William and Mary Fraternity Snubs Governor Bob McDonnell

In yet another display of the fact that bigotry and lack of respect for all citizens can carry a price, the William and Mary chapter of the country's oldest black fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha, was invited to Richmond Thursday night to receive the 2010 Governor's Community Service and Volunteerism Award, given by the Governor's Advisory Board on National and Community Service and Office of Volunteerism and Community Service. In a snub to Taliban Bob, the fraternity said no thank you and turned down an invitation to the Governor's mansion. McDonnell's recent proclaimation of April as "Confederate History Month" not surprisingly, did not sit well with the all black fraternity. Way to go Bob - generate yet more negative publicity for the state!! Three months into McDonnell's term, one has to wonder who the Hell is advising him? Pat Robertson, Victoria Cobb from The Family Foundation, Bozo the Clown, or members of the Klan? It has been one PR disaster after another. Here are some highlights from the Daily Press:
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Gov. Bob McDonnell's recent proclamation naming April Confederate History Month has prompted members of College of William and Mary's chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. to decline the governor's invitation to appear at the Governor's Mansion to accept an award.
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The university's chapter of the country's oldest black fraternity was invited to Richmond Thursday night to receive the 2010 Governor's Community Service and Volunteerism Award, given by the Governor's Advisory Board on National and Community Service and Office of Volunteerism and Community Service. The chapter was one of eight groups or individuals to be given the award, said William B. Morris III, president of the William and Mary's Alpha Phi Alpha chapter.
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Initially honored with the award, the organization's happiness quickly turned to outrage when the governor announced he was proclaiming April Confederate History Month. Noting the fraternity has had such notable members as Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall, the chapter decided they would accept the award, but would not attend the ceremony, Morris said.
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In a letter to the governor, the chapter said they would not be attending the awards ceremony because their organization stands for "social justice and advocacy for underrepresented and marginalized populations; populations that were taken advantage of by the Confederacy."

Falls Church Chamber of Commerce Slams Cuccinelli and McDonnell

It seems the anti-gay agenda of Virginia Attorney General Ken "Kookinelli" and Governor "Taliban Bob" McDonnell is not sitting well with some within the Virginia business community. McDonnell who ran a highly dishonest campaign saying that he had moderated his social views and wanted to be a "jobs governor" has - with Kookinelli's active assistance - done nothing in their first three months in office but make Virginia a laughing stock worldwide and make the state appear to be inhabited extreme Neanderthals and racists. In my view, that's not exactly a climate that will attract modern, progressive business to the state. Apparently, my analysis is shared by the Falls Church Chamber of Commerce which adopted a formal resolution this week “Affirming the Link Between Non-Discrimination Public Policy and Economic Development” at its monthly meeting. The chamber has also voiced “its strong opposition to recent action by the Attorney General of Virginia Kenneth Cuccinelli" that would strip gay Virginians of employment non-discrimination protections. Here are some story highlights:
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The Falls Church Chamber of Commerce, by a 10-1 vote with three abstentions, approved a formal resolution this week “Affirming the Link Between Non-Discrimination Public Policy and Economic Development” at its monthly meeting and has voiced “its strong opposition to recent action by the Attorney General of Virginia Kenneth Cuccinelli to advise Virginia’s colleges and universities to remove protections against discrimination of lesbian and gay persons.”
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The resolution adds, “We believe that many new and relocating businesses will choose to avoid Virginia because this posture on discrimination will have a profoundly chilling effect on prospective employees, contractors, vendors and customers.”
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With this resolution, the Falls Church Chamber of Commerce became the only Chamber in Virginia to take a stand against Cuccinelli’s action on economic development grounds. The Falls Church Chamber was also the only Chamber in Virginia to take a similar stand, also on economic development grounds, against a Virginia constitutional amendment that barred same sex marriage in 2006.
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Indeed, the members of the Falls Church CC may be correct in their assessment, but their resolution may be no more than closing the barn door at this point, as sources tell LGR that the very gay friendly defense-contracting giant, Northrop Grumman, has in all probability scratched Northern Virginia from its list as a location for their new corporate headquarters site after Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell rescinded a standing Executive Order that forbids discrimination against public employees on a number of grounds, including sexual orientation.
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McDonnell later half-heartedly backtracked on that decision, but according to our source, you can look for a new Northrop Grumman HQ to be located someplace in Maryland, a state that has decided to recognized same-sex marriages preformed in other jurisdictions as legal, in about a year.
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If Northop Grumman picks a Maryland location (which part of me sincerely hopes will be the case), Kookinelli and McDonnell may well be the reason for the decision. One can wonder what other potential employers will be wooed by Maryland using Virginia's bigotry as one of that state's marketing ploys. "Heck of a job" Bob and Cooch.

Friday Male Beauty

Obama Extends Hospital Visitation Rights to Same-Sex Partners

While continuing to break most of his campaign promises to LGBT Americans - particularly in respect to ENDA and the repeal of DADT - President Obama threw the LGBT community a bone yesterday by mandating that any hospital that receives Medicare or Medicaid funding must extend visitation rights to the partners of gay men and lesbians and allow same-sex couples to share medical powers of attorney. No doubt Catholic hospitals will not be happy, even though it will mean that LGBT couples will no longer need to avoid such hospitals in favor of non-sectarian hospitals. Up until now, I have specifically recommended to my LGBT clients that they avoid the two local Catholic run hospitals to avoid possible visitation and/or decision making problems. Hopefully this action will bar future tragedies where long time partners are barred from seeing their loved one such as the one involving Janice Langbehn and Lisa Pond that occurred in a Miami hospital (I wrote about this incident and was privileged to have Janice write to me later). LGBT couples, however, still need to sign medical powers of attorney to make sure they fit within the scope of this new directive. Here are some highlights from the Washington Post:
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President Obama mandated Thursday that hospitals extend visitation rights to the partners of gay men and lesbians and allow same-sex couples to share medical power of attorney, perhaps the most significant step so far in his efforts to expand the rights of gay Americans.
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The president directed the Department of Health and Human Services to prohibit discrimination in hospital visitation in a memo that was e-mailed to reporters Thursday night while he was at a fundraiser in Miami.
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[T]he new rule, once in place, will affect any hospital that receives Medicare or Medicaid funding, a move that covers the vast majority of the nation's health-care institutions. It is currently common policy in many hospitals that only those related by blood or marriage be allowed to visit patients or have power of attorney, which allows them to make medical decisions on behalf of a seriously ill or injured patient. Obama's order will start a rule-making process at HHS that could take several months, officials said.
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Obama's mandate is the latest attempt by his administration to advance the agenda of a constituency that strongly supported his presidential campaign. . . . But the moves have been too slow for some gay rights activists, who have urged the president to be more vocal and active in championing their causes. John Aravosis, a prominent gay blogger, wrote last October that Obama's "track record on keeping his gay promises has been fairly abominable."
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[O]pponents of same-sex marriage have called the visitation issue a red herring, arguing that advocates want to provide special rights for gays that other Americans do not have. A spokesman for one group said the president's move was part of a broader effort to appease gays and to undermine the institution of marriage.
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"In its current political context, President Obama's memorandum clearly constitutes pandering to a radical special interest group," said Peter S. Sprigg, a senior fellow for policy studies at the Family Research Council.
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Efforts to reach a spokesman for the Catholic Health Association of the United States were unsuccessful. In the memo, Obama said hospitals should not be able to deny visitation privileges on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. "Every day, all across America, patients are denied the kindnesses and caring of a loved one at their sides whether in a sudden medical emergency or a prolonged hospital stay," he wrote.
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Officials said Obama had been moved by the story of a lesbian couple in Florida, Janice Langbehn and Lisa Pond, who were kept apart when Pond collapsed of a cerebral aneurysm in February 2007, dying hours later at a hospital without her partner and children by her side.
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The new rules will not apply only to gays. They also will affect widows and widowers who have been unable to receive visits from a friend or companion. And they would allow members of some religious orders to designate someone other than a family member to make medical decisions.
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But it is clear that the document focuses on gays. A number of areas remain in which federal law requires proof of marriage, including receiving Social Security benefits and in taxes. "The General Accounting Office has identified 1,138 instances in federal law where marriage is important," said one gay rights activist.

Son of Regent Law School Dean Sentenced to 30 Years

I have touched on this story before along the long slow path of justice catching up with Troy Titus, son of the founding dean of Pat Robertson's Regent Law School who time and time again wore his supposed Christian faith on his sleeve in order to dupe clients and investors into trusting him with their money and assets. Authorities believe he stole at least 12 million dollars that victims will never see again and in the process turned many lives upside down. The moral in my view is that when someone constantly talks about religion in a business context, cover your wallet and run. Especially run from attorneys who talk about being Christian or belonging to "Christian" law firms. Sadly, too many people do not seem to get that message. NOTE: He attended BOTH Falwell's Liberty University and Robertson's Regent University. Here are highlights from the Virginian Pilot:
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Disbarred and disgraced attorney Troy A. Titus was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in federal prison for defrauding clients and friends out of more than $8 million, money a judge said the victims will never see again.
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The 44-year-old father of six wept as he tried to explain himself before U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson and a courtroom filled with family and friends. O ther than blaming his swelled pride, Titus was at a loss.
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A federal jury in December convicted Titus of 33 felonies, finding that he had operated a Ponzi scheme that cost his victims around $8 million in losses. The government now says the total fraud amounted to nearly $12 million.*
Calling Titus "an economic sociopath," Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Moore asked the judge to put Titus behind bars for the rest of his life. While the judge did not do that, Titus will be well past retirement age when he is released, unless he wins his appeal.
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Titus, whose father is a lawyer, came from an upper-middle-class, devout Christian family. He studied at Liberty University and the College of William and Mary, and received a law degree from Regent University.
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He owned a successful law practice for around 15 years and held real estate investment seminars across the country before the Virginia State Bar revoked his license in 2005 amid allegations of wide-spread fraud. The FBI began investigating, taking about three years to put together a massive case that led to a 49-count indictment. The jury convicted him on 33 of those counts.

Thursday Male Beauty

Focus On The Family Returns To Its Homophobia

Under the poisonous leadership of Daddy Dobson, Focus on the Family has for years been a leader in the dissemination of anti-gay hate and lies about sexual orientation being a "choice." Yeah, as if breathing is a choice. But then FOTF has never shown much concern for the truth. Very briefly, FOTF seemed to have figured out that rampant homophobia does not play well with the coming generations (my own children and many of their friends have either become non-church goers or seek out gay friendly religious organizations) and did a surprising turn when a spokesman said that sexual orientation was not determinative of whether or not someone could be worthy of a judge ship or even a position on the Supreme Court. Now, FOTF is returning to its gay hating roots and has made clear that any more moderate positions on gays was a "mistake." Think Progress looks at this about face and the latest spewing of anti-gay propaganda by FOTF:
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Last year, after Supreme Court Justice David Souter announced his retirement, speculation mounted about whether President Obama could potentially appoint the first openly gay Justice. Conservatives were unsure how to respond to this possibility. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, initially considered the possibility, but ultimately agreed that an openly gay nominee would be “a big concern.” Sen. John Thune (R-SD) also said such an appointment “would be a bridge too far right now.” Focus on the Family surprised many by suggesting that it could, in fact, support a gay Justice. “The issue is not their sexual orientation. It’s whether they are a good judge or not,” spokesperson Bruce Hausknecht told The Plum Line in May of 2009.
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With Justice John Paul Stevens now retiring, the question has been raised again. This time, however, Focus on the Family is not taking any chances. The group has issued a statement correcting “this mistake”:

It has been reported that we would not oppose any U.S. Supreme Court nominee over their ’sexual orientation.’ Our Judicial Analyst [Bruce Hausknecht] made a statement to this effect in an interview with The Plum Line. To be honest, this is one of those conversations we’d like to ‘do over.’ We can assure you that we recognize that homosexual behavior is a sin and does not reflect God’s created intent and desire for humanity. Further, we at Focus do affirm that character and moral rectitude should be key considerations in appointing members of the judiciary, especially in the case of the highest court in the land. Sexual behavior–be it heterosexual or homosexual–certainly lies at the heart of personal morality.

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Focus on the Family may have come back to its usual homophobic positions, but will conservative Republicans follow? On Monday, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) said he would “have to think about” supporting an openly gay Justice. “As long as it doesn’t interfere with their job, it’s not a particular issue,” he said. With Family’s reversal, how long will it take for Cornyn or any other Republican to remember that “homosexual behavior is a sin and does not reflect God’s created intent” and reverse himself ?

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I am sure readers will be comforted to know that in the eyes of FOFT all of us gays lack character and moral rectitude. In my view, it's the folks at FOTF who are lacking in integrity, veracity and morality - and true Christian behavior.

Foreclosure Rates Surge

While Wall Street has been bailed out with taxpayer funds and is back to giving itself absolutely obscene bonuses, the typical taxpayer who has lost their job, suffered a health care crisis that wiped out their financial capabilities or even lost tenants because of tenant job losses no relief is in sight. Worse yet, no one in Congress or the White House seems to much care beyond making pretty statements. Relief programs are basically a bust and the level of incompetence in mortgage and bank loss mitigation departments would make the Three Stooges look like rocket scientists. Half the time the right hand doesn't know what the left is doing within lenders as evidenced by a recent Bank of America loan where the homeowner - after losing her job for a number of months - finally had worked out a loan modification. The problem was, no one bothered to tell the arm of the lender doing the foreclosure work. The house was sold without my client's knowledge and she came home from her new job to find a notice on her door that the home had gone to foreclosure. Now, after many e-mails and phone calls, the sale is being rescinded - something that could thankfully be done since the deed had not been yet delivered to the purchaser at the foreclosure sale. Situations like this woman's are the norm, not the exception and lenders need to drastically hire more competent personnel to stop more tragedies that could be averted and which overall would SAVE lenders money and help STABILIZE housing prices. We need fewer obscene bonuses and more competent staffing NOW. Here are highlights from the Virginian Pilot on the surging level of foreclosures:
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LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A record number of U.S. homes were lost to foreclosure in the first three months of this year, a sign banks are starting to wade through the backlog of troubled home loans at a faster pace, according to a new report. RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday that the number of U.S. homes taken over by banks jumped 35 percent in the first quarter from a year ago. In addition, households facing foreclosure grew 16 percent in the same period and 7 percent from the last three months of 2009.
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In all, more than 900,000 households, or one in every 138 homes, received a foreclosure-related notice, RealtyTrac said. The firm based in Irvine, Calif., tracks notices for defaults, scheduled home auctions and home repossessions.
Homeowners continue to fall behind on payments because they've lost their job or seen their mortgage payment rise due to an interest-rate reset. Many are unable to refinance because they now owe more on their loan than their home is worth.
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The Obama administration's $75 billion foreclosure prevention program has only been able to help a small fraction of troubled homeowners. About 231,000 homeowners have completed loan modifications as part of the Obama administration's flagship foreclosure prevention program through March. That's about 21 percent of the 1.2 million borrowers who began the program over the past year.
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Last month, the administration expanded the program, launching a plan to reduce the amount some troubled borrowers owe on their home loans and give jobless homeowners a temporary break. But the details of those programs are expected to take months to work out.

More Wednesday Male Beauty

Does The Gay Media Have A Sex Addiction?

I did not comment on it at the time, but a few weeks ago a major debate erupted on The Bilerico Project as a result of a post that editor-in-chief Bil Browning put up that discussed a website featuring Mormon guys masturbating. That post in turn caused Bilerico contributor David Badash to announce that he was bailing from Bilerico. Since I am a contributor to Bilerico myself, I tried to stay neutral. Now, Mediaite has a piece bearing the caption of this post that looks at the Bilerico snafu as well as the larger issue of sexual context on LGBT blogs and I left a comment with my perspective on the issue which is relevant to this blog as well as many others. I would like to hear readers' thoughts on the topic. Here are some highlights from the Mediaite column:
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For David Badash, a Bilerico Project post about a website featuring Mormon guys masturbating was the final straw. The New York blogger at the The New Civil Rights Movement announced quite publicly recently that he was no longer going to write for the brainy, activist blog that is the Huffington Post of the LGBT blog world.The back and forth between Bilerico’s founder Bil Browning and Badash has unearthed one of the dirty secrets about the LGBT (old and new) media world: sex sells and sex is interesting.
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Sexuality isn’t a dirty word for many LGBT media consumers and glorifying–even objectifying–sexuality isn’t problematic. In responding to Badash’s concerns, Browning conceded “[s]exy pictures always bring in viewers. I’m not ashamed of using that mentality to continue to bring new readers to one of the smartest, sharpest and controversial LGBT websites where you can talk openly about anything remotely queer.”
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Browning called the correlation between sexy posts, increased page views, and advertising impressions that lead to more income a “win-win” and that the content of the site was not lessened by a few posts that have a sexual content that appeal to gay men. Browning’s site is not all “boys in underwear” and porn links; far from it. With a large number of lesbian and transgender columnists, it reads more like a queer studies lecture than a porn-script.
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Andy Towle, the founder of the very successful Towleroad site, says that he includes sexy pictures because they are among the interesting things he finds online but that he isn’t intentionally posting boys in underwear just to get hits. “I’ve never used sexy pictures and posts as a device to drive traffic,” Towle told Mediaite.
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“I’ve had to abide by stricter rules as my site has become more successful because top advertisers have different expectations,” Towle said. Mainstream advertisers are wary of adult content and links to adult websites, Towle explained, meaning that he has to be conscious of what he puts on his site to avoid offending ad networks even if similar content on a non-gay website wouldn’t raise eyebrows.
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So what are my thoughts on the issue? Obviously, I continue to post the "male beauty" photos. At the same time, I endeavor to keep the photos non-X-rated for the very reason cited by Andy Towle: I do not want the blog to be marked as an adult site with warning disclaimers before one can enter. Here is the comment I left on the Mediaite story:
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I can understand each side of the argument, but in the final analysis believe that as a blogger, one is trying to attract multiple audiences. Thus, I am not offended by some beefcake if it is tasteful and PG-rated. In fact, on my own blog, Michael-in-Norfolk, I intermix some tasteful, artistic male beauty (many are fashion model shots) with a daily series of posts on topics that can cover advocacy, politics, religion, gay rights, world and local events and other topics. Most readers focus on the serious posts, yet also enjoy the “eye candy.”

Having now achieved some reputation for the serious pieces, I still have not eliminated the male beauty on my blog. Why? Because both my gay male readers and my straight women readers like them (I actually have a number of them). Indeed, I once put up a poll on whether or not to delete the male beauty and 70% of respondents said to keep the male beauty. I don’t fault Bil Browning for “mixing it up” with the Mormon boy post . If nothing else, by doing so he’s secured publicity for The Bilerico Project on websites like this one. Oh, I almost forgot – I really like the “Huffington Post of the LGBT blog world” comment!

Catholic Church Apologists Just Don't Get It

I received a post comment today which, while not anonymous, was from a Blogger profile that was blocked and thus not something that could be verified with a name and location. Therefore, I did not publish the comment. However, some of the points raised in the comment - such as call critics of the Church like myself "Liberal Church Haters" do deserve a response because they are part and parcel with the Catholic Church's effort to depict itself as a victim that has been wrongfully singled out for undue focus and strict criticism in the area of sexual abuse by clergy. The argument of the apologists basically goes like this: pedophilia and molestation of minors happen all throughout society and in various other institutions - public schools being one such example. Therefore, to single out the Catholic Church evidences bigotry and/or liberal bias. The apologists also endeavor to link pedophilia with homosexuality as opposed to celibacy. I'm sorry, but to me, that fairy tale story line is - pardon my French - unadulterated bull shit for a number of reasons.
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The first reason that the excuse that "everyone is doing it" does not wash is because - as is noted at Gay Agenda - in the wider scope of society outside of Catholic Church control, such incidents are not hushed up,swept under the carpet, and hidden from view. Outside the Catholic Church you don’t get someone guilty of child abuse protected by their employer, moved to different locations, and then given complete freedom along with close contact to children, to do it all over again. The facts that have come out to date have more or less confirmed a worldwide centralized policy of cover up and protection of predator priests that flows directly down form the Popes and the Vatican. I know of no public school system for instance where anything like this has or would occur.
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A second reason that the pedophilia/homosexuality canard fails is because the experts have uniformly condemned it as untrue. Just today the French foreign ministry slammed the Vatican for this lie as did the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales. In its statement, the British Catholic Bishops Conference stated in part as follows:

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[T]here is no empirical data which concludes that sexual orientation is connected to child sexual abuse. The consensus among researchers is that the sexual abuse of children is not a question of sexual 'orientation', whether heterosexual or homosexual, but of a disordered attraction or 'fixation'.
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"Many abusers of children have never developed the capacity for mature adult relationships. Instead, their sexual attractions focus on children - boys, girls, or both. "In the sexual abuse of children the issue is the sexual fixation of the abusers, and not their sexual orientation."
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Unfortunately, the celibate priesthood seems to have offered a perfect haven for these psycho-sexually disturbed individuals where they can hide their severe psychological issues while enjoying respect and status. Stated differently, the Church's policy of celibacy attracts those unable to function normally in sexual/emotional relationships. Both the Church hierarchy and the Church apologists need to face this reality. Pretending that a systemic problem does not exist does nothing to correct the problem.

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A third reason why the Church needs to be hoisted on its own petard is because of the rank hypocrisy of the hierarchy from the Pope on down and the way in which they have shown themselves to be worse than modern day Pharisees. As an institution, the Church has inflicted untold emotional and psychological harm on its members over the centuries - and not just gay Catholics - yet through it all the supposed "men of God" in leadership positions have been worse sinners than the members of the laity in whom they have inflicted self-hate and misery. It's the hypocrisy of it all that makes me and others want to have the Pope and other members of the high Catholic clergy reveal for the frauds and morally bankrupt functionaries that they are in fact. While condemning average people, these monsters have put money, power, and privilege before God and simple decency.

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Today's comment author and similar apologists need to open their eyes to the harsh light of reality. The emperor has no clothes and they have been acting in idolatrous behavior towards the bitter old men in dresses at the Vatican.

Wednesday Male Beauty

AFA to Muslim-Americans: Convert To Christianity Or Leave

There are some who have chided me for using the term "Christian Taliban" because unlike Islamic fundamentalists America's far right Christians have not utilized violent acts of terrorism. This actually not a true statement - ask George Tiller's family - and over looks the seemingly growing hatred espoused by far right Christians against anyone who isn't "one of us." The American Family Association ("AFA")which boasts that it has 43,000+ member churches has now taken the level of diatribe to a new level. Now language typically reserved for gay Americans (who AFA would like to deport or exterminate depending upon which of its extremist leaders is speaking at the moment) is being leveled against Muslim-Americans. The message? Convert or leave the USA. I have long believed that far right Christians constitute an increasingly clear and present danger to other citizens not to mention the right to freedom of religion for all purportedly guaranteed to all citizens (other than gays, of course) by the United States Constitution. A column at Huffington Post looks at this frightening new development which the AFA is now openly voicing. Here are highlights:
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It seems like only a week ago that the American Family Association's Bryan Fischer (who is the AFA's Director of Issues Analysis, perhaps because he has so many personal issues that need to be analyzed by professional psychopharmacologists), was saying that the Christian thing to do would be to round up all Muslim American citizens and deport them to Muslim countries, because surely that would solve a lot of problems? You know, by sending happy American citizens to other countries?
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Well, naturally, such remarks call for a clarification, and, in keeping with the traditions of "clarifying," Fischer basically swaps out one ridiculously abhorrent statement for another statement of equal ridiculous abhorrence, without really retracting the first.
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Via Media Matters: Muslims who have become naturalized citizens, of course, would need to commit an act of treason to forfeit their citizenship and become eligible for repatriation. Based on the Constitution's definition of treason in Article III Section 3 ["adhering to (the) Enemies (of the United States), (or) giving them Aid and Comfort"] treasonous acts are likely committed on virtually a weekly basis here in the U.S. in many mosques and Islamic organizations.
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Muslims continue to have as their objective the Islamization of the entire world, including the U.S., and are taught by their god to use force where necessary to accomplish the goal. The current objective of Muslim activists is to create a brand new Islamic state - meaning a state like New Jersey or Montana - out of existing jurisdictions and establish a virtual Islamic homeland in our midst.
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Those who are willing to convert to Christianity and renounce Islam, Allah, Mohammed and the Koran may be welcomed, for they can become not just good Christians but true Americans.

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Meanwhile, I am reliably informed by the Constitution of the United States that one of the freedoms we cherish in America is the right to worship whatever faith we bloody well please, so maybe it's Fischer who needs to sail away on a little sloop in search of a land more to his liking?
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So there you have it. Only Christians can be "true Americans." The mindset sounds all too similar to that held by Muslims in the Middle East. I believe that "Christian Taliban" is an appropriate name for organizations like AFA.

False Republican "Moderates" and "Gay Demon" Exorcists

Republicans seem to be doing their absolute best to underscore the fact that campaign poses as "moderates" is indeed nothing more than a cynical and calculated pose. From Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell's recent debacle on "Confederate History Month" - which was re-enforced by the even more tone deaf Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi - to the GOP's embrace of insane and spelling challenged teabaggers, the scene is one of anything but moderation. Indeed, short of having a lobotomy, it is hard to comprehend how anyone who is rational and not living in an alternate universe can remain a Republican. However, perhaps leading the charge in insanity is Virginia Attorney General Ken "Kookinelli" Cuccinelli. In a matter of a couple of days, Kookinelli will be sharing the stage in Lynchburg, Virginia, with "gay demon" exorcist Cindy Jacobs. Naturally, the state's image is gaining nothing positive to the Cooch's efforts as he continues to garner national media coverage. Bob McDonnell and Kookinelli seem Hell bent to depict Virginia to the world as a time warped haven of racists, Jim Crow minded, religious lunatics. And McDonnell thinks this will attract business to the state? Here are highlights from AlterNet on the continuing PR fiasco for Virginia:
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As noted last night on the Rachel Maddow Show, Virginia GOP Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and evangelist Cindy Jacobs will be appearing (and, it would seem, sharing a stage together) at the Freedom Federation anti-health care reform Awakening 2010 conference, scheduled to be held at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia this April 15th and 16th. Noting Cuccinelli’s plan to attend the conference Maddow observed, “A lot of conservative politicians admit they want to repeal health reform, but it takes a brave new Virginia style conservative politician to say they want to repeal health reform while appearing at an event with a faith healer — repeal and replace indeed.”
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People For The American Way’s Kyle Mantyla has posted footage of Cindy Jacobs’ attempts at faith healing of HIV and cancer during a March 2010 conference in Dallas but Jacobs is not just a faith healer. As shown in video footage from the 18th International Transformation Network Institute on Nation Transformation conference, held October 2008 in Mar del Plata, Argentina, Cindy Jacobs claims the power to cast out gay demons.
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Jacobs is also fond, it would seem according to the following account from a book by her close colleague C. Peter Wagner, of burning statues of Catholic saints, rosary beads, Books of Mormon, “totem poles,” and a wide range of other [presumably "idolatrous"] assorted religious and mystical items.

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Given Kookinelli's extreme Catholicism - some believe he is Opus Dei - it would seem he should have checked out Jacobs a bit more closely since I suspect the ultra-conservative bishops of Richmond and Northern Virginia will not be too pleased about Jacobs' fetish on burning Catholic items. Cooch would almost be funny to watch were he not in a position to do so much damage to Virginia and squander so much tax money. It is going to be a long 3 years and 9 months with Cooch as Virginia's top legal officer.

More Tuesday Male Beauty

More Catholic Church Lies and Malfeasance

It truly has become nearly impossible to address issues involving the Roman Catholic Church on a daily basis since each day there seem to be new lies floated by the Vatican or some horrible new details of sexual abuse - some of it very recent and not in the distant past as the Church would like to pretend. And then there is the disingenuous campaign of the Church in Connecticut where the state's bishops have sent a "pastoral letter" to all Catholics urging their assistance in defeating a proposed law that would eliminate the statute of limitations on sexual abuse claims. The full letter can be viewed here and it is literally sickening how the bishops pain a picture of the Church being unduly victimized as opposed to the truth that the Church and its morally bankrupt priest and hierarchy allowed the victimization of thousands. Here are a few passages that underscore the disingenuousness of Connecticut's bishops:
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This bill would put all Church institutions, including your parish, at risk. The nature of bankruptcy litigation puts all assets at risk, even if your parish has had no past incidents, reports or allegations of child abuse. That is why it is important for you to join other Catholics across Connecticut in opposing this legislation. And this is not simply about bankruptcy or the loss of property. Ultimately the legislation would undermine the mission of the Catholic Church in Connecticut, threatening our parishes, our schools, and our Catholic Charities.
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The bottom line is that this is terrible public policy, discriminatory by its nature, and a huge threat to us all. Most importantly, it does nothing to protect the state’s children because it delays reporting. We must stop this bill now.
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Please take action today! This is our Church, your Church, and we love and cherish it. Please contact your State Senator and State Representative now and express your strong opposition to House Bill 5473 as soon as possible.
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Shockingly, virtually nowhere in the letter do the bishops acknowledge the rampant sexual abuse by priests or the hierarchy's criminal role in covering up such abuse for decades. The Church is depicted as the wrongfully accused victim. It is in short, disgusting. It is yet another reason why I am no longer a Catholic. Bad things happen - or continue to happen - because good people look the other way or by their silence tacitly endorse it.
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As for the bishops false claims that alleged abuses would date back 50, 60 or 70 years, a case out of Texas shows that apparently little has changed in terms of the freedom of predatory priests to prey on victims. It is still happening. Here are highlights from the San Antonio Express News on incredible abuse - some at gun point - that occurred less than two years ago and occurred in the diocese headed by the newly named archbishop of Los Angeles:
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A Catholic priest from a rural parish west of San Antonio is accused in a lawsuit filed Thursday of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy at gunpoint and during private catechism sessions two years ago. The suit, which names outgoing Archbishop José Gomez as a defendant and claims he sought to conceal the matter, comes three days after the Vatican named Gomez as the next archbishop in Los Angeles. He is transferring to California next month. Gomez said recently through a spokesman that his five-year tenure involved no new sex-abuse allegations.
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The suit claims that Father John M. Fiala repeatedly assaulted the youth from January to August 2008 while Fiala was working as administrator at Sacred Heart of Mary in Rocksprings. That’s the county seat of Edwards County, which is about 110 miles west of San Antonio and is part of the Archdiocese of San Antonio.
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The archdiocese said Thursday it has cooperated in the investigation, but it did not say whether it had reported any complaints against Fiala to police. During a news conference Tuesday to announce Gomez’s new assignment, Father Martin Leopold, head administrator for the archdiocese, said only a couple allegations of sex abuse by priests had surfaced during Gomez’s tenure. He said they involved claims from 20 and 30 years ago and were made public at Gomez’s request and in keeping with the standards of transparency codified by bishops in the aftermath of an explosion of sex abuse allegations earlier this decade. “In the last five years, we’re blessed to not have had any allegations of new abuse,” Leopold said, reasserting programs and policies to protect from such abuse.
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The Fiala case follows the same pattern of cover-up of sex-abuse complaints in the Catholic Church in the U.S. and Europe, said David Clohessy, national president of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. “Bishops are so quick to say that they have made changes,” he said. “And the ones to pay the price are the young victims.”
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On other occasions, the priest manipulated the teen into performing oral sex, once by leveraging his gift of a car and another time pulling a revolver on him, according to the suit. The teen eventually ran away from home and attempted suicide, the suit says. A school counselor learned of the alleged abuse and contacted the Sheriff’s Office.
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“One of the issues in this case is he had numerous transfers and periods of no assignments at all,” said the teen’s attorney, Tom Rhodes. “That’s a pretty good red flag.”
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This case, if proven suggests that Los Angeles' new archbishop is little better than outgoing Cardinal Richard Mahoney who always put the interest of protecting predator priests ahead of the safety of children and youths. Indeed, NOTHING has really changed. Every Catholic who gives ANY money to the Church at the parish level is underwriting and enabling this obscene system. Money is assessed against parishes and passed to the diocese level from which some of it is passed on up to Rome. Why can't the Catholic laity see that it is being cynically used by the Church's morally bankrupt leadership?

It's Time to Lobby Your Elected Officials on ENDA and DADT

Barack Obama has shown time and time again that he's all too ready to throw the LGBT community under the bus once he's milked us of money and votes - or at least until such time as the LGBT community revolts and turns up the heat and turns off the money. Congressional Democrats have proven themselves to not be much more reliable. Many believe that we have entered a critical window of opportunity for the passage of ENDA and DADT. The passage of ENDA and repeal of DADT would be major victories in eliminating religious based discrimination from America. Sadly, far too many elected officials would rather do nothing rather than do whats right and potentially face the criticism of religious extremist elements within the GOP who are only too happy to demand that their religious bigotries remain enshrined in the nation's laws. Truth be told, religious freedom is an all or nothing proposition. Either ALL Americans enjoy religious freedom and protection from discrimination based upon their adherence or non-adherence to one particular set of religious beliefs or the entire system becomes a farce. As Karen Ocamb reports on LGBT Pov, it is time to hold our Congressional officials ' feet to the fire and lobby for passage of pro-gay legislation. Pretty words from alleged "friends" mean nothing without action. Here are highlights from Karen's post:
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I had a chance to talk with [Barney] Frank before he spoke to the gathering. Among a number of topics, he talked about the “good provisions” for transgenders in the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) and how he thinks the bill will pass the House but still stresses that the LGBT community needs to call their own representatives to make sure the votes are there.
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Look I’ve been telling people for years, we have a problem because still there’s some resistance on the transgender issue. People don’t want to hear that. I think maybe they’re afraid of having it tested. I believe the House will send the Senate a bill that will have good transgender protections – people have been telling me it’s no problem. We will mark it up. Well, let’s see. The only thing people should do if they want to get this bill passed is call their representatives, call their senators and after they’ve called – get other people to call their representatives and their senators, not people from some other place.”
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I also asked Frank about Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and the effort to repeal that this year. Frank said:
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“I’m frustrated. I’m disappointed with the administration, in part. There have been some good things. Admiral Mullen saying what he said was spectacular. And enforcing it the way it was originally supposed to – even though I didn’t like it – discharges can be cut by over 90 percent.
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But there will be a vote in the House. Rep. Patrick Murphy is going to offer his amendment. I think we’ll pass it in the House and then in the Senate – I’m told by some of the Senate leadership that they don’t think they have the votes to repeal it. People ought to talk to Sen. Carl Levin, he’s the key guy who’s our great ally.”
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Might Sen. Levin offer his own amendment? Frank said, “Here’s my perspective: Senator Levin is our friend and he’s thinking serious about it and you ought to talk to him.”
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After years in political activist activity, the truth is that we in the LGBT community cannot rely on the good intentions of others. We need to make the case, lobby our members of the House and our Senators and make it clear that there WILL be a price to be paid if affirmative action is not taken for passage of ENDA and the repeal of DADT. To voice your concerns contact your Congressman/woman here; your U. S. Senators here, and the White House here.

An Amazing Teacher - Joy Newcom

In the course of surfing the Internet and checking my Google search agent results I came across a blog post by a straight teacher that I found amazingly moving and most relevant in light of the recent anti-gay behavior of some public high schools and/or parents of gay teens. Would that there were many, many more teachers who could grasp the lesson Joy Newcom seems to have taken to heart. Admittedly, I was also moved because the story told by Marc Wheeler (pictured at left) is in many ways similar to my own (and probably many more in the LGBT community) Except that, in my case, it took me another two decades to accept who I was and to try to come to terms with the fact that I'd been born gay for some unknowable reason. Marc accepted that truth in college. In her post, Joy demonstrates a wonderful level of empathy and an ability to see Marc as another human being and an equal child of God. Why more people - especially those who claim to be Christian - cannot learn the lesson she espouses is troubling. Thankfully, time and the younger generation do seem to be on the side of what is right and good in terms of gay acceptance. Joy Newcom and Marc Wheeler are exceptional individuals and I encourage readers to read Joy's full post. Marc also needs to be credited with proving that living out and openly can impact others in a tremendously positive way. Here are some highlights from Joy's remarkable post:

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This blog is not like others I've done. I'm basically sharing my homework with you, because I feel the topic of my assignment is worth sharing. My task was to interview someone who is gay, asking him or her to describe any difficulties that occurred while growing up, attending school, and coming out to family and friends. . . . when it came time to choose [an interview subject], Marc Wheeler, now a working actor living in West Hollywood, Calif., it seemed the full-circle choice. This homegrown Iowan was the first openly gay student I ever taught. I realized I didn't know much about what life was like for him during the years he was a student in my classroom. It was time to learn.

We talked for two hours one night, and I learned a lot that will help me as I teach others who happened to be born gay. I have always respected Marc for his willingness to openly share who he is with the world. I hope you do too.
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Marc Wheeler is likely not the first gay student I have ever taught; however, he is the first student I taught who openly identified himself as gay. In fact, I am fairly confident that I taught students born with a same-sex orientation before Marc came along in 1997 – whether any of us knew it at the time or not.
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By the time Marc, a 4.0 GPA student, was ready to attend college in the late 90s, his identity as a man who happened to be gay was something he was ready to define and accept. However, his parents were unaware of his sexual orientation and related identity struggles. . . . The admission was something he had feared happening in elementary and middle school, for at that young age, Marc believed identifying himself as homosexual would mean – according to what he had learned from his experiences in churches (i.e., Pentecostal, United Methodist, Baptist, Lutheran) – that he would “burn in hell.”
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Because I have always known Marc as a male who happens to be gay, I was not aware – until this paper – of the intensely personal identity struggles he navigated, particularly in relation to his father. I was aware that his father was having a hard time reconciling Marc’s sexual orientation; however, I wasn’t aware of how long it took and how isolated Marc felt during that time. The ability to have conversations with family members about important topics is a valuable part of belonging to a family unit. As I teach, I will now be more aware of the personal pain and toll that is exacted on students who are not only far from home, but also emotionally isolated from people who define key relationships in their lives. Children depend on primary relationships to help them form their identities. I hope to become even more sensitive to the difficulties that face young men and women who come to an awareness of their same-sex gender orientation without the full support of their parents or siblings.
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What I will remember most about this conversation with Marc, however, are the stories about other children calling him “faggot” or “gay” beginning in elementary. . . . Marc helped me understand the extreme difficulty present in those moments. Teachers might be insensitive to the harm that occurs from name calling, and it takes great courage for the victim of the slur to make the offense known. As Marc explained, sharing news of the incident is practically an admission of its truth at a time when the student might not yet be ready to bear the consequences. “When children identify someone as gay,” said Marc, “they may well be right, but it is so difficult to admit, because you are not yet ready to accept all that goes with it.” I want to be a teacher that any student would be comfortable coming to.
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To help, I will continue to support GSA events and create a classroom environment that upholds all students as valued members of society, while including lessons that highlight the harm of discriminatory language and actions. Thank you, Marc, for being my teacher.
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Thank you Joy for your insights and reflections. And thank you Marc for your courage and strength.

Legends 2010 Steering Committee Seeking Honoree Nominations

As I have noted before, I am once again a member of the steering committee for the Equality Virginia Legends Gala fundraising event that will take place this coming November. Each year an honor is selected and honored for their/its commitment to promoting social justice issues such as diversity, equality and human rights. The Committee is seeking nominees for a potential honoree for Legends 2010. Here are the details on how to submit a nomination:

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Look around Greater Hampton Roads -- there are many deserving candidates for Legend 2010 (individuals, corporate, and community groups). Please give thoughtful consideration to submitting a nomination. Think of those who are making a significant difference in the community…a positive impact on the lives of those around them? Equality Virginia ("EV") will recognize a community hero with the fifth annual Equality Virginia Legend Award.

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EV seeks nominees who are generally under-appreciated for the selfless work they willingly do to help the community. Nominees should be residents of Greater Hampton Roads. Nominees will have demonstrated outstanding leadership, courage and commitment to promoting social justice issues such as diversity, equality and human rights - those who have made significant contributions to the LGBT community/community-at-large through their professional activities and volunteer efforts, and who exemplify the values and mission of Equality Virginia.

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Nominations may be submitted at http://equalityvirginia.org/upcoming-events/major-events/legends-gala/2010-legends-nomination.html. Questions may be emailed to: buca226@cox.net. Nominations must be received NO LATER THAN April 30 2010.

Tuesday Male Beauty

Washington Post Slams McDonnell's "Jim Crow" Voting Rights Ploy

As someone who campaigned - admittedly falsely, in my opinion - as a reformed moderate, Bob McDonnell seems to continually demonstrate that he is anything but what he claimed. First he screwed gay state employees, then he was soft on slavery, and now he's trying to keep blacks disenfranchised if they were ever convicted of non-violent felonies. Something that is not all that difficult to have happen in Virginia's highly flawed and racial bigoted (and homophobic) judicial system. Now, the Washington Post has called McDonnell out on his revisions to the process to restore voting rights which likely will slow the process rather than expedite it in the manner McDonnell claimed to support as a candidate. As I have noted before, voters need to recognize that GOP candidates who emulate his false campaign are not moderates no matter how much they lie on the campaign trail. Here are highlights from the Post's editorial taking McDonnell to task:
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AS A CANDIDATE last fall, Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell earned praise and reinforced his carefully nurtured image as a moderate by pledging to streamline the cumbersome process by which nonviolent former felons may regain their voting rights after completing their sentences.
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We take the governor at his word. But his initial attempts to expedite the process have come with a fat asterisk that casts doubt on any claim to fairness and decency, let alone moderation: Mr. McDonnell is also requiring ex-offenders -- who have already paid their debt to society -- to pass what looks like a character test before they can cast a vote.
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In 48 other states and the District of Columbia, voting rights for most felons are restored automatically once their sentence is fulfilled. Only Virginia and Kentucky insist that some sanctions last indefinitely -- until the state, in its infinite wisdom, grants what the U.S. Constitution regards as the inalienable right to vote. In the Old Dominion, the result is that huge numbers of people are disenfranchised. Although the powers that be in Richmond regard former felons with such contempt that they don't even bother counting them, voting rights advocates estimate that some 300,000 ex-cons in Virginia remain barred from voting. African Americans account for just a fifth of Virginia's 7.8 million citizens but are thought to constitute about half of those ineligible to vote. This is Jim Crow by another name.
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Now Mr. McDonnell may be compounding the damage by insisting that nonviolent former felons -- people convicted of shoplifting and other property crimes, for instance -- must do more than just apply to the state if they wish to vote, a process that until now has been time-consuming but generally successful for those who stick with it. Mr. McDonnell would have them submit a letter making the case that they have contributed to society since their release -- an utterly arbitrary standard. What's more, they are asked to explain why they think they should get their rights back.
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Mr. McDonnell is transforming the process into a kind of literacy test -- as obnoxious in its own way as the literacy tests of Jim Crow, which were intended to exclude blacks from voting. Whatever the intent, the likely effect will be to dissuade thousands of people who might otherwise apply.
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We would forgive any Virginians who do not feel grateful for this patronizing offer. It should not require applications, essays or the approbation of condescending bureaucrats to restore the vote to people who have paid for their wrongdoing. It is a matter of equity and democratic fair play and should be treated accordingly.
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McDonnell knows that black Virginians who have their voting rights restored are unlikely to vote for his party and, therefore, he appears to want to make it as difficult as possible for such individuals to ever have the right to vote again. Yet another example of the screwed up values of today's Republican Party. The party of Lincoln is now the party of racists, bigots, tea baggers and birthers.

Supreme Court of Virginia to Hear Episcopal Church Dispute

Litigation has been raging for several years now as homophobic break away Episcopal parishes have sought to abscond with church properties utilizing an 1860's vintage statute that was enacted to permit pro-slavery Baptist churches to seize properties from the anti-slavery national church. It is a sad commentary that one would use a statute conceived by racists and those who supported continuing to own other humans as chattel, but that is the reality in the far right break away Episcopal parishes seeking to align themselves with reactionary bishops in Africa, at least one (Archbishop Peter Akinola) of who has been potentially implicated in the massacre of 600 Muslim women and children. In my view, it takes perversion of the Gospel message to a whole new obscene level. WTVR-TV in Richmond has coverage on the issue which will place the Supreme Court in a position of determining whether or not Virginia will appear as a reactionary backward state or not. Here are some highlights:
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Today the Virginia Supreme Court will hear arguments in what amounts to a civil war in the Episcopal Church, the oldest church in the nation. The property custody battle between the Episcopal Church Diocese and numerous churches that have split over moral issues isn't a battle between the north and the south, but between the left and the right. The split began several years ago, when the democratic church body voted to ordain on openly gay bishop.

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Bishop Johnston said with most of the retreating churches, the property was paid for or renovated by the Episcopal Church. Bishop Binns agreed that was case with some of the churches, but others had their own deeds or had paid for much of the improvements to the buildings and properties. Negotiations over those custody questions failed, and the case wound up in Fairfax Circuit Court last year.
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The rebelling churches successfully argued that the Virginia Division Statute - http://leg1.state.va.us/000/cod/57-9.HTM - gave the state the right arbitrate this kind of church property dispute. That statute came about at the end of the Civil War. But the Episcopal Church Diocese argues that antiquated law has no current Constitutional basis. What's more, they believe, the Constitution says the state has no right to interfere in church business. Both sides will argue that the right to religious freedom means they should win. "This is a watershed moment," Bishop Johnston said.

More Monday Male Beauty

Portugal’s Highest Court Approves Gay Marriage

While things head backwards in time here in Virginia under the Christianist regime of Bob McDonnell and AG Kookinelli, it is heartening to see that LGBT equality is progressing in other parts of the world. Even countries that were once bastions of Catholicism. Following action by the country's national legislature to enact same sex marriage, now Portugal's highest court has ruled that same sex marriage is constitutional. While religious freedom and equality under the civil laws remain a farce in Virginia and much of the USA, "Old Europe" is leading the way in fulfilling the mission that the USA once claimed to champion. I can only wonder what Thomas Jefferson - who always embraced modern knowledge and opposed an intermixing of religion and the civil laws - must think of this state of affairs. Here are some highlights from Euronews:
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There is something to celebrate for gay couples in Portugal. Having won parliament’s backing for same-sex marriage, the Constitutional Court has now given its green light to the measure. The signature of Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva is now all that is needed to make the bill law. He sent it to the country’s top court last month, after expressing doubts over whether it was constitutional.
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But the tribunal’s president Rui Moura Ramos explained why no problems were found with the proposal. While it does not fit the traditional concept of marriage, as outlined in the constitution, he said this concept is open and can evolve.
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Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva has 20 days to either veto the legislation or sign it into law. If it is ratified, it would come into effect just ahead of a visit to the staunchly Roman Catholic country by Pope Benedict XVI.
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Other reports indicate that the country's parliament has the votes to override a veto by President Silva should he cave into pressure from reactionaries and the Roman Catholic Church.

Vatican Again Tries to Blame Gays for Sex Abuse Scandal

The Vatican and members of the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy are increasingly adopting the homo-hating practices of the extreme Christian Right and as a result it is more and more likely that if the lips of a member of the Church hierarchy is addressing the issue of the Church's worldwide sexual abuse tsunami, that the speaker will be lying. The Church leadership will shamelessly say and do anything to shift blame from the Church's systemic causes of the abuse problem - the celibacy requirement for priests and the Church's sick and bizarre view of all things sexual. The fact that mental health experts disagree and that normal "out" gays do not engage in the sick abuse and rape of children means nothing. Lie and obfuscate at all costs. The Advocate and the Washington Post both have columns on the Church's latest effort through Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's secretary of state, to blame it all on TEH gays. It is a travesty but not to be unexpected from an institution that covered up the rape and molestation of literally tens of thousands of children and youth. One almost has to wonder when accusations will surface that both Benedict XVI and Bertone abused children along with countless other members of the Catholic clergy. Here are highlights from the Washington Post:
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The Vatican's second-highest authority says the sex scandals haunting the Roman Catholic Church are linked to homosexuality and not celibacy among priests. Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's secretary of state, made the comments during a news conference Monday in Chile, where one of the church's highest-profile pedophile cases involves a priest having sex with young girls.
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His comments drew angry reactions from Chile's gay rights advocates. Neither Bertone nor the Vatican has the moral authority to give lessons on sexuality," said Rolando Jimenez, president of the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation in Chile. Jimenez also said no reputable study exists to support the cardinal's claims. This is a perverse strategy by the Vatican to shirk its own ethical and legal responsibility by making a spurious and disgusting connection," he said.
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At least one of the highest-profile pedophiles in the Chilean church victimized young girls, including a teenager who became pregnant. . . . the archbishop of the capital, Santiago, received multiple complaints about Father Jose Andres Aguirre from families concerned for their daughters. But the priest - known to his parishioners as Father Tato - continued serving at a number of Catholic girls schools in the city. Later the church sent Aguirre out of Chile twice amid abuse allegations. He was eventually sentenced to 12 years in prison for abusing 10 teenage girls.
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She said one of the priests she confessed to about her sex with Aguirre was Bishop Francisco Jose Cox, who himself was facing allegations of pedophilia. Cox had been bishop in La Serena, in northern Chile, for seven years when he was removed in 1997 amid rumors that he was a pedophile.
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Honestly, if there is indeed a God, I cannot help but believe that Benedict XVI, Cardinal Bertone and others like them are destined to burn in Hell where they will spend time with the far less than saintly John Paul II who is already there. The amorality of these men is nothing short of shocking - particularly when acknowledges the guilt and self-loathing they willingly inflict on others who are far less morally bankrupt.

Hampton Diversity and Pride - Update

A few brief bits of information on the event scheduled for June 19, 2010 in downtown Hampton, Virginia. For those desiring a table at the event, the charge is $50.00 and checks should be made payable to St. Mark's Episcopal Church with a notation of "diversity and pride" in the memo area. Local artist Narissa Bond - cousin of civil rights legend Julian Bond - will be the event's opening act. The following describes Narissa's work

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Bond is a favorite on the Hampton Roads singer-songwriter scene. Now living in the Ghent section of Norfolk, she's made a third album that's intimate and contemplative.Highlights: "Soul Touches Sky," a gentle, seductive charmer; "The Grocery Story," a tune that champions the working poor through a whisper, not a scream; "Unexpected," a dreamlike exploration of erotic love; "Little Town," a song about getting lost and found in a strange, small place.

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For more information on Diversity and Pride 2010, please e-mail: mcrhinova@yahoo.com