Final Saturday Male Beauty

False Claims of Right to Privacy Loom Over Gay Rights Vote

I am not one who is afraid to say what I think and publicly put myself out in support or opposition of matters about which I believe passionately. Some, however, are cowards and prefer to work against others and figuratively stab them in the back while safely remaining anonymous - or at least hoping to stay anonymous. Such is the case of the anti-gay Christo-fascists in Washington State who signed petitions to set the stage for the potential extinguishment of civil rights for same sex couples but who now don't want the world to see their handiwork and know that they are bigots. I n short, they are the worse kind of gutless cowards. One of the supposed keystones to America's legal system is that one have the right to know the name of your accuser and to have the ability to cross examine them. In the context of ballot initiatives, the Christianists want to do their dirty work unseen and without any accountability. It's not right and one could even argue that it's un-American. The New York Times looks at the legal efforts of those in Washington State who seek to undo the rights of other citizens, but lack the balls and decency to be identified. Here are some story highlights:

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At a time when voters in many states are using petitions to qualify ballot measures on issues from gay rights to property rights, a legal dispute over the identity of 138,000 petition signers here is raising new questions about privacy, free speech and elections in the Internet age.

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On Tuesday, voters in Washington State will decide whether to extend to registered domestic partners the same rights married couples have, short of marriage. But the campaign over the referendum, placed on the ballot by opponents of same-sex marriage, has been overshadowed by one issue: whether the individual names of the petitioners should be made public, and ultimately, circulated on the Web.

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The case, legal experts say, could chart new territory well beyond Washington State. The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which had ordered the release of the signatures, said the case presented “novel questions of whether referendum petition signatures are protected speech under the First Amendment.”

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Some advocates for releasing the names who support the expansion of the state’s domestic partnership rights say they want to post the names of petition signers as a check against fraud but also to encourage potentially “uncomfortable” conversations with the people who signed the petitions.

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Signing a petition, these groups say, can be a step toward making law, and in fact, many ballot measures are intended to bypass or override the legislative process. That argument echoes one made by the Washington secretary of state’s office, which was barred by the courts from releasing the names even though the state’s public records law does not exempt the signatures from release; the office has released names of petition signers on other ballot measures in the past. “Our disclosure law demands that we know who’s influencing the legislative process,” said David Ammons, a spokesman for Secretary of State Sam Reed, a Republican.

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Opponents of releasing the names, led by Protect Marriage Washington, the group behind the referendum, say gay rights groups are threatening free speech by intimidating petition signers.

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The names need to be released and if the anti gay Chritianists are too cowardly to have their names disclosed, then maybe they need to rethink what they are doing. Their lack of courage of their convictions is telling.

Pat Robertson on Hate Crimes Law: 'The Noose Has Tightened Around the Necks of Christians'

If the civic and economic leaders of the cities of the Hampton Roads area of Virginia wanted to devise an advertising campaign of why NOT to move to the region, they would be hard put to outdo the daily lunacy broadcast by Pat Robertson and Christian Broadcasting Network. The man exudes hate and intolerance and a disdain for anyone who doesn't adhere to his religious beliefs - or at least those he publicly espouses (Rumor has it that he's been seen at the Greenbrier Resort in the bar absolutely hammered). But despite what Robertson does when off camera, he, CBN and Regent University give a nonstop air of religious fanaticism to the whole region. In this time of economic down turn when cities and regions are working to make themselves appear attractive to new business, Robertson is a huge negative. Think Progress has a piece on brother Pat's latest episode of diarrhea of the mouth as he went over the edge condemning the recently passed Hate Crimes law. Here are some highlights, plus a video of Pat's foul ranting:

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Yesterday [October 29, 2009] on the Christian Broadcasting Network, televangelist Pat Robertson aired a segment slamming President Obama for signing the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law. Extending hate crimes protection to the gay and transgendered community, Robertson argued, was a targeted attack on homophobic Christians like himself. Robertson said the new law is the latest example of a “noose” tightening around “the necks of Christians.” Later in the segment, he implied Democrats in Congress were “opposed to many of the fundamental Christian beliefs.



Sadly, too many of the leaders of the region's cities do nothing to counter the toxic picture of the region spread by Robertson. What progressive businesses or individuals want to live in a region that harbors such a vile mindset towards other citizens? In fact, Mayor Paul Fraim of Norfolk appears to be an out right homophobe who will find any excuse to avoid attending a HRBOR networking event. Even though the GLBT community has been a driving force in restoring Norfolk's historic neighborhoods that had become hell holes. In contrast, the mayors of Virginia Beach and Hampton have been open minded and attended, with Virginia Beach's Will Sessoms reminding me the last time we saw each other to let him know when the next event would take place in Virginia Beach so that he can attend. Here's HRBOR's less than threatening mission statement that seems to terrorize Mayor Fraim:

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Hampton Roads Business OutReach (HRBOR) is a broad based coalition of LGBT owned and LGBT supportive businesses and professionals dedicated to the development, growth and advocacy of Hampton Roads and its LGBT community. By promoting an environment in which diversity can flourish, HRBOR is committed to the economic growth and prosperity of our members and our community.

More Saturday Male Beauty

George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham - Champion of Religious Liberty.

I always find it hysterical that the most pernicious homophobes of the Christian Right almost invariably have their King James Version of the Bible firmly in their hands as they rant and condemn gays. That version of the Bible was edited by a group assembled by King James I of England (pictured at left) who was notorious for his various boyfriends, one of whom was the 1st Duke of Buckingham. The mentally untethered homophobes always have the vapors and go into near convulsions of denial when confronted with the fact that their beloved version of the Bible was edited under the auspices of a flaming queen. It was said by his contemporaries that it was said of him that Elizabeth was King, now James is Queen (Rex fuit Elizabeth, nunc est regina Jacobus). The historical truth is that it was James I who convened the Hampton Court Conference for the purpose of resolving issues with Bible translations then being used in England. Talk about divine justice.

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In any event, Patricia Nell Warren has a wonderful piece at The Bilerico Project that looks at not only how the Dukes of Buckingham received a great deal of their fortune - i.e., as gifts from King James I to his lover, the 1st Duke - but also the role the 2nd Duke played in the push for religious liberty in Great Britain throughout the turmoil of the overthrow and then restoration of the British monarchy. It is a long post but one that is worth the read for history lovers. Here are a few highlights:

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Seldom do LGBT historians have the chance to write about pre-1800 historical figures whose orientation was clearly non-hetero. Even more seldom do we dwell on bisexuals, since bisexuality is such a divisive political issue with some of us. So I can't let our History Month pass without a hat tip to a bisexual of the 17th century -- He haa statesman who helped establish a radical new idea called "religious liberty" in both Olde England and the brand-new United States. I'm referring to George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham.s been described as "one of the most scandalous and controversial figures of the Restoration."

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As I researched the Duke's many-faceted life, I was surprised to note the passion for religious liberty that dominated the final years of his life. George Villiers forged a powerful connection with the Quakers, and made some major public efforts to stop persecution of Quakers and other dissenters by an Anglican-dominated Parliament. The great Quaker founder of Pennsylvania, William Penn, was a friend of Villiers. Indeed -- Penn and his ideas about tolerance and democracy might not have made it to America if he hadn't been championed by the Duke of Buckingham.

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George inherited the greatest family fortune in England -- and a family history that was already notorious for its sexual nonconformity. His father, the 1st Duke of Buckingham, had dared to be openly gay in the early 1600s -- though married and a father, he was also the beloved "favorite" and "wife" of King James I for more than a dozen years. Indeed, the 1st Duke was so hated by English puritans that, after James Stuart died and was no longer there to protect him, the 1st Duke was assassinated in 1628. Young George's sister Mary Villiers became a bold proto-feminist figure at court, with her fondness for dueling and men's clothes, and some lesbian-themed poetry that has been attributed to her.

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George had progressive views on many issues. He was sympathetic to the Quakers, whose pacifism and simple approach to spiritual things were appealing to him. Hundreds of Quakers were being imprisoned, tortured and hung for their refusal to kowtow to Anglican demands. For George, the core issue was coercion -- the willingness of a ruling religious elite to force its beliefs on their subjects by any and all means necessary. Admiral Penn's son William -- a brilliant, charismatic, highly educated young man -- had emerged as a Quaker convert and leader. Young Penn had become a friend of George's, and shared his horror of coercion.

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When Penn was arrested for the illegal act of preaching a Quaker sermon in public, he spent 14 months in solitary confinement in the Tower of London. From his freezing jail cell, he sent a message to King Charles saying, "The Tower was the worst argument in the world to convince me; for whoever was in the wrong, those who used force for religion never could be in the right."
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By 1674, Parliament aimed to destroy the political influence of that dangerous new advocate of religious liberty, the Duke of Buckingham . . . Since George had a cat-like ability to land on his feet, he rebounded as leader of something unheard-of in English history -- an opposition party that openly advocated religious freedom. . . .

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In 1675 the Duke kept a promise he'd made to William Penn and introduced a bill in Parliament that would stop persecution of Quakers and other sects. George's bill was scuttled. But England had now decided to get rid of the troublesome Quakers in a less bloody way -- by letting them emigrate to the New World. Now the shiploads of persecuted minorities -- not just Quakers but Huguenots, Mennonites, Amish, Catholics, Lutherans, and Jews -- began streaming to the new colony. William Penn boarded ship with them.

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But by 1678, the Duke of Buckingham was in deeper trouble, as England veered into a national hysteria over something called the "Popist plot." . . . Buckingham's enemies tried to implicate him in these alleged conspiracies. They charged that George had committed sodomy with a young Popist conspirator named Philip Le Mar. . . . Eventually the charges were dropped. On May 21, 1680, George was freed from the Tower for the last time.

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Later that year [1685] , from his stable door, hoping to inspire the new king to a public display of greater tolerance, the Duke fired one last cannon shot at the church establishment. He published a pamphlet titled "A short Discourse on the Reasonableness of Man's having a Religion." In it he asked this question: "whether there be anything more directly opposite to the doctrine and practice of Jesus Christ, than to use any kind of force upon men, in matters of religion?" In short, he accused those who used force of being anti-Christian.

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Buckingham's pamphlet went viral around the country and stirred up a firestorm of discussion. Ten other political writers weighed in, and a pamphlet war was on. William Penn -- ever the Duke's loyal friend -- was back in England on Quaker business and he bravely went to George's rescue, when he published his own "Defence of the Duke of Buckingham's Book of Religion & Worship."

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The new King thumbed his nose at Parliament by staging a magnificent state funeral for the Duke. George joined his gay father and his college love Abraham Cowley among the quiet tombs of Westminster Abbey.

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That Buckingham Legacy

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Villiers' pamphlet may have circulated into colonial Virginia as well [asPennsylvania]. There, many royalist refugees had settled during the English Civil Wars -- including some of the Fairfaxes and the Washingtons, two old Yorkshire families that were closely related to the Villierses. Virginia's own Buckingham County is said to have been named after the Duke. General Washington himself, who was something of a churchgoer but also a staunch Freemason, had strong feelings about religious liberty and made blunt statements about the evils of coercion. Writing to Jews in Rhode Island in 1790, our first President said: "The Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection, should demean themselves as good citizens."

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[A]long with the right to religious liberty, the other thing that George [Villers] was clear about -- and that today's LGBT community is also clear about -- is the right to live your life somewhere outside the pale of heterosexual conformism.

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Would that the modern day equivalents of the despotic Church of England leaders of Villers' time would follow George Washington's views on religious freedom. It is more than ironic that as I sit typing this post within a mile of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, Virginia is faced with the propect of perhaps electing far right Republicans who reject the concept of religious freedom for all citizens to the offices of Governor and Attorney General. Jefferson and Washington must be rolling over in their graves. Personally, I find it most troubling.

What's Wrong With Being Gay?

A column in the San Francisco Chronicle that looks at the Christian Right's jihad against Kevin Jennings, the assistant deputy secretary of education, who heads the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, raises a good question. Namely, what's wrong with being gay? The answer is nothing at all unless one subscribes to ignorance and bigotry based on few passages from an ancient,often historically inaccurate, much edited and modified writing known as the Bible. Same sex attraction has been documented to exist in virtually hundreds of animal species and increasingly has been shown to be an innate as opposed to learned phenomenon in humans. You either are gay or you are not - it does NOT changes despite the claims of snake oil merchant like preachers, many of whom are out to make a quick buck off of the fears of others. Hence, there is nothing to "promote" despite the claims of the theocrats. Moreover, the fact that religious based ignorance and bigotry is allowed to attempt to influence science and public policy in a nation that claims to guarantee religious freedom to ALL is a travesty - and evidence that much of America's promise to its citizens continues to be a fraud. Here are some highlights:

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Let's suppose, for a moment, that conservative critics are correct: Gay educators want to "promote homosexuality" in American schools. So what? That's the real question behind the recent attacks on Kevin Jennings, the assistant deputy secretary of education, who heads the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools. Fifty-three House Republicans signed a letter Oct. 15 calling on President Obama to fire Jennings, who founded the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in 1990. According to its critics, GLSEN spreads "the gay agenda" - that is, it tries to make more people gay.

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By denying the charge that they're promoting homosexuality, gay activists implicitly endorse the idea that there would be something wrong if they were promoting it. . . . But none of this should matter, he quickly added. One day, Jennings said, "most straight people, when they would hear that someone was promoting homosexuality, would say, 'Yeah, who cares?' because they wouldn't necessarily equate homosexuality with something bad that you would not want to promote."

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So the real question isn't whether Jennings and other educators want to promote homosexuality. It's about being gay, and whether there's anything wrong with that. And on that question, Americans remain deeply divided. So I have a proposition: Let's have a full and free airing of the question in America's high schools.

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I believe that increasingly such discussions are happening in the nations' high schools and that in many cases, the students decide that there is nothing wrong with being gay - something that scares the daylights out of the Christianists who subconsciously know that they are losing the "culture wars." Meanwhile, I have to wonder about the mental issues that make Christianist strive to make others live their lives in misery and self-hate merely because we do not subscribe to their intolerant religious beliefs. These folks say that its the gays who are sick, but in reality it is they themselves who are sick spiritually and in some cases mentally (e.g., think Randall Terry and Peter LaBarbera).

Saturday Male Beauty

Weenkend Reflections

We are in Charlottesville this morning - we came up for my mother's 82nd birthday and will go to my sister's home for a get together later in the day. Fall is one of the most beautiful times of the year here and the foliage is much more vibrant than what we get in the coastal Tidewater area of Virgina. The photo above is a view of Jefferson's Monticello which is about a mile or less from my mother's home. Obviously, being here brings back many memories of college and law school and my dad who died a little over three years ago.

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It's been an emotional week - my son and his girlfriend moved back to Washington State. I think that after living out there for a while now he really could not stand Virginia's relative backwardness and its social conservatism. Sadly, I did not get to see him while he was here despite my attempts to get together with him. The fact that he and my oldest child will not even talk with me hurts beyond description and certainly doesn't help my issues with depression. I try to stay focused on my relationship with my youngest daughter who has never severed the lines of communication. She and the boyfriend have been my lifeline.

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I've been on the new meds for almost a month and really don't know if they are helping or not. I haven't gone into meltdown mode, so perhaps they are. Yet, I still have moments of deep depression and fleeting thoughts of a final solution. Some days I just do not feel I have the energy to go on, so I try to focus on one day at a time. The financial strain of the bad economy and making payments to the ex-wife are a definite downer. I realize that many others are suffering in this economy, but it does wear one down over time. At the office we continue to market to growing niche markets and thankfully my Hindu clients are staying active in their business transactions. The GLBT community also continues to be a steady source of clients.

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As for the boyfriend, he is a true gift from God. I'm nor sure what he sees in me, but it is obviously something far different than my image of myself. The running joke is that I hope he never recovers from "his head trauma." He is a kind, sweet and generous man and I know that I am very lucky to have him in my life. He even puts up with my other mistress - this blog. Although blogging has allowed us to have some amazing experiences such as the LGBT Blogger Summit last year and access at the National Equality March that we otherwise would never have had.

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So, live goes on a day at a time.

Ken Cuccinelli's Homophobia - The Face of Bigotry

Queerty has a good post up on Ken "I'm a Bigot" Cuccinelli that puts a strong focus on just how extreme a Christianist the GOP candidate for Attorney General is once looks behind his carefully scripted camapaign ads. If the prospect of Taliban Bob McDonnell as Governor is scrary, the thought of Cuccinnelli as Attorney General is absolutely terrifying and ought to be making all but the extreme base of the GOP have difficulty sleeping at night. The fact that Cuccinelli won the nomination for the AG slot on the ticket demonstrates just how out of the mainstream the Republican Party of Virginia has become. Unfortunately, the MSM - which in my view is for the most part (other than the Washington Post) increasingly lazy and worthless in terms of doing anything but parroting candidates' talking points - has done little to expose the disingenuousness of both McDonnell's and Cuccinelli's campaigns and has allowed them to commit a fraud on the voting public. Here are some highlights from Queerty:

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Virginia's Attorney General hopeful Ken Cuccinelli, the Republican facing off against Steve Shannon, is the type of social conservative you people love! He wants to give legal rights to fetuses at conception and favors restrictions that would all but shutter many abortion clinics. Oh, and he doesn't want any of you homos pleasuring yourselves.

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It's not that gay people are abhorrent, says Cuccinelli. Just their sex lives: "My view is that homosexual acts, not homosexuality, but homosexual acts are wrong. They’re intrinsically wrong. And I think in a natural law based country it’s appropriate to have policies that reflect that. . .

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His comments, sadly, are typical. But we're sort of loving what's happened since those remarks went public: A newspaper of record has gone, uh, on the record identifying Cuccinelli's statements sans bullshit, cherry coating, and fluff as this: bigotry.

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Kudos to the Washington Post, for this: "Putting aside what Mr. Cuccinelli has to say about homosexuals when he's not trying so hard to be polite, let's call his comments what they are: bigotry. Bigotry is as pernicious today, applied to homosexuals, as it was a century ago or less, when immigrants and minorities were its main victims. And it is just as familiar. Appeals to 'natural law' and 'intrinsic' rights and wrongs were the usual cliches deployed to justify the old-time religion of hatred then directed at African Americans, Jews, Italians, Irish and other immigrants."
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We want more of this. More branding of such rhetoric not as "religious beliefs" or "conservative values," but as "hate speech" and "bigotry." We're no longer talking about "opposing viewpoints"; this is a matter of right and wrong.

Friday Male Beauty

Christianist Loons and Halloween

Each year Halloween sends many far right Christians completely over the edge - not that many aren't already there - and they begin to spout all kinds of lunacy and seek to prevent their children from being exposed to "paganism" and devil worship that they see lurking behind the otherwise fun holiday. It definitely demonstrates just how untethered from objective reality these folks can be and would almost be funny but for the fact that these people are on the loose, vote, are raising children, etc. Of course, some of the leading Christianist demagogues always feel compelled to get in on the act, including our local embarrassment Pat Robertson and his fellow loons at CBN who had been promoting (the link on CBN's website is not working at the moment) a crazy article by one Kimberly Daniels that appeared in Charisma Magazine. Daddy Dobson's Focus on the Family likewise has articles on how to avoid the paganism of the dangerous day. Here are some highlights from Ms. Daniels' unhinged article:
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The word "holiday" means "holy day." But there is nothing holy about Halloween. The root word of Halloween is "hallow," which means "holy, consecrated and set apart for service." If this holiday is hallowed, whose service is it set apart for? The answer to that question is very easy—Lucifer's! Lucifer is a part of the demonic godhead. Remember, everything God has, the devil has a counterfeit. Halloween is a counterfeit holy day that is dedicated to celebrating the demonic trinity of : the Luciferian Spirit (the false father); the Antichrist Spirit (the false holy spirit); and the Spirit of Belial (the false son). The key word in discussing Halloween is "dedicated." It is dedicated to darkness and is an accursed season. During Halloween, time-released curses are always loosed. A time-released curse is a period that has been set aside to release demonic activity and to ensnare souls in great measure.
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I do not buy candy during the Halloween season. Curses are sent through the tricks and treats of the innocent whether they get it by going door to door or by purchasing it from the local grocery store. The demons cannot tell the difference. Even the colors of Halloween (orange, brown and dark red) are dedicated. These colors are connected to the fall equinox, which is around the 20th or 21st of September each year and is sometimes called "Mabon." During this season witches are celebrating the changing of the seasons from summer to fall. They give praise to the gods for the demonic harvest. They pray to the gods of the elements (air, fire, water and earth).
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Halloween is much more than a holiday filled with fun and tricks or treats. It is a time for the gathering of evil that masquerades behind the fictitious characters of Dracula, werewolves, mummies and witches on brooms. The truth is that these demons that have been presented as scary cartoons actually exist. I have prayed for witches who are addicted to drinking blood and howling at the moon.
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The danger of Halloween is not in the scary things we see but in the secret, wicked, cruel activities that go on behind the scenes. These activities include:
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Sex with demons
Orgies between animals and humans
Animal and human sacrifices
Sacrificing babies to shed innocent blood
Rape and molestation of adults, children and babies
Revel nights
Conjuring of demons and casting of spells
Release of "time-released" curses against the innocent and the ignorant.
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What's truly frightening is that it is people like Ms. Daniels, Pat Robertson and James Dobson that have been knowingly courted by the GOP and who now control that political party. These folks need some serious mental health counseling and some strong medications to boot.

Washington Post Calls Cuccinelli an Extremist

Yet another major newspaper has called Ken "I'm a total kook" Cuccinelli out for the extremist and nutcase that he is. Why it has taken so long is baffling given Cuccinelli's consistent record of religious extremist positions both in the General Assembly and in his statements around Virginia. To use Pam Spaulding's terminology, he's batshit crazy. One can only wonder what type of lunacy might ensue should Cuccinelli be elected to the Office of Attorney General since he is basically a refined version of Fred Phelps. Should Taliban Bob McDonnell and Kook Cuccinelli win next week, a very strong message will be sent to the world that Virginia is a reactionary and bigoted state- and that progressive businesses and anyone who is not white, far right Christian, and straight might be well advised to avoid the state entirely. As I have said before, but for our businesses and elderly parents, the boyfriend and I would seriously consider leaving Virginia. Here are some highlights from the Washington Post column:

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KENNETH CUCCINELLI, the Republican candidate for Virginia state attorney general, believes it's "appropriate" to formulate public policy on the premise that homosexuals engage in behavior that is "intrinsically wrong" and offensive to "natural law." His comments -- which retrofit the old rhetoric of racism, bias and intolerance in a new context -- were made in an interview with the Virginian-Pilot, a newspaper in Norfolk. Homosexual acts, said Mr. Cuccinelli, currently a state senator, are "intrinsically wrong. And I think in a natural law-based country it's appropriate to have policies that reflect that. . . . They don't comport with natural law. I happen to think that it represents (to put it politely; I need my thesaurus to be polite) behavior that is not healthy to an individual and in aggregate is not healthy to society."
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[L]et's call his comments what they are: bigotry. Bigotry is as pernicious today, applied to homosexuals, as it was a century ago or less, when immigrants and minorities were its main victims. And it is just as familiar. Appeals to "natural law" and "intrinsic" rights and wrongs were the usual cliches deployed to justify the old-time religion of hatred then directed at African Americans, Jews, Italians, Irish and other immigrants.
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It is especially alarming that this ugly nonsense is coming from Mr. Cuccinelli, who, if he becomes the attorney general of Virginia -- a job that combines aspects of chief government lawyer and top cop -- would be in a position to act on it. . . . As a lawmaker in Richmond, he has displayed contempt for non-English speakers; for those who care about global warming; and for the First Amendment. Many of his fellow Republicans regard him as occupying the far-right fringe of the party, the ultimate small tenter. The more immediate concern is this: If he is elected attorney general, Mr. Cuccinelli would drive away qualified lawyers from an office that functions as the state government's law firm, and, given his bizarre ideas, he would very likely become an embarrassment for the commonwealth.

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All well said and unfortunately 100% true. I pray that voters will grasp the far right extremism of Cuccinelli's views and that he would be a disaster for Virginia if elected. For non-Virginian readers PLEASE urge your family and friends in Virginia to get out and vote against Cuccinelli.

Shouldn't the Laws Protect GLBT Americans Who Haven't Been Victims of Violence?

Do not misunderstand. I am thrilled that the federal government has finally signed a hate crimes bill into law that affords GLBT citizens the same hate crimes protections that others - inckluding our enemies among the Christian Right - have enjoyed for years. Sadly, however, the new protections only kick in once one has been the victim of anti-gay violence. In the majority of states, we can still be fired at will, subjected to discrimination in housing and a host of other areas of daily life, and our relationships are ignored or denied any legal status. The Washington Post has a column that looks at this sad reality and ask the question of why can't Congress act to protect us BEFORE we have been hurt and brutalized. It is a valid question and one that makes the recently passed hate crimes legislation appear to be a less than major victory in relative terms. Will this new federal legislation break the log jam and induce Congress to act on ENDA and the repeal of DOMA and DADT? Only time will tell. Meanwhile, the USA slips further down the list of progressive countries. Here are some column highlights:

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When President Obama signed the Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law Wednesday, human rights advocates across the country won a decent, but insufficient, victory. At face value, the bill is but a reluctant acknowledgment that Americans assaulted because of their sexual orientation are indeed victims of bigotry. Adding insult to injury, the measure had to be attached to a defense spending bill just to pass. Is this the best Congress can muster when it comes to advancing gay rights?
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Such legislation will not bring back to life Matthew Shepard or James Byrd Jr., the slain men for whom the act is named. Nor will it make Jack Price -- the gay New Yorker beaten nearly to death this month -- any less battered. The law morbidly protects gays only after they have been attacked; any consideration for their safety and human rights before such an occurrence still seems a congressional afterthought.
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Put another way, our nation's dead and hospitalized homosexuals, bisexuals and transgendered people are receiving after-the-fact sympathies, while the healthy gays and lesbians among us are expected to suffer from the same root discrimination. Are rights advocates expected to remain patient, even happy, about such progress?
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It is wrong to ask gay Americans to wait until every future war is won, every societal ill is treated and every business is booming before being granted equal protection under law; it is equally disturbing to think that today, one must be a victim of a hate crime before receiving such consideration. Is it too much to ask for more, sooner rather than later?

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I agree with the column's author completely and I hope all readers in the USA will contact their members of Congress and demand that ENDA and the repeal of DOMA and DADT move forward NOW - not sometime in the future when "convenient."

More Thursday Male Beauty

Argentina Considers Same-Sex Marriage

In yet another instance that demonstrates that the promises of liberty and justice here in the USA are false and not in keeping with the nation's founding documents, now Argentina's Congress is about to consider allowing same sex marriage in that country. Meanwhile, the USA cannot even get an employment non-discrimination bill through Congress that would prevent the summary firing of GLBT employees in the majority of states that still do not protect their GLBT citizens from discrimination. Argentina's capital, Buenos Aires, already allows civil unions between same sex couples. As is all too typical, the leading opponent of full civil legal equality for GLBT couples is the scandal ridden and morally bankrupt Roman Catholic Church. which seems to hope that by condemning gays it can divert attention from the Church's moral failings. Here are some highlights from Google News:

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Is Argentina ready to become Latin America's first nation to legalize gay marriage? Gay and lesbian activists think so — and they have a growing number of supporters in Congress, which opened debate Thursday on whether to change dozens of laws that define marriage as a union between a "man and woman."
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It remains to be seen whether they have enough votes to overcome opposition from religious groups. The Roman Catholic Church remains a driving force in Argentina, where presidents were required to be both married and Catholic until a 1994 reform. Some Catholic and evangelical Christian groups have accused the government of trying to subvert the natural order of life, promote perversions and destroy the family as an institution. "This should not be understood as the denial of anyone's rights," said Archbishop Jose Maria Arancedo of Santa Fe, who took a gentler tone in a recent radio address. "It's possible both to be progressive and to defend the family, founded on the institution of marriage."
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Argentina's capital established its gay-friendly reputation in 2002 by becoming the first Latin American city to legalize same-sex civil unions. Four other Argentine cities later did the same, and such unions also now are recognized in Mexico City and some Mexican and Brazilian states. Uruguay alone has legalized civil unions nationwide.
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"The opinion of religious leaders who dictate how other people should lead their lives should apply only to those who share their creed, and not to the rest of society," Rachid said during an interview with Castro in the Buenos Aires apartment they share with their dog, Lola. "We don't need a law to define us as a couple — we've already been a couple for more than 10 years," Castro added. "We just want to have equal rights." If the law passes, they plan to be first in line for a marriage license.

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Truth be told, the sooner that the religious beliefs of a particular religious faction are totally removed from the civil laws - both in the USA and in other countries - the sooner true democracy and religious freedom will be achieved. Like it or not, the Christianists and Catholic clerics who seek to impose their beliefs on all of society are really no different that the Taliban and Islamic Extremists.

Companies Growing More GLBT friendly

The lunatics over at WingNutDaily are bleating once again over the fact that the number of large corporations in the USA that are gay accepting and/or provide domestic partner benefits, etc., continues to grow steadily. The theocrats forget that companies are in business to MAKE MONEY and PROFITS for their shareholders as opposed to furthering a religious based jihad against GLBT citizens. Given the current economy, companies have all the more motivation to market to all market niches that contain potential purchasers/customers, including the GLBT community. While it is a common sense business approach, the wingnuts continue to get their panties in a wad over businesses doing what makes good business sense and in the process not treating GLBT citizens as garbage as the Christianists desire. Here are some highlights from the WND rant (Note how we are considered a "lifestyle" choice as opposed to merely being who God made us to be):
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Despite an economy languishing in high unemployment and low consumer confidence, more American companies are jumping on the bandwagon to provide support for homosexual and transgender employees. More than 300 firms have now received perfect 100 percent scores in this fall's Corporate Equality Index, produced annually by the Human Rights Campaign which ranks businesses on their "treatment" of employees who have chosen homosexual, lesbian, bisexual and transgender lifestyles. The list, which saw a 20 percent increase this year in the number of perfect scores, includes newcomers such as theater giant AMC Entertainment, Costco, Delta Air Lines, Food Lion and General Mills.
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Interestingly, that attitude is from the same company whose head, casino mogul Steve Wynn, recently complained the left-leaning policies of President Obama are not just wrong, they're also dangerous. "They are trying to change the basic fabric of American life without preparation, homework or experience. And they're trying to intimidate everybody," Wynn told the Las Vegas Sun. Other well-known companies which are new to the perfect-score list this year include Alcoa, JetBlue Airways, LexisNexis, Monsanto, Pacific Life Insurance, Procter & Gamble and UnitedHealth Group. The report claims "impressive gains" in policies and protections across the board, but especially for transgender workers.

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In 2002, the year it was first published, the CEI noted just 5 percent of businesses banned discrimination based on gender identity or expression. The 2010 report shows that figure has increased exponentially, now standing at 72 percent. See this year's full list of companies scoring 100 percent.
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Slowly but surely, businesses are waking up to the fact that bigotry and intolerance are bad for the bottom line. Hopefully, our legislator will open their eyes and follow the lead of the leaders of the business community who are figuring out that religious based bigotry needs to be removed from the workplace. In the meanwhile, expect the shrillness of the homophobes and Christianists to intensify as they slide into the waste heap of history.

In "Prosperity" Finland and Scandinavia Out Rank USA

It is interesting that the Christianist crowd in the USA seems to always like to deride the countries in Scandinavia for being "ungodly" and too gay friendly, yet a new study that looks at the prosperity of nations ranks all those same ungodly countries above the USA in terms of prosperity. It would seem that these countries are doing something right that perhaps we in the USA ought to mimic instead of deride. But then, the far right Christians in the USA cannot see the forest for the trees due to their religious based bigotry. They prefer ignorance, backwardness, and intolerance above all else. In calculating the rankings, in addition to per capita income, the study also looked at safety and security, personal freedom, and absence of government surveillance. And the best of all nations? Finland followed by Switzerland and then most of the rest of Scandinavia. Canada and Australia also out ranked the USA. What is telling is that ALL of the countries ranked above the USA provide citizens with better health care, governance and personal liberty. Here are some highlights from Yahoo News/Reuters (I encourage readers to go to Legatum Prosperity Index to compare their home country with others):
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For those who value their freedom of expression as much as health, wealth, and prosperity, then Finland is the place to be, with an index ranking the Nordic nation the best in the world. The 2009 Legatum Prosperity Index, published on Tuesday and compiled by the Legatum Institute, an independent policy, advocacy and advisory organization, ranked 104 countries which are home to 90 percent of the world's population. The index is based on a definition of prosperity that combines economic growth with the level of personal freedoms and democracy in a country as well as measures of happiness and quality of life.
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With the exception of Switzerland, which came in at number 2, Nordic countries dominated the top 5 slots, with Sweden in third place followed by Denmark and Norway. The top 10 were all also Western nations, with Australia (6th place) and Canada (7th place) both beating the United States, ranked 9th. Britain came in at number 12.
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The index combines objective data and subjective responses to surveys. More details can be found on http://www.prosperity.com.

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While the USA still ranks 9th, the results are nevertheless not the best of news for the "America, love it or leave it" crowd that refuses to accept the fact that there are areas where this nation needs to improve markedly.

Thursday Male Beauty

South Carolina Deputy AG Caught with Stripper

I am truly beginning to wonder what is in the water in South Carolina that causes all the self-proclaimed conservative, family values Republican types to engage in an endless stream of sex related peccadillos. From the "hiking on the Appalachian Trail" cheating on the wife Governor, the closeted gay Lieutenant Governor, to the porn writing State School Board chair, the list goes on and on, demonstrating that the sexually repressed members of the GOP are obsessed with all things sexual and act in ways no respectable liberal would. The latest sex scandal involves Roland Corning (pictured at above left), a former GOP state legislator and until yesterday current Deputy Assistant Attorney General, who was caught cavorting in a cemetery with a stripper, Viagra and sex toys in hand. Here are some highlights from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

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A deputy assistant attorney general who said he was on his lunch break when an officer found him with a stripper and sex toys in his sport utility vehicle has been fired, his boss said Wednesday. Roland Corning, 66, a former state legislator, was in a secluded part of a downtown cemetery when an officer spotted him Monday, according to a police report obtained by The Associated Press under the Freedom of Information Act.
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As the officer approached, Corning sped off, then pulled over a few blocks away. He and the 18-year-old woman with him, an employee of the Platinum Plus Gentleman's Club, gave conflicting stories about what they were doing in the cemetery, Officer Michael Wines wrote in his report, though he did not elaborate. . . . He then searched the SUV, where he found a Viagra pill and several sex toys, items Corning said he always kept with him, "just in case," according to the report.

Corning and the woman were let go without charges. Wines' wife reported the call to her supervisor, who told Attorney General Henry McMaster. "We received credible information about inappropriate behavior Monday afternoon," McMaster said Wednesday. "And by the close of business, he was no longer working here."
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There was no answer Wednesday at a number listed for Corning, who was a Republican legislator in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was hired in 2000 by the attorney general's office, where he worked on securities cases. South Carolina has had its share of scandal lately, most notably Gov. Mark Sanford's disappearance in June. His office told reporters he was hiking the Appalachian Trail, but he was really in Argentina visiting his mistress.
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Needless to say it is ironic that the Christianists depict gays as perverts when in fact their own "family values" crowd continues to demonstrate that when it comes to kinky sex, we gays are just plain boring.

Belatedly More Coverage of Ken Cuccinelli's Extremism

Anyone who has followed Ken Cuccinelli's career in the General Assembly and remarks he has made over that period realizes that the man is a religious right nutcase who is utterly unable to separate his Opus Dei - think the Davinci Code and the Spanish Inquisition - like Catholic beliefs from how he wants the civil laws to be applied. When he was interviewed by the Virginian Pilot, he made extremely anti-gay remarks and now that his opponent, Democrat Steve Shannon, is calling him out on them, Cuccinelli is crying foul. The only thing foul is Cuccinelli himself and his theocratic mindset and inability to see others not like himself as fully human and as equal citizens. In my view, Cuccinelli is unfit for any public office, much less the office of Attorney General of Virginia. In fact, given his religious extremism and intolerance of others, he is better suited to be seeking a job with Family Research Council, Focus on the Family or even some anti-gay hate group. Here are highlights from the Washington Post that have also gained coverage in the Richmond Times Dispatch:

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In a phone call with reporters, Shannon cited comments that Cuccinelli made to the editorial board of the Virginian-Pilot newspaper of Norfolk, which quoted the Republican as saying that "homosexual acts" are "intrinsically wrong" and violate "natural law" and that this view should be appropriately reflected in state policies. The state senator made the remarks, according to the Virginian-Pilot, when asked for his views on the state's nondiscrimination policy toward gay men and lesbians.
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"I happen to think that it represents . . . behavior that is not healthy to an individual and in aggregate is not healthy to society," Cuccinelli was quoted as saying. Shannon, a state delegate, called on Cuccinelli to apologize to "hardworking Virginians." He also asked for Republican gubernatorial candidate Robert F. McDonnell to denounce Cuccinelli's statements.
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We should not be driving people out of state government who are committed to serving the public good based on sexual orientation," Shannon said. "That's not who we are as Virginians."
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As the Times Dispatch reports even the often pathetic and spineless Log Cabin Republicans are demanding an apology from Grand Inquisitor Cuccinelli.:
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The Log Cabin Republican Club of Virginia, a gay-rights group, issued a statement attacking Cuccinelli for his remarks in the Virginian-Pilot. "That Mr. Cuccinelli would make such incendiary and prejudicial remarks as a candidate for the state's highest legal office is truly frightening, and we call on him to apologize for injecting his personal and hateful opinions into this race," said David Lampo, the club's vice president.
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Cuccinelli is a menace to society and Virginia in particular and I hope to God Virginia voters wake up before November 3, 2009, and realize that Cuccinelli is totally unfit to be Attorney General.

Senator Arlen Spectoer: Time to Repeal DOMA

In a somewhat surprising column at Huffington Post, Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter writes that it is time to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act - AND to move forward on passage of ENDA and the repeal of DADT. I am not sure of Specter's motivations, but personally, I agree that NOW IS the time to move on these items and that Obama needs to use the bully pulpit of the presidency to make strong arguments like those made by many of the speakers at the National Equality March. Until such time as GLBT Americans have fully equality under the CIVIL laws, the USA will be a fraud and not live up fully to the image that it likes to projects of itself around the world. Here are some highlights from Specter's column:

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The time has come to repeal the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Enacted 13 years ago when the idea of same sex marriage was struggling for acceptance, the Act is a relic of a more tradition-bound time and culture. Connecticut, Iowa, and Massachusetts have already passed laws recognizing same sex marriage and other states are moving in that direction. The states are the proper forum to address this divisive social and moral issue, not the Federal Government with a law that attempts to set one national standard for marriage.
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The repeal of DOMA is one step among several designed to fully integrate and protect the rights of gays and lesbians in American society. Recently enacted hate crimes legislation is another. The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (S 909), which I sponsored with the late Senator Kennedy, makes it a federal crime to target victims on the basis of disability, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity. President Obama has said he will sign the measure.

Nothing in the Act impedes the lawful expression of one's political or religious beliefs. All Americans are entitled to hold and express their own beliefs, no matter how provocative. At the same time, no person has the right to engage in violent acts of hate or incite to violence. Protecting Americans against such hate crimes does not inhibit free speech but rather serves us all by halting and penalizing those who carry out those acts of cruelty.
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Measures to combat discrimination against gays and transgendered people in the workplace are another needed measure. The Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2009, of which I am an original cosponsor, was introduced on August 5, 2009 and is currently before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
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Finally, the military's Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy is outdated, and should be rescinded entirely. A person's sexual orientation has no bearing on their ability to serve their country in the armed services. Countless studies and the experiences of gays who have served in the military have borne out these findings.
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Specter's views are welcomed and, if followed, would put the USA on a par with a growing number of advanced nations that have given GLBT citizens full civil rights. As a number of foreign readers have noted in comments to this blog, the USA continues to have feet of clay in t heir view if it doesn't grant Constitutionally guaranteed rights to ALL citizens.

More Wednesday Male Beauty

Klan Loving Tony Perkins of FRC Slams Obama Program for Elderly Gays

Once again the "godly Christian" set has shown itself to be challenged when it comes to truth and veracity. The latest of many loud mouthed liars is Tony Perkins of Family Research Council (pictured at left) who has attacked a U. S. Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS") plan to establish the nation`s first national resource center to assist communities across the country in their efforts to provide services and supports for older GLBT citizens. Why? Because - in addition to wanting GLBT citizens to cease to exist - FRC claims gays all die young and that, therefore, there is no need for such a government funded program. The source of this claim? No doubt the long discredited work of anti-gay nutcase Paul Cameron who has been thrown out of every legitimate mental health and social worker organization because of his fraudulent "research." Cameron was ejected from membership in legitimate organizations over a quarter of a century ago, so Perkins and FRC know that their claims are false but in true Christo-fascist character, they simply do not care that they are lying. Here is some brief information on the HHS plan via Reuters:

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HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced plans to establish the nation`s first national resource center to assist communities across the country in their efforts to provide services and supports for older lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals.
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Experts estimate that as many as 1.5 to 4 million LGBT individuals are age 60 and older. Agencies that provide services to older individuals may be unfamiliar or uncomfortable with the needs of this group of individuals. The new Resource Center for LGBT Elders will provide information, assistance and resources for both LGBT organizations and mainstream aging services providers at the state and community level to assist them in the development and provision of culturally sensitive supports and services. The LGBT Center will also be available to
educate the LGBT community about the importance of planning ahead for future long term care needs.
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Sounds all very sensible and non-controversial, right? Wrong! At least from the prospective of the gay-haters at FRC and I suspect similar organizations that want a fundamentalist Christian theocracy in this country. Here are some highlights of the manure being disseminated by FRC to its sheep like followers:

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Before we entrust Secretary Kathleen Sebelius with health care reform, maybe Americans should take a closer look at how her Department spends other taxpayer dollars. Even the Washington Post called Friday's announcement from Health and Human Services (HHS) an "eye opener," writing that the President's "gay outreach continues." A $1.4 trillion deficit aside, HHS has set aside a quarter million dollars to launch the first-ever National Resource Center for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Elders. Apparently, our nation is never too broke to advance a radical social agenda.
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[T]he real tragedy here--apart from the unnecessary spending--is that, given the risks of homosexual conduct, these people are less likely to live long enough to become senior citizens! Yet once again, the Obama administration is rushing to reward a lifestyle that poses one of the greatest public health risks in America. If this is how HHS prioritizes, imagine what it could do with a trillion dollar health care overhaul!

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Gee, silly me. I thought GLBT individuals were citizens too and that federal spending on our senior years was on a par to what other minorities receive. Not so apparently to the bigots who wear their supposed religious beliefs on their sleeve and then conduct themselves in a relentless, un-Christian manner.

Public Acceptance Versus Pro-Gay Legal Protections

The New York Times looks at the issue of whether public laws and policies lag behind public acceptance of gays and same sex relationships or vice versa. The Christianists would have the world believe that it is judicial tyranny that is pushing the alleged "gay agenda" rather than judges and legislatures moving in a more pro-gay direction because of the changes occurring in society - changes which occur at different rates in different states, with the Deep South generally lagging behind the most. The chart above (click the image for a larger view) prepared by researchers at Columbia University shows on a state by state basis how gay acceptance is changing over the period from 1994 to 2009 and also shows which states remain reactionary backwaters when it comes to gay rights (personally, I question the positioning of Virginia as in the middle range of acceptance of gays). The Times story argues that policy lags behind public opinion. Here are some highlights:

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[P]ublic opinion on same-sex marriage (at least in the form of Proposition 8) appears to lag behind the more liberal opinions of the bench. But in many states, and on many other gay rights issues, the lag seems to go in the opposite direction: legal and policy responses (whether from the legislative or judicial branch) lag behind much more liberal popular opinion.

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The chart below gives a nice summary of state attitudes on gay rights issues, based on estimates from national polls. It’s from a new paper, by Jeffrey R. Lax and Justin H. Phillips, both of Columbia University, that was recently published in the American Political Science Review. (Methodology for the survey estimates is on page 32 here.).

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The takeaway: When policy does not match public opinion on gay and lesbian issues, the policy usually skews more conservative than what voters say they want, rather than more liberal (or in support of civil rights for gay people) than what voters say they want. The most obvious outlier is Iowa, where (as in pre-Proposition 8 California) a court decision approved same-sex marriage even though the policy did not have a majority of popular support.

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The researchers also had some interesting findings that their work revealed. Here are some highlights in that regard via a Columbia University site:

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The popularity of gay marriage has increased fastest in the states where gay rights were already relatively popular in the 1990s. In 1995, support for gay marriage exceeded 30% in only six states: New York, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, California, and Vermont. In these states, support for gay marriage has increased by an average of almost 20 percentage points. In contrast, support has increased by less than 10 percentage points in the six states that in 1995 were most anti-gay-marriage--Utah, Oklahoma, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Idaho.

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Some possible explanations:

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- - - A "tipping point": As gay rights become more accepted in a state, more gay people come out of the closet. And once straight people realize how many of their friends and relatives are gay, they're more likely to be supportive of gay rights. Recall that the average American knows something like 700 people. So if 5% of your friends and acquaintances are gay, that's 35 people you know--if they come out and let you know they're gay. Even accounting for variation in social networks--some people know 100 gay people, others may only know 10--there's the real potential for increased awareness leading to increased acceptance. Conversely, in states where gay rights are highly unpopular, gay people will be slower to reveal themselves, and thus the knowing-and-accepting process will go slower.

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- - - The role of politics: As gay rights become more popular in "blue states" such as New York, Massachusetts, California, etc., it becomes more in the interest of liberal politicians to push the issue (consider Governor David Paterson's recent efforts in New York). Conversely, in states where gay marriage is highly unpopular, it's in the interest of social conservatives to bring the issue to the forefront of public discussion. So the general public is likely to get the liberal spin on gay rights in liberal states and the conservative spin in conservative states.

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The data seems to support the often stated fact that the strongest blow most of us can make for change is to come out and live openly as who we are. It does change hearts and minds. The downside, of course, is that in anti-gay states one has no employment and other civil rights protections. Hence why it is critical to win federal protections so that gays in reactionary states do not have to live their lives waiting for the Neanderthals in their state legislatures to come into the 21st century and modern world.