More Saturday Male Beauty

Dedicated to Ken Cuccinelli - who likely has repressed fantasies about doing something like this since he doth protest far too much!

Anglican Church Seeking Catholics Fleeing Predator Priests

While I have already posted today about the ongoing debacle in the Roman Catholic Church which may yet take down the current Pope, this Sunday op-ed in the Times of London was just too good to pass up. Talk about a case of tit for tat. Not long ago, the Roman Catholic Church indicated that it would happily welcome homophobic members of the Church of England who just could not handle allowing openly gay clergy and bishops. Well, now, with claims of sexual abuse by priests sweeping across Europe, the suggestion has been made that Anglicans need to extend a welcoming hand to Catholics who are worried about their children being subjected to sexual abuse by Catholic priests. That's not to say that the Anglican church is perfect, but at least there has not been a documented cover up of abuse mandated by the Pope on down. I have long thought that the Episcopal Church (Christ and St. Likes Episcopal in Norfolk is pictured at left) and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America needed to actively recruit disillusioned Catholics who would enjoy the basically the same liturgy and beliefs without financially underwriting the nasty, morally deficient Catholic Church hierarchy. Here are some highlights from the Times of London column:
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Has the time come for the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, to open the door to the many millions of British Roman Catholic worshippers who may be worried that their children are likely to be interfered with by priests? I think it’s correct that young children are slightly less at risk from the Anglican clergy, although it would be unwise of Rowan to offer any cast-iron promises, just in case.
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Last year Pope Benedict XVI invited disillusioned Anglicans to join the Church of Rome if they were disapproving of, or merely bored by, women priests and homosexuals but fancied instead a few Latin incantations, rosary beads and the whiff of incense; this took the Church of England by surprise.
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Now is Beardo’s chance to get his own back. He should strike while the iron is hot. Give the émigré left-footers free passage, one of those Christingle oranges and a DVD collection of The Vicar of Dibley — they can even cling on to transubstantiation, if they keep quiet about it.
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[Irish] Cardinal Sean Brady, has admitted that he was present at meetings in the 1970's when children who were abused by a paedophile priest were forced, there and then, to sign a vow of silence. . . . Brady now accepts that the church’s response to this scandal has been “hopelessly inadequate” (although he hasn’t yet used the words “criminal” and “totalitarian”) but he will not resign over the business. This weekend Ireland’s “faithful”, as Benny the 16th puts it, have received a letter from him personally, which presumably included an apology somewhere along the way. Meanwhile, there have been similar scandals in Holland, Spain, Switzerland and Austria
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But the church still gives the impression that while its legions of kiddie-fiddling priests are probably, on the whole, a bad thing, they are not half as Satanic as stuff like condoms, socialism and gender equality. You suspect that it is the church’s entrenched position within much of Europe that has enabled it to sidestep public abhorrence for so long, and thus to react with apparent insouciance whenever these scandals arise and remain immune to proper investigation.
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However, the public across Europe is becoming more secular and more questioning of those in authority. It is disinclined to believe in the infallibility of anyone, be it a politician, a pop star or a pope. And those new watchwords — transparency and openness — are not qualities that one associates with the Holy See.
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Admittedly, the op-ed is written somewhat tongue in cheek, but the basic point is on the mark. Why are Catholics remaining with a Church that has a leadership that makes Mafia dons look forth right and honorable? For Catholic readers, I sincerely encourage you to check out the Episcopal and Lutheran alternatives: same basic faith without the moral bankruptcy through out the Church leadership.

GOP Tea Party Racists and Homophobes

From the get go I have maintained that the GOP Tea Party and tea bagging crowd - as well as the "family values" organizations allied with many of them - are largely populated by crazies, racists and homophobes. As yet more evidence, some tea party members hurled the F-word and N-word at members of Congress today. Talking Points Memo for full coverage . Will the MSM focus on this and grow that balls needed to expose just how dangerous these people are? Not surprisingly, the GOP leadership has not condemned this behavior.

More Too Little Too Late By Vatican?

It seems that Pope Benedict XVI's pastoral letter to Irish Catholics is not exactly overwhelming rank and file Catholics in Ireland. To be candid, it's yet another case of crocodile tears and no action - including no demands that guilty bishops and cardinals resign. Then again, based on news that is coming out of Germany, were Benedict to ask for resignations, he'd be making the case for his own resignation. Indeed, some Irish victims are demanding that Benedict resign along with Cardinal Grady who was complicit in cover ups and instances where victims were intimidated and sworn to secrecy. Candidly, the Church hierarchy with few excepts - Irish archbishop Martin being one such exception - has shown itself to be nothing more than a huge moral cesspool. And that includes Benedict XVI. Given the magnitude of the new disclosures and the fact that the Pope himself in heavily implicated, one has to wonder how anyone can continue to support such a corrupt and morally bankrupt Church leaders. Rather than expend hundreds of thousands of dollars seeking to deny gays civil legal rights, the Church would do far better to rid itself of ALL bishops, cardinals and the Pope who have been implcated in this foul and callous conspiracy against molested children and youth. The Irish Times has this report on victims calling for Benedict's resignation:

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Clerical abuse survivor Andrew Madden reiterated his call for the resignation of Pope Benedict and Cardinal Seán Brady after studying the Papal pastoral letter this afternoon. Expressing disappointment with the document, he said: "It changes nothing. They should both resign.''
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Mr Madden said that the document represented "not an inability to do the right thing, but an unwillingness to do the right thing''. He did not feel that the pope would be any more willing to do it on a visit to Ireland than in Rome.
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Speaking separately at the Fine Gael conference, the party’s spokesman on children Alan Shatter described the pope’s “silence” on the issue of abuse victims being sworn to secrecy by the church as “surprising and disturbing”.
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He said a new criminal offence should be introduced “which expressly applies to the concealment of information about child abuse, both past and present, and to the administration of any oath obliging any individual to conceal such conduct from either An Garda Síochána or our child care services.”
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Meanwhile, the number of abuse cases in the Netherlands has exploded and the scandal is now spreading to Italy. When the sex abuse scandal in the USA begin to mushroom in 2002, the Vatican tried to depict the problem as a uniquely American problem and phenomenon. Clearly, it is in truth a worldwide problem with a deceitful plan of cover ups orchestrated from Rome. Here are highlights from the Times of Malta on the growing number of victims coming forward in the Netherlands:
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At least 1,100 allegations of sexual abuse committed by members of the Dutch Roman Catholic clergy in the three decades from 1950 have emerged this month, a church official said Saturday.
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"According to latest figures, there have been 1,100 accounts," said Pieter Kohnen, a spokesman for the Dutch Catholic church.
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Dutch religious leaders on March 9 ordered a "broad, external and independent" investigation of alleged sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, and apologised to victims. The announcement was made by the Dutch Religious Conference after a meeting to discuss abuse claims by about 200 alleged victims dating from the 1960s and 1970s.
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As for the spread of the scandal into Italy, the Aberdeen Press Journal has a story. Here are highlights from that news coverage:
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THE Catholic sex-abuse scandal spread to Italy yesterday, with the bishop of the northern diocese of Bolzano apologising to victims and promising to co-operate with prosecutors. Some of the region’s German-language newspapers reported several cases of victims coming forward with tales of physical and sexual abuse in a convent in the 1960s.
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Meanwhile, the Pope’s former diocese in Munich, Germany, said it was facing new allegations of physical and sexual abuse on a daily basis. Elke Huemmeler, head of the diocese’s new sexual-abuse prevention taskforce, said: “It is like a tsunami.”

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As for those who have derided me for my focus on the rot and criminal conduct by the Church hierarchy, I belive a I am due an apology. The ongoing release of new facts and information from all across Europe would seem to be my vindication.

Saturday Male Beauty

Dedicated to Ken Cuccinelli

Cuccinelli: Gay "Acts" Are a Detriment to Society

Each day it seems the increasingly openly insane Virginia Attorney Generally, Ken Cuccinelli commits another anti-gay outrage. The damage to Virginia's reputation over the next four years - unless Cuccinelli manages to get himself removed from office - will be incalculable. The directors of tourism in communities around the state (other than perhaps in Lynchburg where Liberty University is located) must literally cringe every day as they check the news to see what else "Cooch" has done to make Virginia appear to be the home of racists, gun totting, gay-hating, religious fanatics. "Virginia is for Lovers" seems to only apply to self-loving folks like Cuccinelli who see themselves as a legend in their own warped minds. The following video clip from WTKR-TV shows the Cooch declaring that gay "acts" are detrimental to society:

Of course, Cuccinelli does not define "gay acts." Do they include supporting local charities they way the boyfriend and I do? What about maintaining a well tended home and yard that is a plus to our neighborhood? What about operating businesses that provide employment and tax revenues to the state? Or maybe helping those in needs through one's church? Or how about hosting a fundraiser for the local history museum that was attended by many neighbors and prominent citizens? Last I knew, the boyfriend and I we pretty well integrated into society. What exactly in our lives as LGBT citizens are "gay acts"? Personally, if anyone is not integrated into normal society, it's Cuccinelli. Here's Right Wing Watch's commentary on the Cooch's latest diarrhea of the mouth:
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Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli sat down for an interview with CBS 6 reporter Mark Holmberg where he discussed everything from his threat to sue the federal government . . . . to his letter to state universities informing them not to grant anti-discrimination protections to gay employees. . . . Cuccinelli dismissed the Birther question as a far-fetched wild goose chase, but when the question turned to whether or not he believes "the practice of homosexuality is a detriment to our culture," he was far less dismissive, saying "the acts are" because it is best when everyone is "integrated into society":

MSM Notes Disconnect Between Grassroots and National LGBT Organizations

I have often voiced my unhappiness with the lack of aggressiveness of self-anointed "leaders" at many of the national LGBT rights organizations, particularly the Human Rights Campaign which seems more concerned about access to politicians, cocktail parties, exclusive dinners, and playing "nice" than about actually getting things accomplished. At times these "leaders" seem to want the struggle for LGBT equality - and ergo their jobs - to go on forever. This disconnect from the desires and goals of grassroots activists came into glaring view this past week with the activism and protests at the White House and Nancy Pelosi's office that left HRC sitting once again on the sidelines sitting on its hands. The sad truth is that our opponents will never give us equality just because we ask for it. Here are some highlights from CBS News on the divergence of tactics that seems to be growing:

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Lt. Dan Choi, the openly gay Iraq war veteran who has been an outspoken opponent of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, was arrested Thursday after chaining himself to a fence at the White House.
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The Advocate reports that Choi, along with former Army infantryman Jim Pietrangelo, was arrested after chaining themselves to the fence following a rally in Washington for repeal of the policy, which bans gay men and women from serving openly in the military.
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According to reports, Choi crashed the rally, hosted by the gay rights group the Human Rights Campaign and comedian Kathy Griffin, and asked attendees to join him in a march to the White House, turning the event into more of a protest.
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Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese did not march to the White House, in an illustration of the split in the gay rights movement between establishment organizations like the HRC, which generally support the Obama administration, and activists like Choi, who are pushing more aggressively for action.
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A video posted to YouTube shows protesters chanting "Equality, Now" as Choi and Pietrangelo stand chained to the White House fence.
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Personally, I applaud Choi's aggressive approach. With leaders like Solmonese, it will be another 40 years before gays cease to be second or third class citizens in this country. He and HRC are more focused on giving Obama and faux friend Democrats political cover than forcing equality now. Hence why I give ZERO money to HRC.

Friday Male Beauty

Has Cuccinelli Just Endorsed Using Virginia's Unconstitutional Sodomy Statute to Harrass Gays?

The other day I did a post on The Bilerico Project with respect to Equality Virginia's ongoing efforts to engage Virginia's public colleges and universities in pressuring Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and the Virginia General Assembly. Previously, Equality Virginia had encouraged Virginia residents and alumni of Virginia colleges and universities to call the Governor's office and the Attorney General's office to express their dismay and displeasure with the anti-gay approach adopted by both McDonnell and Cuccinelli. From what I have heard, both offices were inundated with calls with some VCU students bombarding Cuccinelli's office with calls. One reader left a comment on my Bilerico article that describes his experience calling these elected officials and part of it is VERY troubling and suggests that Cuccinelli is by no means done with his anti-gay crusade. This comment - which is extremely troubling - was left on my Bilerico post and I have confirmed with the writer that it is a legitimate account of his experience:
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I telephoned both the Office of the Governor of Virginia and the Office of the Attorney General of Virginia concerning the very public stance they've taken concerning non-heterosexually oriented persons in their state.
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I also took this chance to complain to the Attorney General concerning a practice of some of Virginia's local law-enforcement jurisdictions, where they continue to make arrests for violations of Virginia's sodomy laws, imprisoning men for violations of those laws, then having the judges dismiss those charges when the men are brought to trial - not at arraignment, but at actual trial. I reminded the Virginia AG's Office of Lawrence v. Texas, and how the Supreme Court had issued a decision which negated all sodomy laws, nationwide.
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The AG's Office informed me Virginia has not repealed their sodomy laws, so that arrest under those laws was still justified, and the process in place was correct: local jurisdictions follow the laws on the books, a trial court dismisses those charges to conform with federal court decisions; that was "how the system works."
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Then the kicker: "Y'all don't even live here, so it really doesn't affect you. Goodbye." Click.

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I have heard instances where such arrests have indeed been improperly made, but to have the Virginia Attorney General's office to endorse arrests under a statute struck down by the United States Supreme Court is an outrage and certainly raises yet more questions about Cuccinelli's fitness for office. I encourage readers to call the Governor's office and the Attorney General's office on this issue: Attorney General - (Office of the Attorney General; 900 East Main Street, Richmond, VA 23219; 804) 786-2071; Governor - Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell, State Capitol, Richmond, VA 23219; Fax:(804)371-6351; Tel:(804)786-2211;

Inside Jerry Falwell's Reality Challenged Church

The Houston Chronicle has a piece that looks at the late Jerry Falwell's ultra-far right Thomas Road Baptist Church from the inside via a covert view by a journalist who attended the church for roughly two years prior to Falwell's death in 2007. Her experience and reflections in many ways confirm the need one needs to remain a "true believer" in such a congregation: intellectual laziness and a willingness to let go of objective reality. Indeed a willingness to close one's mind to anything that might challenge the dogma/snake oil often peddled. It is a mindset that I truly do not understand and find very disturbing in terms of its anti-intellectualism and anti-knowledge attitude in general. It is the mindset that leads to societal ignorance as exemplified by the gutting of history curriculum in Texas. Here are some highlights:
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Evangelical Christians were a mystery to Gina Welch. . . . So she decided to undertake an audacious experiment in the fall of 2005. She would go undercover and pretend to be one of them. And she would do it in — of all places — Jerry Falwell's church in Lynchburg, Va.
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One of the things she found troubling was what she calls “intellectual passivity.” The people she met were generally “uncritical of the institutions they subscribe to,” she said. “They toe the party line. They accept the mythology about gay people, about the environment, about the outside world without testing its truthfulness.”
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Welch also was bothered by what she saw as the church's emphasis on spreading the gospel over serving human needs. “What about poverty? What about discrimination? What about human-rights abuses?” she writes. “Where was the Christian outrage at so much heinousness in the world?”
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[I]t's hard to say I would undo what I did. I feel like what came out of it is something of value. It holds the possibility of a more authentic understanding of evangelicals. It's something that could potentially humanize a population that people who share my background have thought of as this mob of clones.”

More Thursday Male Beauty

Top 10 Antigay Activists Who Like Gay Hookups

Former local Virginia Congressman Ed Schrock (pictured at left) - who I knew personally for a number of years before I set Mike Rogers on his trail - has made the 1o Ten list of homophobic hypocrites who, despite their anti-gay politics, like an hot hook up for gay sex. The website Ranker.com named the "Top 10 Anti-gay Activists Caught Being Gay." Besides Schrock, there are a number of other closeted Republicans who sought to make the lives of rank and file LGBT citizens Hell, even as they sought out hot gay trysts for their own sexual pleasure. Frankly, I do not care who wants to remain in the closet for their own personal reasons as long as they do nothing to harm other LGBT Americans. However, once they take actions or support legislation to harm other gays, their rank hypocrisy makes them legitimate targets for "outing." Schrock deserved to be outed and its not as if he and his GOP supporters - including Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell - were not warned of Schrock's "problem" before Mike Rogers broken the story in August of 2004. Here are some of highlights on Schrock as well as other hypocrites in Ranker's top 10 (click the link beside the name to see the details):

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List of Top 10 Anti-Gay Activists Caught Being Gay on Ranker

Lt. Dan Choi and Others Arrested at White House Gates

I have nothing but admiration for Lt. Dan Choi (pictured at left), a West Point graduate who served with distinction, but who has been forced from active duty to duty in the National Guard because - gasp - he's gay. Prior to the National Equality March I had the honor of speaking with Dan one on one for a half hour on the telephone and he is very inspiring guy. In my view, he is exactly the type of dedicated service member that the USA ought to treasure and seek to retain rather than recruit felons, those lacking a high school diploma, and other societal rejects in order to make recruiting requirements. Now, after leading a protest to the White House in an effort to get the attention of the do nothing Obama administration, Dan and other who have been wrongful reprimanded by the U. S. military for being honest about who they are, as well as many supporters took the issue of repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell to the literal gates of the White House in the hope of getting President Obama off his ass and taking actual, concrete steps to put DADT on the trash heap of history. Here are highlights from The Advocate:

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In an act of civil disobedience, Lt. Dan Choi and Jim Pietrangelo have been arrested at the White House gates on Thursday while protesting the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.
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Following a Human Rights Campaign rally for DADT repeal in Washington earlier today, Choi and Pietrangelo led about 100 protesters to the White House, where the two then proceeded to handcuff themselves to the gates.
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Choi was speaking at the HRC rally at Freedom Plaza when he asked the group's executive director, Joe Solmonese, if he would also march to the White House. Pietrangelo was discharged from the military under DADT, while Choi's discharge is pending. Choi is the founder of Knights Out, a West Point alumni organization supporting LGBT soldiers.
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"You've been told that the White House has a plan," Choi told rally attendees. "But we learned this week that the president is still not fully committed. ... Following this rally, I will be leading [the protest] to the White House to say 'enough talk.' ... I am still standing, I am still fighting, I am still speaking out, and I am still gay."
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Gay rights activist Robin McGehee was also arrested after she had apparently helped the two discharged soldiers handcuff themselves to the fence. An officer who arrested McGehee said "I can't say anything" on why she was taken into custody.
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Personally, I believe that the days of quietly waiting like dutiful "house homos" for whatever scraps our religious oriented oppressors might deem to throw us are over. Ever day that gays suffer discrimination tracing back to religious based bigotry makes a mockery out of the principles supposedly enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Kudos to Dan and others who are willing to subject themselves to arrest in order to highlight this travesty.

Blogswarm: Demand LGBT Employment Rights Today

Like many others, I am very disturbed that ENDA - the Employment Non-Discrimination Act is languishing in Congress. This is especially true since in Virginia, LGBT citizens have ZERO employment non discrimination protections. As a result, I am joining The Bilerico Project (for which I am a contributor) in participating in a blogswarm today with Daily Kos, Open Left, Americablog, Towleroad, Pam's House Blend, Joe My God, Michelangelo Signorile, David Mixner, Daily Gotham, Culture Kitchen, Taylor Marsh, PageOneQ, Dan Savage, GoodAsYou, and many others. We are all asking our readers to contact Speaker Nancy Pelosi and ask that she move the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (HR 3017) to a floor vote. As one who was forced from a law firm for being gay, I understand full well the need for ENDA. Jillian T. Weiss at The Bilerico Project gives further explanation of why ENDA and action by LGBT citizens is so necessary (these are highlights and I recommend a full read of her post):

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The Employment Non-Discrimination Act, first introduced in 1994, would prohibit job discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. But LGBT people have never been able to achieve the enactment of the bill, known by the acronym of "ENDA".

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Last year, the Administration's highest ranking gay official, Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry, indicated that ENDA was highest priority on the LGBT civil rights agenda.

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Hearings were held last Fall in the House and in the Senate to demonstrate the need for the bill, and testimony was heard on the severe unemployment, underemployment and harassment experienced by LGBT workers. Witnesses testified to the scientific studies demonstrating this. But nothing has happened.

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Civil rights, by definition, are needed most by those against whom there is most prejudice. Surveys over the last fifteen years show that 16% to 68% of LGBT people surveyed reported experiencing employment discrimination. Preliminary results from a major survey of transgender workers show 97% reported harassment on the job and 26% lost their jobs because of their gender identity.

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Initially, the Committee said that some technical language required tweaking, ostensibly to insure that plaintiffs could not recover too much money or attorney fees, and to prevent lawsuits based on inadvertent discrimination. But it has become increasingly clear that something else is at work. A clue to the inaction: Speaker Nancy Pelosi publicly told Democrats that she would not move controversial bills. Meanwhile, the House Committee has stated its readiness to move, but is waiting for a signal from Speaker Pelosi.

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In 30 states across America, there is no law against firing someone based on his or her sexual orientation, and the same is true in 38 states for gender identity. Will you join with us in asking that gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people be protected from job discrimination? Please call Speaker Nancy Pelosi at 202-225-4965. Ask that the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, HR 3017, move to a vote. Please be polite, but firm.

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After you call, please tell us how the call went by clicking here. If you get a busy signal or hang up, let us know that too.

Thursday Male Beauty

Germany and Ireland call on Catholic Church to Hold Child Sex Abuse Inquiries

Things seem to be only getting worse for the Roman Catholic Church in Europe and in my view deservedly so. The question remains as to how bad things need to get before Benedict XVI will have no choice but to act and/or resign himself. The Guardian is reporting that in Ireland and Germany the demand for national inquiries is growing. Meanwhile increasingly damaging information and columns are coming out detailing Benedict XVI pivotal role in directing cover ups during his tenure as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, a/k/a the Inquisition. Andrew Sullivan and Christopher Hitchens have particularly damming columns that focus on BenedictXVI's gross malfeasance. I have sympathy for rank and file Catholics who with the best of intentions have foolishly trusted Church leaders - as I stupidly did myself for many years - but I have no sympathy for Benedict and his morally bankrupt senior clerics. Think of your own children, nieces and nephews and ask yourself how any true Christian could have been so callous and uncaring. Then remember the real motives that drive the Church hierarchy: money, power and control. Actually living the Gospel message would seem to have nothing to do with it. First, some highlights from The Guardian:
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The crisis gripping the Catholic church deepened today, with calls for national inquiries to be held in Germany and Ireland to fully disclose the detail and extent of sexual abuse by priests. With hundreds of allegations surfacing in Europe since the start of the year, the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, said the scandal of abuse in the country's churches and schools posed a "major challenge" that could be resolved only through a full and frank inquiry into all cases.
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In Ireland, which has already seen far-reaching investigations into the abuse, the Archbishop of Dublin said a national inquiry into historic claims may be the only way to fully restore confidence in the church. The most senior Catholic in the country, Cardinal Sean Brady, resisted intense pressure to resign over his part in helping cover up the scandal.
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The scale of the abuse – with additional allegations of clerical scandals emerging in Switzerland, Austria and Brazil – has caused as much alarm in some quarters as has the church's response.
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Merkel's intervention revealed the level of concern in Germany. Addressing the Bundestag in her first public statement on the subject, she called the sexual abuse of children a "despicable crime". She added: "The only way for our society to come to terms with it is to look for the truth and find out everything that has happened."
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Andrew Sullivan and Hitchens rightly focus on the top of the hierarchy that has made abuse cover ups a standard Church policy. Andrew states as follows concerning Benedict XVI which echos my own thoughts:
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But if the Pope asked Brady to resign, wouldn't he also have to ask himself to resign? After all, the Pope was part of a similar cover-up in Germany in which then-cardinal Ratzinger knowingly assigned a pedophile priest to therapy, without informing the authorities that he knew that the priest had forced an eleven year old boy to fellate him, and then allowed that priest to continue in his career, with his finally being convicted of more child abuse six years later. He was only removed from pastoral duties a few days ago.
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I don't know of many things I find as repugnant as knowingly putting the interests of an institution's public relations before children's protection from molestation. Yet this is the Pope we have. This is the moral judgment he made. How can anyone retain confidence in that figurehead? How can any orthodox Catholic not find this repugnant? And what has the Pope done since this has been revealed? He has said nothing, and put out a p.r. campaign to accuse critics in Germany of being anti-Catholic.
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How much more do we have to see, how much more damage has to be done to human beings, before the hierarchy cones to terms with its denial about homosexuality, its warped psyche on sexuality, the brutal consequences of its celibacy requirements ... and the total iniquity of allowing children and teens in your care, entrusted to men of God, to be raped and abused and molested with impunity for years? When will this Pope step down?
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In his column in the Washington Post, Hitchens fleshes out the details of just how responsible Benedict XVI has been in the massive policy of cover up and reassignment of sexual predators to positions where they could molest additional victims:
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There are two separate but related matters here: First, the individual responsibility of the pope in one instance of this moral nightmare and, second, his more general and institutional responsibility for the wider lawbreaking and for the shame and disgrace that goes with it. The first story is easily told, and it is not denied by anybody. In 1979, an 11-year-old German boy identified as Wilfried F. was taken on a vacation trip to the mountains by a priest. After that, he was administered alcohol, locked in his bedroom, stripped naked, and forced to suck the penis of his confessor. (Why do we limit ourselves to calling this sort of thing "abuse"?) The offending cleric was transferred from Essen to Munich for "therapy" by a decision of then-Archbishop Joseph Ratzinger, and assurances were given that he would no longer have children in his care. But it took no time for Ratzinger's deputy, Vicar General Gerhard Gruber, to return him to "pastoral" work, where he soon enough resumed his career of sexual assault.
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Very much more serious is the role of Joseph Ratzinger, before the church decided to make him supreme leader, in obstructing justice on a global scale. After his promotion to cardinal, he was put in charge of the so-called "Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith" (formerly known as the Inquisition). In 2001, Pope John Paul II placed this department in charge of the investigation of child rape and torture by Catholic priests. In May of that year, Ratzinger issued a confidential letter to every bishop. In it, he reminded them of the extreme gravity of a certain crime. But that crime was the reporting of the rape and torture. The accusations, intoned Ratzinger, were only treatable within the church's own exclusive jurisdiction. Any sharing of the evidence with legal authorities or the press was utterly forbidden. Charges were to be investigated "in the most secretive way ... restrained by a perpetual silence ... and everyone ... is to observe the strictest secret which is commonly regarded as a secret of the Holy Office ... under the penalty of excommunication." (My italics). Nobody has yet been excommunicated for the rape and torture of children, but exposing the offense could get you into serious trouble. And this is the church that warns us against moral relativism! (See, for more on this appalling document, two reports in the London Observer of April 24, 2005, by Jamie Doward.)
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Ratzinger himself may be banal, but his whole career has the stench of evil--a clinging and systematic evil that is beyond the power of exorcism to dispel. What is needed is not medieval incantation but the application of justice--and speedily at that.

Gay Marriage Support Increasing Among Students

A new report will no doubt cause Maggie Gallagher and her fellow professional Christians to redouble their efforts against gay equality. Why? Because they may be winning some battles, but long term they are losing the war. Hence they will seek to throw up as many obstructions as possible before their homophobic, religious based discrimination ends up on the scrap heap of history. The report confirms, as have others, that the younger generations are increasingly supportive of gay equality and gay marriage and that as the old homophobes literally die off, there will be a sea change in attitudes down the road. If some religious denominations were thinking about their long term membership, they would understand that continued anti-gay jihads will eventually cost them dearly. Here are some highlights from the Advocate:
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A new report shows that support for same-sex marriage among college freshmen has increased by nine percentage points in the past decade. According to the Higher Education Research Institute, acceptance of gay marriage is higher among first-year students than almost all other groups sorted by race, religion, and political leanings.
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Sixty-five percent of college freshmen surveyed last fall support gay marriage, up from 56% in 2000. Since the survey began asking about the topic in 1997, research indicates that support for same-sex marriage has jumped 21 percentage points among left-leaning students, 16 percentage points among politically moderate students, and two percentage points among right-leaning students.
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Evan Wolfson, executive director of the pro-marriage equality group Freedom to Marry, pointed to personal experience as a source of growing support among students. "Young people who know gay people, talk with them, and examine why marriage matters in the lives of real people move in support,” he told the Chronicle of Higher Education.

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The Chronicle of Higher Education has more details on the study. The report ought to send a message to Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and Ken "Cooch" Cuccinelli that their anti-gay policies are not helping the GOP - or Virginia - in the long term either. Here are some additional highlights:
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The Higher Education Research Institute also broke down freshmen's support for same-sex marriage by sex, race, and religious affiliation. Women were 72 percent supportive and men 57 percent supportive, compared with national rates of 43 percent for women and 34 percent for men, according to the Pew survey.
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Among freshmen, Hispanic students were 69 percent supportive, white students 65 percent supportive, and black students 53 percent supportive. Support among those groups in the population at large was lower: 45 percent among Hispanics, 39 percent among whites, and 26 percent among blacks.
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Students who identified themselves as Jewish, Buddhist, or nonreligious were most supportive, with at least 87 percent in each group favoring legal same-sex marriage. Sixty-six percent of Catholic students and 58 percent of Muslim students expressed support, as did between 50 and 75 percent of students affiliated with most Protestant Christian denominations.

Wednesday Male Beauty

Virginia is for (Straight) Lovers - and Guns in Bars

Sadly, Virginia's recent spate of insanity is not limited to our new Attorney General. The equivalent of some sort of mad cow disease seems to have enveloped the entire GOP in the state and these loons are trying to take the state back to a semblance of the Old West where a dispute in a saloon often progressed into a gun fight. While the Democrat controlled State Senate did its best to block GOP pro-gun bills (in the mind of the Virginia GOP one can never have too many guns), one of the more insane ones slipped through. You see, soon it will be legal to have concealed weapons in bars - or more correctly, restaurants since to have a on premises liquor license in Virginia an establishment must technically be a restaurant. Can't you just see tourist families coming to Virginia so that parents can worry about what nut case may be packing heat? You will be safe from the gays, but might die in a shoot out while dining out. Here are highlights from the Virginian Pilot:

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Calling guns in bars a "recipe for disaster," the state's police chiefs have pleaded with Gov. Bob McDonnell to veto legislation that would ease Virginia's concealed weapon laws. Virginia Beach police Chief Jake Jacocks Jr. sent a letter to McDonnell last week on behalf of the state association of chiefs comparing the combination of firearms and alcohol with drinking and driving.
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"We can fully expect that at some point in the future a disagreement that today would likely end up in a verbal confrontation, or a bar fight, will inevitably end with gunfire if you sign this legislation into law," Jacocks wrote.
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On Tuesday, Jacocks got support from Virginia Beach Mayor Will Sessoms, a McDonnell supporter and gun owner. "Not only is it stupid," Sessoms said, "I think it could be a fatal mistake." But their efforts seem unlikely to sway McDonnell.
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"It was important to let him know directly how we felt about this issue," Jacocks said. If police across Virginia see an increase in gun violence at bars, the association will come back and ask the General Assembly to reconsider its decision, Schrad said. Statistics on gun-related incidents at establishments with liquor licenses were not available Tuesday.
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As one reader commented, when are Ken "Cooch" Cuccinelli and Bob McDonnell going to try to re-legalize slavery in Virginia? Maybe the soccer moms who voted for McDonnell because his looks or some other brain dead reason will reconsider their stupidity next time they are in a restaurant with their children and have to wonder who in the crowd may be drunk and also have a concealed weapon.

Ken Cuccinelli – America’s Most Powerful Teabagger

One has to wonder if Virginia could have intentionally elected anyone more damaging to the state's image. Other than perhaps an active Klan member, it seems unlikely. Crooks and Liars has a compilation of Cooch's indicators that he lives a life utterly untethered from objective reality. And Bob McDonnell dreams of attracting first rate, progressive businesses to Virginia? It seems Cooch is hell bent to frighten them - and perhaps even some current state residents - away with his uncontrolled lunacy. The compilation is complete with video clips showing Cooch's verbal diarrhea, so as much as he may subsequently try to deny his statements, the clips speak for themselves. Here are highlights on the world according to Cuccinelli:

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Virginia AG Ken Cuccinelli has been in the news a lot lately. You may have heard about the letter he wrote earlier this month to all of Virginia’s public colleges – UVA, VA Tech, William and Mary, etc. calling on them to drop policies banning discrimination against gays and lesbians. He claims they have no legal authority to adopt such policies.
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Or maybe you heard Cuccinelli speculate about whether President Obama was born in the United States. In this recently unearthed recording from the campaign trail, Cuccinelli can be heard telling a birther that he might be able to challenge federal laws on the basis of Obama’s birth place.
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In another recently unearthed recording, Cuccinelli told a crowd that he’s worried about the government tracking his family. He said he might not register his newborn son for a Social Security number because "it is being used to track you." He also claimed that many other Americans aren’t registering for Social Security numbers for the same reason.
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Cuccinelli’s hard line against gays, paranoia about the Social Security Administration, and openness to birther conspiracies prove that he is the real deal – a bona fide Teabagger of the highest order. And now he’s the chief legal officer of an entire state.
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For anyone wondering what a Tea Party-controlled GOP might look like, keep your eyes on Virginia.

Kool-Aid Drinkers Rewriting History

As noted many times on this blog, I majored in history in college and have always loved history. In my view, those who do not know accurate history are easily misled and manipulated into doing the bidding of tyrants and often fall victim of repeating the same mistakes made in prior generations (e.g., the Chimperator's fools errand in Iraq). Thus, I find it extremely disturbing to see the far right elements of the GOP/Christianist camp endeavoring to rewrite the USA's history to conform it to their own lunatic views and try to guarantee that the populace is too ignorant to realize that it is being played for a fool. The New York Times in its main editorial takes to task the mentally deranged Kool-Aid drinkers on the Texas Board of Education who are doing their best to rewrite history to ft their religious sensibilities and in the process turn the USA into a nation of dimwitted idiots. It both makes my blood boil and frightens me that these religious extremists are getting away with such garbage. Here are some highlights.

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The Texas Board of Education, notorious for its past efforts to undermine the teaching of evolution in public schools, has now moved to revise the social studies curriculum to portray conservative ideas and movements in a more positive light and emphasize the role of Christianity in the nation’s founding.
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It was a disturbing intervention by the board’s Republican majority into educational decisions best left to the teachers and scholars who have toiled for almost a year to produce the new curriculum standards.
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Some of the changes sound merely foolish, like replacing the word “capitalism” with the words “free-enterprise system.” One board member explained that the term capitalism has negative connotations, as in “capitalist pig.” Others are very worrisome, like questioning the doctrine of “separation between church and state” and dropping Thomas Jefferson, who coined the phrase, from a list of figures whose writings inspired political revolutions from the 1700s on.
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It is anti-knowledge theocrats such as these who will take the USA into its own dark ages just as the Visigoths and others destroyed the knowledge of the ancient Romans and Greeks and brought about Europe's Medieval Period of ignorance.

More Tuesday Male Beauty

Vatican Circles the Wagons as Sex Abuse Scandal Implicates Pope

As long time readers know, I have complained endlessly about the failure of the Vatican to do a thorough house cleaning of the Church hierarchy to punish and/or remove bishops and cardinals who had complicity in enabling sexual predator priest to continue molesting children and youths. As the suspicions build concerning Pope Benedict XVI's own possibly dirty hands in enabling a predator and efforts at hushing things up before and after heading up the Inquisition, it seems the answer to why the Vatican never acted is simple: the complicit bishops and cardinals had done the same thing as Benedict XVI - and likely prior Pontiffs as well. There are numerous stories of the trail tracing to Benedict in with respect to at least one predator priests who was allowed to remain in ministry - despite a 1986 conviction - up until this past week. Claims that Benedict knew nothing about it seem to be increasingly falling on deaf ears.

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Recent coverage on the scandal appears in the New York Times, Time Magazine, Der Spiegel, and Andrew Sullivan's blog among many others. The Church with its typical disingenuousness is trying to claim that the media is out to damage the Church. It will be interesting to see where the story line leads, but it looks like the situation might be akin to the explosion that occurred in Boston in 2002. Obviously, if Benedict XVI proves to have been involved in the cover up and transfer of sexual predators, he has no moral authority to lecture anyone. Indeed, he needs to abdicate. First, here are highlights from the New York Times story*
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The priest, Peter Hullermann, who had previously been identified only by the first letter of his last name, was suspended from his duties only on Monday. That was three days after the church acknowledged that the pope, then Archbishop Joseph Ratzinger, had responded to early accusations of molestation by allowing the priest to move to Munich for therapy in 1980.
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Hundreds of victims have come forward in recent months in Germany with accounts of sexual abuse from decades past. But no case has captured the attention of the nation like that of Father Hullermann, not only because of the involvement of the future pope, but also because of the impunity that allowed a child molester to continue to work with altar boys and girls for decades after his conviction.
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Benedict not only served as the archbishop of the diocese where the priest worked, but also later as the cardinal in charge of reviewing sexual abuse cases for the Vatican. Yet until the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising announced that Father Hullermann had been suspended on Monday, he continued to serve in a series of Bavarian parishes.
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In 1980, the future pope reviewed the case of Father Hullermann, who was accused of sexually abusing boys in the Diocese of Essen, including forcing an 11-year-old boy to perform oral sex. The future pope approved his transfer to Munich.
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I continue to believe that the fact that these self-absorbed clerics never married and never had children of their own plays a part in the callousness shown to victims. Parents I know, including myself, with children would be so enraged over the mere thought of the molestation of their children that they would never have closed their eyes, shuffled the offending priest off on other unsuspecting victims and apparently not had a further thought about it. There is something disgustingly sick within the mindset of the Church's leaders. Andrew Sullivan does a great job in summarizing the moral bankruptcy of Benedict XVI and other high clerics:

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If this person headed a secular organization, or if he were a politician, he would be forced to resign. Why are the standards for the Catholic church so much lower on tolerance of child abuse than the rest of society? On what grounds can this Pope reprimand bishops and priests in Ireland or the US when he seems deeply entangled in the same kind of cover-ups himself?
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When, in other words, will the real victims come first? And moral responsibility meaningfully taken?

Another Apparently Not Cured "Ex-Gay"

At times I find it difficult to feel much sympathy for "ex-gays for pay" as I call them who allow themselves to be used by anti-gay organizations and/or decide to peddle a lie to make a buck off the suffering of others who shortsightedly buy their fraudulent story line. Indeed, at times it seems the professional Christians deliberately seek the down and out gays who remain conflicted over their earlier religious indoctrination to staff their "ex-gay" poster boy and girl galleries. Personally, I can think of few things more foul than such deliberate use of others and the intentional dissemination of false information for political and monetary gain. Ex-Gay Watch has details on the "ministry" of one such "ex-gay,"Matthew C. Manning, crashing and burning. Here are some highlights on the demise of LightHouse World Evangelism, Inc.” (As the makes clear, Manning seems anything but straight):

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Ex-Gay Watch reported on Matthew C. Manning’s troubling criminal record in June, 2009. Manning claims to have been “delivered from homosexuality in 1989 and miraculously healed from HIV/AIDS in 1994.” He has claimed that this enabled him to help people wishing to be “delivered from homosexuality.” Readers unfamiliar with Manning are invited to read our previous post for background.
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That previous post reveals some disturbing facts and would seem to make it clear that Manning was never "delivered from homosexuality" as claimed. It sounds all too similar to the false "cure" of Michael Johnston, John Paulk and other "ex-gays for pay":

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Manning has also appeared on numerous Christian broadcasts, including at least five episodes of The Joni Show, at various times alongside Exodus President Alan Chambers, former ex-gay spokesman John Paulk, and Focus on the Family ex-gay speaker Mike Haley. More than any other factor, however, an early CBN 700 Club broadcast (video) featuring Manning’s story seems to have made him known to a larger audience.
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We will learn from the summary of a future jury trial (next) that there was an incident in 1998 involving Manning and an officer Martinez at Hansen Dam. Keeping in mind the second count, it may be worth noting that Hansen Dam has a public park and a series of walking trails. These charges are listed as being “dismissed or not prosecuted.”
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On September 2, 2005, a complaint was filed with the Superior Court of California, County of Sonoma, accusing Manning of one count of violating CA Penal Code 243.4(e)(1): Any person who touches an intimate part of another person, if the touching is against the will of the person touched, and is for the specific purpose of sexual arousal, sexual gratification, or sexual abuse, is guilty of misdemeanor sexual battery, punishable by a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars ($2,000), or by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding six months, or by both that fine and imprisonment.

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The complainant is listed as “John Doe” but we have since determined his identity. He was approx 22 years old at the time, and still lives in the area. We have contacted him and may provide his personal account at a later date if he allows it. He appears understandably reticent concerning such a personal matter. We should note that he identifies as straight.

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I look forward to the day when snake oil merchants like Manning - and more importantly those who set the stage for such false cure claims are a thing of the past.

Tuesday Male Beauty

Is the GOP's Scott Rigell Another Ken Cuccinelli?

As a number of articles have noted, GOP political advisors have been lauding the McDonnell/Cuccinelli strategy of campaigning: pretend to be a moderate - even if one is a radical far right extremist - and avoid social issues if possible until after elected. Then the faux moderate can show his or her real colors. In the race for the 2nd Congressional District of Virginia, the currently preferred candidate in the GOP primary might well be another Ken Cuccinelli style Christianist. Who is this candidate? Scott Rigell, a local auto dealership owner with long ties to the Pat Robertson elements of the Christian Right. Perusing Rigell's campaign website it looks amazingly much like Bob McDonnell's did and even talks about " I WILL SERVE EVERY PART OF OUR COMMUNITY." But on closer inspection, it be comes clear that Scott Rigell will serve you only if you belong to a particular part of the community. And gays clearly have no place in that community. Repeated requests for a clarification of Ridgell's position on ENDA and DADT repeal have gone unanswered. Equally telling, the page on his website dealing with "family values" is something that The Family Foundation might have written (who knows, maybe it did). Here are some highlights:

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As a nation, we must support legislation that will reaffirm marriage and family life as the foundation of a healthy society.
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Over the last decade we have seen an assault on the institution of marriage and our core family values. In 2006, I was proud to have joined a majority of Virginians as we voted to protect traditional marriage in our state Constitution.
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It is time we have public servants in Washington who will promote a culture that values life and protects the most vulnerable amongst us, at the beginning of life and at the end. That is why I am proudly pro-life.
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Frightened yet? He's not a fan of comprehensive health care reform either (never mind that "highly regulated" system's like that of France rate far better than the USA's broken system - that only works well if one is wealthy like Rigell - and cost less over all). Here's Rigell's take on the issue:
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Americans are deeply concerned about the cost of health care and access to affordable medical insurance. However, a reform that would create another over-regulated government run system, an approach already proven ineffective in countries around the globe, is not the solution.
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If there is any question on Rigell's Christianist agenda, go to the website of his church where he is very active and involved in the leadership:
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Church and Society. Biblical social commandments and Christian ethical principles are foundational to the well-being of every society.
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Marriage, . . . God has instituted marriage to be a life-long union of husband and wife, intended for their mutual joy, help and comfort; for the procreation and nurture of godly children.
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Human Sexuality. Sexuality is inherent in God's creation of human beings in his image as male and female. All Christians are called to chastity: husbands and wives by exclusive sexual fidelity to one another, and single persons by abstinence from sexual activity.
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This sounds like Cooch's agenda and seems to further confirm that if elected, Scott Rigell will likely be another Bob McDonnell/Ken Cuccinelli Republican. The last thing Virginia or the nation needs is an elected official blinded to objective reality and the rights of other citizens by their personal far right religious dogma. While incumbent, Democrat, Glenn Nye has been a huge disappointment, should the choice come down to Nye or Rigell, the message is clear that we need no more religious extremists in elected office.

Rehoboth Beach Weekend Reflections

Overall, it was a whirlwind trip and the weather could have been much, much better. None the less, we had a great time and were also able to catch up with longtime friends of mine - who it turns out are getting married in Washington, D.C., this week for both romantic and pragmatic reasons. Their situation is a perfect example of why civil marriage rights for same sex couples is so necessary. Here's how the story goes:

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A's former employer provided domestic partner benefits so A had B - who has been his partner for 18 years - on his health coverage through his employer. A's company was bought out by another company which only gives such health coverage benefits to "married" couples married in either their home state or the state where they are employed. As a result of not being "married", B lost his coverage and had to go on COBRA for inferior coverage at a far higher premium. By getting legally married in DC, where A works, B can again be fully covered by A's company benefits.
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Getting back to the weekend, for a small historic resort area, Rehoboth has great restaurants and equally great gay and gay friendly clubs. Saturday night we went to three different bars/clubs and they were all in less than a 10 block radius. Besides being gay friendly - something that the Virginia Beach resort area is decidedly not, Rehoboth has so many fewer "tourist trap" stores that all sell the exact same junk that few refined travelers would want to buy. If Virginia Beach had any sense, a part of the resort strip would be set aside to cultivate gay travelers.
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In any event, we are going back to Rehoboth Beach for the July 4th weekend and looking forward to seeing the place in summer with the benefit of locals to show us around and give us a place to stay. It should be fun. Oh, did I mention that the place was originally founded in the 1800's to be a "Christian beach resort?" Things have certainly changed.