health knowledge (as opposed to the fabricated crap put out by fraudulent "experts") that says sexual orientation is inborn. As a result, more and more LGBT Americans are feeling secure enough to accept their own sexual orientation.

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The tide of time and history are not on the side of the homo haters and as the older generation that is not gay friendly dies off, Maggie and company are going to find themselves increasingly isolated. As that happens, I believe we will hear increasingly shrill, hysterical rhetoric from the far right. Here are some highlights from the CNN story:

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Certainly nothing is new about women having sex with women, but we've arrived at a moment in the popular culture when it all suddenly seems almost fashionable -- or at least, acceptable. . . . Binnie Klein, a Connecticut-based psychotherapist and lecturer in Yale's department of psychiatry, agree that alternative relationships are on the rise.

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"It's clear that a change in sexual orientation is imaginable to more people than ever before, and there's more opportunity -- and acceptance -- to cross over the line," says Klein, noting that a half-dozen of her married female patients in the past few years have fallen in love with women. "Most are afraid that if they don't go for it, they'll end up with regrets."

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"When a taboo is lifted or diminished, it's going to leave people freer to pursue things," she says.
"So it makes sense that we would see women, for all sorts of reasons, walking through that door now that the culture has cracked it open. Of course, we shouldn't imagine that we're living in a world where all sexual choices are possible. Just look at the cast of 'The L Word' and it's clear that only a certain kind of lesbian -- slim and elegant or butch in just the right androgynous way -- is acceptable to mainstream culture."

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This idea, that the libido can wander back and forth between genders, Diamond admits, may be threatening and confusing to those with conventional beliefs about sexual orientation. But when the women she's interviewed explain their feelings, it doesn't sound so wild. Many of them say, for example, they are attracted to the person, and not the gender -- moved by traits like kindness, intelligence, and humor, which could apply to a man or a woman. Most of all, they long for an emotional connection. And if that comes by way of a female instead of a male, the thrill may override whatever heterosexual orientation they had.

Will the GOP Get the Message?

For a long time now I have been saying that the Republican Party seems to have a death wish in terms of do its best to cease being a viable national party. It seems with each passing day that the GOP party base is more controlled by far right extremists and religious fanatics, leaving less and less room for moderate - and in my view, rational - members of the Party. I, like many gay former Republicans, exited the party a number of years ago as gay bashing and infusing religion into the party platform began in earnest. This last national election all of my extended family members - many of whom were formerly Republicans - voted a Democrat ticket out of disgust for what has happened to the GOP. While Arlen Specter's change of parties to join the Democrats was most certainly motivated by some level of self interest, but what he had to say about what has happened to the GOP is all too true. The GOP is fast headed towards being a regional, religion based party. Thinking, rational people see it happening, yet the Kool-Aid drinking GOP base remain oblivious. Will Specter's departure wake them up? I doubt it. Here are some highlights from the Washington Post on Specter's change of parties:

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How much more can the Republicans take? Demoralized, shrinking and seemingly lacking an agenda beyond the word "no," Republicans today saw their ranks further thinned with the stunning news that Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter is switching parties and will run for reelection in 2010 as a Democrat. Specter is worried about his own survival -- and particularly a primary challenge from the right. Many in the GOP might say good riddance.

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But his defection is a reminder that the Republican Party continues to contract, especially outside the South, and that it appears increasingly less welcome to politicians and voters who do not consider themselves solidly conservative. Northeast Republicans have gone from an endangered species to a nearly extinct species. Republicans lost ground in the Rocky Mountains and the Midwest in the last two elections. That's no way to build a national party.

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The Republicans have many demographic challenges as they plot their comeback. Obama has attracted strong support from young voters and Latinos -- two keys to the future for both parties and once part of the GOP's calculation for sustaining themselves in power. Suburban voters have moved toward the Democrats. Specter can see that problem acutely in the suburbs around his home in Philadelphia

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Reihan Salam, co-author of "Grand New Party: How Republicans Can Win the Working Class and Save America," said this week that the danger for Republicans is to believe they now represent a vast, silent majority that is waiting to reassert itself. A louder voice from a smaller cadre of supporters is not the answer, he warned. That will just prevent Republicans from, reassessing their old agenda, developing new ideas and once again learning to reach out broadly.

Tuesday Male Beauty

Miss California Continues to Prove She's an Ignorant Ass

I have not said too much about the Miss USA Pageant and Kool-Aid drinker Carrie Prejean, but the more she talks, the more she shows her ignorance and the dishonesty that is the hallmark of her chosen form of Christian faith. Everyone is free to hold whatever religious beliefs that they want, but one would hope that they would at least check out the lies they are parroting before looking foolish on national television. Turns out that Ms. Prejean's church traffics in discredited lies and bogus research disseminated by Paul Cameron. Since Cameron and his alleged research work have been discredited for over THIRTY (30) YEARS, there is little excuse for reciting his lies unless one is acting from bigotry. The Christianists may want to hold up Ms. Prejean as a role model, but I think she's going to ultimately become a huge negative for the hate merchants. Here are some highlights from America Blog and Holly Bullies and Headless Monsters that exposes just how dishonest Ms. Prejean and her church are in this instance. First, here's America Blog's take:

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I think the religious right's newest bimbo mascot isn't going to be doing any more media for a while after this revelation. Alvin from Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters found the following (and lots more) on the Web site of Miss California's church:

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There are also moral repercussions stemming from homosexual behavior as evidenced by the fact that one third of all sexual crimes against children are committed by homosexuals even though they are representative of only one percent of the population. Pedophilia has even been called central to the gay lifestyle. The agenda of the North American Man Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) is to lower the age of consent so that sex with children will be legal.

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For anyone living under a rock, the homosexuality-pedophilia canard was debunked three decades ago.

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As a supposed role model for young women - at least in the minds of some, although I don't support blonde bimbo's as role models - one would think that Prejean might have done a little research before opening her mouth, particularly since she apparently knew the questions asked might come up. But no. She just went with this kind of crap described by Holly Bullies and Headless Monsters put out by her church:

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Someone has alerted me to the fact that her church, The Rock Church of San Diego, uses junk science in order to villify the lgbt community.

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I looked at the church’s webpage and found there to be a lot of inaccurate information, particularly regarding gays and HIV:male homosexuals are 430 times more likely to contract HIV than a heterosexual, while heterosexuals have a 1-in-750,000 chance of contracting the virus responsible for HIV, a male homosexual has a 1-in-165 chance of getting HIV. A 20 year old gay male has a 30% chance of either dying or contracting AIDS before the age of 30. They are also 23 times more likely to get other sexually transmitted diseases than a heterosexual.

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But it’s the next section that caught my eye like a blinking light:

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There are also moral repercussions stemming from homosexual behavior as evidenced by the fact that one third of all sexual crimes against children are committed by homosexuals even though they are representative of only one percent of the population. Pedophilia has even been called central to the gay lifestyle. The agenda of the North American Man Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) is to lower the age of consent so that sex with children will be legal.

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The idea that homosexuality and pedophilia are linked is a lie that has been refuted continuously. The American Psychological Association, the National Association of Social Workers, the American Academy of Child Psychiatrists and the Child Welfare League of America all say that the homosexuality and pedophilia are not linked.So where did that notion come from? The discredited researcher Paul Cameron.

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It looks to me as if the Rock Church is precisely the type of church that over time will drive thinking people from organized religion. Lies and deliberate ones at that do not exactly jive with the Gospel message of Christ. I hope that ultimately, Ms. Prejean will get her head out of her ass and perhaps do some independent study before she shoots her mouth off further.