Sexual Abuse - A Question of Power, Not Sex?

There has been all kinds of analysis of the Roman Catholic Church sex abuse scandal. A timely article in LA Progressive looks at another aspect of sex abuse often left out of the equation: that it's often a question of exerting power and control over the victim, with the sex portion being secondary. The old saying goes that power corrupts and that absolute power corrupts absolutely. Both in the Catholic Church context and that of Bishop Eddie Long as discussed in the article, the predators are "men of God" given a near absolute power over their religious flock. Thus the question is, was it about sex or using sex as an abasement and means of control over the victims? If the allegations against Long are proven true, then I suspect that he is a closet case and that it was about power AND sex. However, it was his position and misplaced deference to "men of God" that gave him the power to be a sexual predator in the first place. Ditto in respect to Catholic priests. The article is written by Thomas A. Foster, who teaches history at DePaul University, and who is the author of “Sex and the Eighteenth-Century Man: Massachusetts and the History of Sexuality in America.” Here are some article highlights:
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[T]he conversations about homophobia in the black church or about Bishop Long’s hypocrisy confuse the issue at hand. This is not the story of a closeted gay man who simply needed sexual release. As scholars for generations have shown, sexual abuse – in all its forms – is about power, not sex. And this is true regardless of race. There is a long history, as well as current practice, of black men being sexually abused. Yet the issue is virtually ignored in the news media and in most histories.
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Occasionally, the sexual assault of a black man does become news. In 1997 when Abner Louima, a Haitian immigrant living in Brooklyn, was sodomized with a broken broom handle by police officers, the nation paused in horror but then moved on, ignoring or even finding humor in the occurrences of sexual assault that occur daily behind bars. The sexual assault of incarcerated men, disproportionately African American, is more often a source of jokes than a mainstream concern about brutality and violation of human rights. And, sadly, it is more likely to be mentioned on a sitcom than on the nightly news.
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The abuse of black men, of course, did not end with slavery. Perhaps the Bishop Long scandal will create an opportunity for more young black men to tell their own stories as victims of childhood sexual abuse ‹ something rarely discussed in mainstream media and too often swept under the rug by the black community.

I applaud calls for reducing homophobia in America, whether in the black church or in American society at large. Sadly, homophobia is still rampant in our country. We¹ve looked the other way while our children are tormented for exhibiting behaviors and mannerisms associated with being gay. We have made it difficult for patriotic gays and lesbians to serve in the military. We’ve asked thousands of our citizens to accept less than equality in marriage, in adoption rights, in access to federal protection from housing and employment discrimination.
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The important characters in this sad story are the young men, not Bishop Long. When some commentators looked at the Catholic Church abuse scandals and concluded that if only priests could marry, the abuse would never have happened, they failed to see that sexual abuse was about power not sexual release. Let¹s not repeat the same mistakes with this story.

"We'll Give When We GetEQUAL" - And The DNC Response

Members of the LGBT community need to watch this video by GetEQUAL. It's a bit in your face in the view of some, I'm sure, but it is 100% factual. It is also and indictment of Obama and the Congressional Democrats. I agree with GetEQUAL's message 100%



If LGBT voters are apathetic, the Democrats and our liar-in-chief in the White House have no one to blame but themselves. Please, STOP giving to the Democrats until they deliver on all their broken promises.

Tortured for Being Gay - Further Reflections and a Call to Arms to Straight Allies

Being in Charlottesville for the weekend and looking after my mother raises - as always - the issue of church attendance. In some ways I feel badly that I am refusing to take her to and sit with her at Catholic Church. The Catholic Church has been and to this very day continues via funding of anti-gay propaganda to be responsible for far too much violence and psychological abuse of LGBT individuals for me to ever darken the door of a Catholic Church again in my lifetime. I volunteered the option of going to a gay accepting Lutheran parish, and the verdict is still out on that issue (elderly Catholics were brainwashed beyond belief growing up in respect to attending non-Catholic services).

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Yes, it's easy to stay with what's familiar, but if that familiar parish or denomination is a well spring for hate and intolerance, in my view, folks need to start voting with their feet. True, many churchgoers ignore what they don't like or agree with, but by merely attending, the hierarchy is set a message that the hate and condemnation of others is acceptable. After all, people are still attending, right? I truly believe that straights have no concept of the damage done to gays by self-professed "godly people" and their religious institutions - even the ones who mean no harm and are merely too lazy to say "no more" and cease their involvement with anti-gay churches. There are two things that priest and preachers understand: attendance numbers and money donations. If and when both plummet, then change may occur. Andrew Sullivan - who has formally remained a Catholic - has reflections on the torture of a New York City man - simply because he is gay- that are relevant to why our straight allies need to distance themselves from those who foment hate and discrimination:
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I also want to ask, plead, and beg those who have sincere and principled arguments against, say, marriage equality or openly gay military service, to be mindful of the impact of their words. I have no doubt that the overwhelming majority of those on the other side of the debate are as horrified by these events as I am. I am not in any way saying otherwise, or in any way suggesting indirect responsibility for horrors such as these.
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What I am saying is that in making these arguments, people need to take care to ensure that they also insist that gay people are always described as human beings, as worthy of respect and dignity as anyone else, that the case for keeping us out of core civil institutions must be made without inflammatory generalizations about gay people, generalizations that have an impact, especially on those only waiting for an excuse from authority to act, or those deeply confused and afraid of who they find themselves to be in adolescence.
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For too long, gay people have been described by too many on the right as a threat to the family, society and decency. Those words have consequences. This is especially true of religious leaders. When even the Pope describes us as "intrinsically disordered" and directed to an "objective moral evil", when Republicans call us a threat to family life, when NOM runs ads of a "storm coming", I hope they understand what these words do to the psyches and souls of the young and impressionable, and to those who need a mere signal to take up arms and attack us.
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If you want to help, the best organization to donate to is The Trevor Project, for whom I held a fundraiser at my apartment earlier this year. I know and can vouch for this group. They do amazing work. If you save one kid from killing himself, you have, as the Jewish tradition has it, saved the world.

Saturday Male Beauty

Actions of Clarence Thomas' Wife Raise Judicial Ethics Issues

Maybe I am biased, but from my experience with judges, the worse ones for abiding by ethical mandates are the social conservatives. In my own divorce case and in a number of others, judges have ignored the Canons of Judicial Conduct and allowed gay bashing in their courts and have punished gay litigants because we offend their religious sensibilities. With a growing spot light on the activities of the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, one can see where these bigoted judges may see they are getting a green light to throw the concepts of judicial impartiality, avoidance of conflicts of interest, and other judicial ethics constraints out the window. As I have noted frequently, the social conservatives feel that they are above the rules and want special rights that they would deny to everyone else. Their motto should be "It's all about me." The New York Times has a story on the increasingly brazen behavior of Virginia Thomas which suggests to me that either she needs to cease her activities or Clarence Thomas should perhaps start considering stepping down from the Supreme Court. In truth, in my opinion, given his frequently displayed religious based prejudice against those not living in accordance with his own religious beliefs, his departure would be a benefit to the entire country. Oh, and I do have two former law partners who are federal judges, so I AM familiar with who judges - and justices - and their spouses typically conduct themselves. Here are highlights from the Times:
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[T]o some people who study judicial ethics, Mrs. Thomas’s activism is raising knotty questions, in particular about her acceptance of large, unidentified contributions for Liberty Central. She began the group in late 2009 with two gifts of $500,000 and $50,000, and because it is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit group, named for the applicable section of the federal tax code, she does not have to publicly disclose any contributors. Such tax-exempt groups are supposed to make sure that less than half of their activities are political.
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Mrs. Thomas, known as Ginni, declined through a spokeswoman to be interviewed without an agreement not to discuss her husband. In written responses to questions, Sarah Field, Liberty Central’s chief operating officer and general counsel, said that Mrs. Thomas is paid by Liberty Central, with the compensation set by the group’s board, and that the group has “internal reviews and protections to ensure that no donor causes a conflict of interest for either Ginni or her husband.”
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A federal law requires justices to recuse themselves in a number of circumstances where real or perceived conflicts of interest could arise, including in cases where their spouses could have a financial interest. But the decision to step aside is up to each justice; there is no appeal from the nation’s highest court.
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“It’s shocking that you would have a Supreme Court justice sitting on a case that might implicate in a very fundamental way the interests of someone who might have contributed to his wife’s organization,” said Deborah L. Rhode, a law professor and director of the Stanford University Center on the Legal Profession.

“The fact that we can’t find that out is the first problem,” she said, adding, “And how can the public form a judgment about propriety if it doesn’t have the basic underlying facts?”

More Fruits of Anti-Gay "Christians" - Gay Man Tortured for Being Gay

The strong anti-gay message promoted by the Catholic Church hierarchy, the Mormon Church, "family values" organizations, and, of course, the parasites of the professional Christian set - think Maggie Gallagher, Tony Perkins, James Dobson, and Victoria Cobb here in Virginia - continues to yield horrific and toxic fruits. In some ways what these groups and individuals are doing is akin to the Nazi propaganda that dehumanized Jews and paved the way for the final solution in the minds of many Germans. Once a small minority is thoroughly labeled as diseased, a threat to society, and worthy of abuse, not surprisingly there are elements in society that will feel free to inflict inhuman treatment and abuse and - in a story out of New York City where the perpetrators were young men between the ages of 16 and 23 (some are pictured above) - actual torture on members of the targeted minority. The whole phenomenon shows the utter lie of the "hate the sin, love the sinner" bullshit that emanates from the mouths of self-righteous, self-congratulatory, anti-gay bigots. The New York Times has details of the shocking story. Here are some highlights (be warned, it's very disgusting):
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He was told there was a party at a brick house on Osborne Place, a quiet block set on a steep hill in the Bronx. He showed up last Sunday night as instructed, with plenty of cans of malt liquor. What he walked into was not a party at all, but a night of torture — he was sodomized, burned and whipped. All punishment, the police said Friday, for being gay.
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There were nine attackers, ranging from 16 to 23 years old and calling themselves the Latin King Goonies, the police said. Before setting upon their 30-year-old victim, they had snatched up two teenage boys whom they beat, the police said — until the boys — one of whom was sodomized with a plunger — admitted to having had sex with the man.
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The attackers forced the man to strip to his underwear and tied him to a chair, the police said. One of the teenage victims was still there, and the “Goonies” ordered him to attack the man. The teenager hit him in the face and burned him with a cigarette on his nipple and penis as the others jeered and shouted gay slurs, the police said. Then the attackers whipped the man with a chain and sodomized him with a small baseball bat.
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The nine suspects — the group seemed not so much part of an established gang as a loose group of friends who adopted a nickname — knew some or all three victims. The idea for the attacks seemed to have been hatched last Saturday, after one member of the group saw the 30-year-old man, who he knew was gay, with a 17-year-old who wanted to join the gang, the police said.
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Hours later, at 3:30 a.m. on Sunday, the group grabbed the 17-year-old, took him to the house and slammed him into a wall, the police said. He was beaten, made to strip naked, slashed with a box cutter, hit on the head with a can of beer and sodomized with the wooden handle of a plunger, the police said. And he was interrogated about the 30-year-old and asked if they had had sex.
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The teenager said that they had. The gang members set him loose, warning him to keep quiet or they would hurt his friends and family.
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[S]uspects under arrest were identified as David Rivera, 21; Nelson Falu, 18; Steven Carballo, 17; Denis Peitars, 17; Bryan Almonte, 17; and Brian Cepeda, 16. They were being held by the police in the Bronx on Friday night, with no arraignment scheduled. Still being sought, the police said, are Elmer Confessor, 23, and Ruddy Vargas-Perez, 22.
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Great work Ms. Gallagher, et al. You foment hatred and then try to deny any involvement even though your constant anti-gay litany sends out a message encouraging violence. I'm not alone in this assessment of who is ultimately to blame for incidents like this one. Joe Sudbay similarly sums up who is ultimately responsible for such travesties:
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There are plenty of New York City pols who espouse hatred towards the gay community, starting with State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr., who represents the Bronx. We also routinely get castigated as evil by religious leaders from those morally bankrupt abettors of child rapists in the Catholic Church to the Mormons who lie for the lord and baptize the dead in other religions to the deeply flawed and hateful right-wing evangelicals.
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LGBT Americans are not equal. And, apparently, that message is getting through loud and clear to bullies and other would-be gay bashers. They're translating that message into the warped idea that not equal means lesser and the LGBT community is fair game.

McDonnell Backs Tea Party "Repeal Amendment"

Apparently concerned that he is being upstaged in the lunacy department by Ken "Kookinelli" Cuccinelli, Bob "Taliban Bob" McDonnell has attended at Tea Party coven and has endorsed the Tea Party's so-called repeal amendment. The irony, of course, is that while the loonies claim to worship the U.S. Constitution and say that it "matters," their goal is to amend it and subvert it. The disingenuousness is akin to that of the Christianists who in one breath claim to honor the Constitution while actually working to subvert it and establish a theocracy. As the Daily Progress reports on the gathering, it's clear that some of these folks are rather delusional and scary. They also are fans of the utterly demented Christine O'Donnell, senatorial candidate in Delaware. Once again, I ask myself the question of how one becomes as untethered from reality as these folks seem to be. They must be serving massive doses of laced Kool-Aid. It is also disturbing that the spouse of a Supreme Court justice is involved in partisan politics - federal judges are supposed to remain non-partisan. But so much for following the rules when one is a nutcase. Here are some story highlights:
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Virginia Tea Party groups on Friday proposed a constitutional amendment to scrap both the corporate income tax and the individual income tax in Virginia. . . .
In addition to the tax repeals, the Tea Party will sponsor a proposed constitutional amendment to make it harder for governments to use eminent domain to seize private property.
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Legislative proposals that the Tea Party will get behind include a bill to encourage education tax credits that would make it easier for parents to send their children to a private school, a bill that would bar localities from establishing sanctuaries for illegal immigrants and a bill that would free Virginia products from federal regulation if the products are produced and sold solely within the state.
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Some attendees at the convention wore "Don't Tread On Me" T-shirts. Many more had "Guns Save Lives" lapel stickers. "Virginia Is For Freedom Lovers" was another popular sticker.
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A booth was set up to sign up volunteers to drive to Delaware to help U.S. Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, who is backed by the Tea Party.
O'Donnell, who won a surprise nomination in Delaware's Sept. 14 GOP primary, has struggled to explain some of her public statements, such as her admission in a 1999 television program that she once "dabbled into witchcraft."
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Virginia Thomas, the wife of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, and the founder of a conservative website, Liberty Central, LLC., implored the attendees to stay focused through the Nov. 2 election. "The hard left is trying to demonize us . . . ," she said. "We have 24 days to push hard against the radical Democratic agenda." She also urged prayer ahead of the election.

More Friday Male Beauty

Walmart Carrying Anti-Gay Book for Children

I've never been a fan of Walmart - I dislike the company's employment practices and its willingness to kiss up to homophobes. Now, there is another reason for the LGBT community to shun the mammoth retailer - it is sell an anti-gay books aimed at children. Yep, that's right. The propaganda piece is entitled "Chased by an Elephant, the Gospel Truth about Today’s Stampeding Sexuality." A wave of gay teen suicides and what does Walmart do? It peddles anti-gay propaganda authored by a Mormon with ties to and anti-gay Mormon organization called the Standard of Liberty. Gays are not the only targets of Standard of Liberty which advocates for a Christofascist theocracy. Until the folks at Walmart get their heads out of their ass, we as a community need to take our pink dollars somewhere else post haste. Here are some highlights from Q salt lake:
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A children’s book written by the wife of anti-gay Standard of Liberty president Stephen Graham is being carried by over 100 Walmart stores. Chased by an Elephant, the Gospel Truth about Today’s Stampeding Sexuality by Janice Barrett Graham was written to “help shed the clear light of truth on today’s dark and tangled ideas about male and female, proper gender roles, the law of chastity, and the God-given sexual appetite,” according to Janice Graham in the book’s introduction.
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The Grahams claim that their son, Andrew, successfully changed his sexual orientation and is now a happily married man. Andrew Graham wrote the book, Captain of My Soul, saying that he was “lured into same gender internet pornography during his high school years, and recruited into cursory homosexual experimentation with older men while at Brigham Young University.”
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Andrew says he is shedding light on the “deceitful and predatory nature of the ‘gay’ lifestyle.” The book’s introduction says Andrew’s “story ends happily with his subsequent deliverance and healing through family support, expert professional counseling, truth, and repentance through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
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Frankly, I will be counting the days until we hear that Andrew Graham has been caught in an undercover gay sex put on by his local police department or that he's left his wife for a man. Sadly, as usual, the ex-gay proponents seem to care nothing of the straight spouses who are lured into marriages doomed to fail. Rather, it's all about making a buck and promoting religious intolerance.

Exodus International Affiliate's Tax-Exempt Status Called into Question in Canada

The "ex-gay" lie dispensing New Zealand affiliate of Exodus International has already lost its tax exempt status. Now an effort is underway to win the same result in Canada. To be tax-exempt, an organization needs to be (1) educational or providing a charitable service and (2) non-political Anyone familiar with the activities of Exodus and its affiliates that masquerade under various names knows that the organizations fit neither requirement. The entire underlying purpose of Exodus is political and the organization is bankrolled by far right Christian groups who use the "gays can change" myth to influence politicians and legislation.

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Given the condemnation of reparative therapy and the ex-gay myth by the APA and every other legitimate medical and mental health association, it is ridiculous that the IRS has not revoked Exodus' tax-exempt status in the USA. The fact that it has not done so is yet another example of the pernicious special rights afforded to religious belief and alleged religious groups in this country. I truly would love to find a group of ex-Exodus enrollees who have harmed by its witchdoctor like programs and willing to file lawsuits against the organization. Given the universal condemnation of ex-gay conversion programs by all legitimate experts (as opposed to religious extremists), one would think that the likelihood of prevailing would be good. Here are highlights from Xtra on the challenge being launched in Canada:
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A grassroots campaign is seeking to revoke the charitable status of the controversial Exodus Global Alliance, a Toronto-based international organization that claims "change is possible for the homosexual through the transforming power of Jesus Christ."
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Slapupsidethehead.com blogger Mark McIntyre spearheaded the campaign last month after discovering that New Zealand's Charities Commission refused to grant charitable status to Exodus Ministries Trust Board. The commission determined that the New Zealand group did not provide a charitable purpose.
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Canadian law requires a charity to provide a measurable benefit to the public as a whole, or a significant section of it.
"I'm pretty sure Revenue Canada -- if they knew what Exodus itself is actually doing -- they might have an issue with it," McIntyre says. Exodus, which has never been sanctioned, is registered as a religious charity under the category of missionary organizations and propagation of gospel.
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Exodus Global Alliance's annual returns to Canada Revenue Agency have never mentioned the group's main goal: pushing gay people to change their sexuality. In fact, the reports never refer to sexual orientation at all.
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For 10 years, the reports have described the organization's mission in 30 words: "Educating and training in dealing with abuse and family issues. Developing ministries to help families and individuals in pain. Teaching church groups, schools and youth. Helping and teaching at conferences." Bryan Kliewer, executive director of Exodus Global Alliance, says the word "homosexual" doesn't appear in the description because there wasn't enough space.
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In New Zealand, the Charities Commission said in a detailed, 15-page decision in August that Exodus Ministries Trust Board had no charitable purpose, such as relieving poverty or advancing education or religion. The commission questioned whether the organization could provide a public benefit, noting that homosexuality is no longer considered a mental disorder, gay sex is legal, civil unions are recognized and discrimination based on sexual orientation is illegal. The commission cited the American Psychological Association and American Medical Association websites, which reject reparative therapy.
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"It's clear that from Exodus Global Alliance's webpage that they're in the same industry. And they are getting charitable status, and that's what I have an issue with."

Another Charlottesville Weekend

This weekend I'm in Charlottesville watching after my mom while my sister and my brother-in-law go out of town for the weekend. The boyfriend has another wedding party to do this weekend in Hampton, so he and the dog remained at home. He of course will go to the wedding and reception and then on Sunday have brunch with our group of friends, a/k/a the "usual suspects. For me, it will be a weekend of reading. blogging and hanging out with my mom at my sister's house (she moved into an in-law apartment in the house back during the summer.)

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It is truly hard to see one's parents failing physically and in terms of mental acuity. I know it happens to all of us, but it is nonetheless difficult.

Friday Male Beauty

Will Obama appeal DOMA Court Rulings?

Besides his continued failure to issue a stop loss order or other executive order to end discharges under DADT, we will soon see other proof as to whether or not Barack Obama has ever meant anything he has said to LGBT Americans. The next test? Whether his Justice Department will appeal the lower federal court rulings striking down DOMA as unconstitutional. If one strips religious belief from the equation and rejects further special rights for conservative Christian belief, there is NO justification for DOMA. The evidence in these case combined with the evidence in Perry v. Schwarzenegger make it clear the anti-gay marriage laws have one purpose: to discriminate against LGBT citizens and enshrine a RELIGIOUS definition of marriage into the CIVIL laws. As a supposed constitutional expert, Obama cannot help but realize this. The question is, will he put his own anti-gay marriage beliefs aside, stop pandering to those like his BFF Rick Warren and support the U.S. Constitution. Meanwhile, Democrats want LGBT voters to go vote for them even as their party through Obama likely is preparing to throw us under the bus yet again -they must think we are utter fools. The Washington Blade looks at this issue. Here are some highlights:
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President Obama’s commitment to repealing the Defense of Marriage Act is likely to come under enhanced scrutiny next week when the U.S. Justice Department announces its decision on whether or not it will appeal federal court rulings against the statute.
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Legal experts across the board are expecting the administration to appeal the decisions as many LGBT advocates grumble that the defense of DOMA in court undermines Obama’s campaign pledge to advocate for same-sex couples.

Richard Socarides, a gay New York attorney and former adviser to President Clinton, said he expects the Justice Department to appeal the cases because he believes the administration hasn’t shown any signs of changing its position after defending DOMA at the district court level.
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“I think that they’re going to continue to battle the gay rights movement in the courts,” Socarides said. “I think it continues to be one of the most unfortunate decisions of the president’s entire first two years in office and really something that is perhaps the most troubling part of these first two years of his presidency.
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[Evan] Wolfson said the extent to which the Justice Department defends DOMA at the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals would be an appropriate gauge to determine the Obama administration’s commitment to supporting LGBT people.
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“I think the Justice Department can argue they have to appeal, but they should not be trying to win at all costs, and they should urge the court to adopt a presumption of unconstitutionality for the cruel exclusion from marriage that they themselves admit is discrimination,” Wolfson said.
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Even as many LGBT rights supporters bemoan the administration’s defense of DOMA, others say continued support for the law in court could have some advantages. Defenders of the Obama administration have said defending anti-gay laws such as DOMA sets a precedent that would prevent future administrations from allowing litigation against pro-laws to go unchallenged.
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But Socarides scoffed at the notion that defending laws like DOMA would keep pro-gay laws safe under future administrations. “I know that a lot of people make it in defense of the administration, but to me, it’s an entirely ludicrous argument,” Socarides said. “That argument turns all logic on its head. We’re not going to defend civil rights because some day the Republicans may choose not to defend civil rights.”
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Socarides said the Obama administration shouldn’t be considered a friend to the LGBT community for appealing the lawsuits because the president hasn’t said he’s appealing them for the purpose of having a stronger ruling.
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I stopped defending - and believing Obama and his administration months ago. Besides being Commander-in-Chief, he's liar-in-chief, in my view. And absent action that leads to inreased equality and legal rights for all LGBT Americans nationwide from Obama, I won't be changing my opinion.

DADT and the Perpetuation of Homophobia

I have long viewed DADT as part of the anti-gay Christian plan to keep LGBT Americans inferior under the nation's laws. The strategy is to have laws like DADT in place and to block non-discrimination laws like ENDA so that the homophobic Christianists can point to the laws as validation that gays are inferior and, therefore, worthy of abuse and discrimination. Military readiness has nothing to do with the real reason for DADT and as the court found in Log Cabin Republicans v. United States, DADT actually harms military readiness. Not that the Elaine Donnellys and other anti-gay religious extremists actually give a damn about the military. It's all about keeping gay Americans inferior, And every politician who buys into supporting DADT or who fails to uses his/her position to end DADT discharges is part of the problem - and bears responsibility ultimately for gay suicides. And yes, I AM talking about the President of the United States when I say this. For his refusal to issue and executive order which would send a strong message against homophobia, Obama bears some degree indirect responsibility for the recent gay teen suicides. An op-ed in the Westport Patch connects these dots:
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"Don't ask, don't tell comes up regularly in our discussions," says Westporter Dan Woog, co-founder of OutSpoken, a Fairfield County LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trangendered) youth group in existence for the past 15 years. It's based in Norwalk.
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"We have few numbers of kids wanting to serve in the military, but in Fairfield County that's not always considered an option," says Woog. "But, what does come up is a sense of unfairness. They ask 'if I want to serve my country- and I'm smart, committed and with the skills that the military is looking, for why can't I?' These kids have grown up in an environment in which being gay is pretty good and they know they have many doors open to them in business, education, athletics and they can't understand why the military is so behind the times."
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Homophobia is a vast social problem that is being validated and perpetuated by the U.S. government's DADT policy."
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"It goes deeper than being able to 'serve openly' and by Congress not overturning this law they are nourishing homophobia and are unconstitutionally supporting LGBT service members continued exposure to disproportionate amounts of violence, hate speech, harassment, and threats by individuals and their branches of service," she says.
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"As a veteran it deeply disturbs me that a policy that was proven by the judicial department to be unconstitutional was not overturned by Congress, sending the message to all service members that you are expected to serve in order to uphold the rights and freedoms of every American citizen but your own," says McGuffie. "How I handled DADT is literally not asking or telling; virtually being silent. My experience with the policy was an overall negative one that caused me to harbor a great deal of resentment that built up into internalized homophobia."
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Will Obama do something, or will he continue to have blood on his hands?

More Thursday Male Beauty

Forbes' Top 100 Powerful Women

The far right and jackass members of Congress and the military have ridiculed Lady Gaga for her activism on gay rights issues and efforts to push for the repeal of DADT in particular. The last laugh is likely on her detractors. Forbes has announced it's list of the top 100 powerful women in the world and Stefanie Germanotta takes 7th place in the rankings. Meanwhile the doyennes of the lunatic far right such as Elaine Donnelly, Phyllis Schlafly, and the bitches at Concerned Women for America failed to make the list. Even the loon of the North, Sarah Palin comes in at 16th. Here's Forbes' comments on Lady Gaga:
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All hail the new queen of pop. Part singer and part performance artist, Lady Gaga (née Stefanie Germanotta) has single-handedly reinvigorated pop music and pop culture. Her songs are like brain candy (sticky and addictive), her performances and fashion style are a spectacle. Her first album, The Fame, debuted in 2008, scoring two No. 1 hits with Just Dance and Poker Face. Her latest, The Fame Monster, has now put her on par with Beyoncé, Rhianna, and Mariah Carey for the most No. 1 Billboard hits (six) by a female artist. Her Monster's Ball world tour is poised to gross $200 million by the time it ends in April 2011. But it's not all pop and glamour for Gaga. She is vocal supporter of gay rights and the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell."
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Congratulations to Lady Gaga - she's shown what a real "fierce advocate" does versus the liar in the White House.

Christian Dominionist Wants Government Regulation of Gay Sex

A rash of gay teen suicides and what do the Christianists do? They go into overdrive with gay bashing and disseminating the tired lies that set the stage for the suicides in the first place. The latest gay bashing bigot to exhibit diarrhea of the mouth is Christian Dominionist David Barton of Wallbuilders. For the record, Christian Dominionist want to overthrow the U.S. Constitution and in its place institute a Bible based theocracy. That's right, they basically want to commit treason and overthrow the government. In putting forth his batshitery, Barton - in addition to a selective reading of the Bible - recites the same discredited and fraudulent anti-gay propaganda put out by Paul Cameron. The same Paul Cameron who was thrown out of every legitimate medical and mental health related association he belonged to over 25 years ago. Barton proves yet again that when a far right Christian's lips are moving , the odds are that he/she is lying. Right Wing Watch has details. Here are some highlights:
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Barton: We have a Department of Health and Human Services; we have health care bills; we have health insurance and we’re trying to stop all unhealthy things . . . to tell you how to live a healthy lifestyle. So if I got to the Centers for Disease Control and I’m concerned about health, I find some interesting stats there and this should tell me something about health.
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Homosexual/bi-sexual individuals are seven times more likely to contemplate or commit suicide. Oooh, that doesn’t sound very healthy.
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Homosexuals die decades earlier than heterosexuals. That doesn’t sound healthy.
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Nearly one-half of practicing homosexuals admit to five hundred or more sex partners and nearly one-third admit to a thousand or more sex partners in a lifetime.
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I mean, you go through all this stuff, sounds to me like that’s not very healthy. Why don’t we regulate homosexuality?
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there was a study done back in the 1920s and it looked at eighty-some odd nations and those rejected sexual regulation like with homosexuality, none of them lasted past the third generation from the time that they embraced it. So how ever many it looked at …
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As more and more studies are confirming, the higher gay suicide rate tracks to the vile lies and persecution that gays face due to people like Barton. This diatribe is yet another example of the persecutor blaming the victim. Barton and those like him are a clear and present danger to both civil law under the Constitution and the freedom of religion that the Constitution promises to others.

Conservative GOP Politico Busted - Asked Cop to "Touch It"

The hypocrisy of closeted members of th GOP continues to show no limits and once again demonstrates that the more homophobic they are in public pronouncements, the more likely they are looking to suck dick on the sly. The latest closeted bigot to get his just deserves is Andrew J. Miller, an Indiana anti-gay Republican (pictured at right) who was busted for soliciting gay sex from an undercover police officer. While I generally believe the police could better expend their time stopping robbers and serious criminals rather than running gay sting operations, whenever I see a closeted anti-gay Republican arrested, it makes the sting operations almost look worth while. Given Jim DeMint's recent comments about barring gays from teaching positions, one has to wonder what guys DeMint is doing on the sly. Here are highlights from WTHR-TV 13 on Miller's arrest:
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The commissioner of the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles was arrested Wednesday afternoon on a public indecency charge. According to an arrest report from Indianapolis Metro Police, the arrest took place at 110 West Washington Street at around 1:30 pm.
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Andrew J. Miller, 40, of Carmel, is accused of soliciting an undercover officer for sex. Following complaints of lewd behavior, two plain clothes police officers were conducting an investigation at the men's public restroom at Claypool Court, a place with a notorious reputation for illegal sexual activity.
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IMPD Sgt. Paul Thompson said that when IMPD does receive this type of complaint, they issue plain clothes officers to the specific areas. "In today's incident, we did have probable cause and the man involved was taken to jail," he said. The police report describes Miller exposing himself and twice asking the officer if he wanted to "touch it."
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The report also states that Miller asked the officer if he was married. The officer said yes, and Miller, according to the report, also said he was married and that it would "be OK." . . . . The crime is a Class C misdemeanor. He faces up to 60 days and a $500 fine. Miller is married and has three children.
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I cannot help but wonder if Miller is the product of an ex-gay ministry or some other bogus program that encouraged him to marry and have children to make himself heterosexual.

Thursday Male Beauty

Exodus International Shuts Down Bogus "Day of Truth"

It's too early to know if it's the beginning of a trend, but Exodus International, a leading proponent of the "gays can change lie" - or Ex-gay myth as I call it - is canceling the utterly disingenuously named "Day of Truth." The "Day of Truth" - which would be more appropriately named the Day of Lies - was started in 2005 to counter the Day of Silence which originated at the University of Virginia (my alma mater) and has spread nationwide. Despite all of the statements of REAL medical and mental health experts condemning reparative therapy and the lack of any study that solidly supports the Christianist fueled ex-gay myth, Exodus International has continued to market the lie. I have long been involved in exposing ex-gay frauds and believe that defeating the choice and change myths is key to changing hearts and minds. The Christianists will fight tooth and nail to keep these myths alive because once it becomes a matter of common acceptance that gays are born gay, the ability to push anti-gay discrimination is seriously damaged. Here are highlights from Ex-Gay Watch:
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Alan Chambers, president of Exodus International, has announced that they will no longer sponsor the annual Day of Truth (DOT) event which has been used for the past few years to counter the Day of Silence. The DOS was first proposed by Maria Pulzetti, and organized by other students at the University of Virginia in 1996. In 2000, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) proposed that it become an officially sponsored project.
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The first DOT was organized by the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) in 2005, and has been held on the day after the DOS each year since. The ADF is a conservative activist legal organization which claims to have established the DOT “to counter the promotion of the homosexual agenda and express an opposing viewpoint from a Christian perspective.” There have been several legal actions associated with the DOT
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In 2009, the ADF turned over responsibility for the DOT to Exodus International. In what has turned out to be their only year doing so, Exodus sponsored that years event. It is not known if the ADF will attempt to keep the DOT active or offer it to another group.
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We applaud Exodus’ decision to shutter this event. While we realize this does not signify a major change in their own policy or beliefs, we do respect the reasons given. We also challenge the ADF to take this as a signal to let it die here and now.
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Here are more details and highlights from CNN’s Belief Blog:
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A national Christian organization will stop sponsoring an annual event that encourages school students to "counter the promotion of homosexual behavior" because the event has become too divisive and confrontational, the group's president told CNN on Wednesday.
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"All the recent attention to bullying helped us realize that we need to equip kids to live out biblical tolerance and grace while treating their neighbors as they'd like to be treated, whether they agree with them or not," said Alan Chambers, President of Exodus International, the group that sponsored the event this year.
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"I thank Exodus for making this very important step," said GLSEN Executive Director Eliza Byard on Wednesday after hearing of Exodus' decision. "The Day of Truth was an effort to push a very specific set of opinions about homosexuality into schools in a way that was inappropriate and divisive."
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An expert in evangelical responses to homosexuality says Exodus' decision is likely to be criticized by some conservatives. "This is a very significant move, a very real break," said Warren Throckmorton, an associate professor of psychology at Grove City College. "Some will say that simply naming sexual orientation provides legitimacy for homosexuality." At least one major Christian group, Focus on the Family, stood by the Day of Truth on Wednesday.

Expert: Rash of Suicides Reflects Pervasive Negative Attitudes Toward Non-Heterosexuals

My one time hometown paper, the Syracuse Post Standard has an article that quotes statements by a Syracuse University expert, Elizabeth Payne (pictured at right) - and by expert, I mean a REAL expert as opposed to the charlatans of the Christian Right like Linda Harvey and Matt Barber- who lays the responsibility for gay teen suicides directly at the feet of the negative attitudes and bigotry towards gays kept alive by guess who, the Christian Right. While Payne says bullying of all kinds needs to end, she goes to the heart of the matter which is the societal bigotry that fuels homophobia and anti-gay bullying. The very bigotry that is the stock in trade of every "family values" and professional Christian organization on the right. These groups must be defeated and their talking heads turned into the well deserved pariahs that they are. Here are some highlights:
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A recent rash of suicides among gay teens nationwide is a symptom that negative attitudes about non-heterosexuals are still pervasive in families, schools and other segments of society, according to an LGBTQ youth expert.
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“A lot of people assume because ‘Will& Grace’ was a popular TV show, homophobia is a thing of the past,” said Elizabethe Payne, referring to the sitcom that featured gay characters. “That ain’t true.”
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LGBTQ youths have been committing and attempting suicide at higher rates than their heterosexual peers for a long time, Payne said.
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Putting a stop to bullying is an important, but small part of the solution, according to Payne. She said society needs to rethink the way it views sexual orientation. Parents and educators need to be made aware of their actions that marginalize LGBTQ youths, she said.

“Why is it such a bad thing for a boy to want to be a cheerleader or do ballet? Why do we pick on him for that?” Payne said. “We need to teach our children there are lots of ways to be a man and lots of ways to be a woman.”

Payne directs the Q Center at Aids Community Resources in Syracuse. The center, partially funded by the United Way, offers educational support, counseling services, social events, HIV education and testing for LGBTQ youth.

More Wednesday Male Beauty

Economist Predicts Sour Decade for Hampton Roads- Closed Mindedness Carries a Price

The economic outlook for the Hampton Roads area of Virginia is not looking good for the balance of the decade. Given the outlook, the question is whether or not the business leaders and elected leaders of the region will wake up and try new development approaches and techniques or merely continue doing the same failed approaches over and over again and somehow expecting a miracle to occur that will yield a different result. The self-anointed "leaders" of Hampton Roads are long on bigotry and closed mindedness and short on innovation, tolerance and progressive ideas which might actually attract new businesses to the area. On the south side of Hampton Roads(pictured at left), the mindset can be summed up by Norfolk International Airport which greets newcomers with a huge hideous display of Pat Robertson and Regent University - one cannot help but wonders if some arriving travels turn around and leave as a result. And I might add that the Region wide chamber of commerce scoff at the idea of a LGBT chamber.

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Only the City of Hampton has so far shown any open mindedness and willingness to think remotely outside the box and court the LGBT business community. While the staid city of Richmond has begun to court the LGBT travel dollar, no city in Hampton Roads has yet awakened to this passed up opportunity. Then, of course, to add to the problem we have the strong anti-progressive message emanating from Taliban Bob McDonnell and the certifiably insane Ken Cuccinelli that certainly must be scaring off many businesses contemplating relocating. Personally, I am not optimistic that things will change, but one can always hope. Here are highlights from the Virginian Pilot on the sour economic forecast:
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Hampton Roads faces a “mediocre” economic outlook over the next decade, weakened by a decline in defense spending and the after-effects of the recession, according to Old Dominion University’s annual state of the region report, released this morning.

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In addition to the loss of the Joint Forces Command, or JFCOM, and its 6,000 jobs, Koch said the probable shrinkage in defense spending could cost the area at least one aircraft carrier.
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“We’ve seen our best years in the first part of this decade,” said James Koch, an economist and former president of Old Dominion, who served as editor of the report. “It appears that those are circumstances we’re not going to repeat.”
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His dour forecast said rising water levels and a net loss of population also would inhibit growth. Companies such as Norfolk Southern Corp. and Northrop Grumman Newport News “have to be thinking whether locating themselves here is viable in the future,” Koch said during an interview.

Anti-Gay Christianists Seek to Blame "Gay Agenda" Rather Than Themselves for Gay Teen Suicides

Candidly, there are few things in my view more reprehensible that religious extremists who spew anti-gay hatred and falsely hold themselves up as "experts." This is especially true where these faux experts continue to peddle the tired "ex-gay" myth which has now been discredited and condemned by every legitimate medical and mental health association. One such bigot is Linda Harvey (pictured at right) who hasn't held a real job since 1995 when she founded founded Mission:America and began living as a parasite off of the ignorant and gullible. While Ms. Harvey holds herself out as an expert on all things, including the lie that gays can change their sexual orientation, in reality if one checks her website, her professional background is in advertising and the only degree that she holds is a B.A. in English. Like most Christian extremists, Ms. Harvey doesn't let her lack of any legitimate credentials lessen the diarrhea of the mouth that afflicts her when it comes to gay bashing. Ms. Harvey's latest disingenuous lie filled anti-gay screed can be found at Wing Nut Daily. Here are highlights of her effort to deflect partial responsibility for recent gay suicides from herself and Christianist organizations to the LGBT community:
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The homosexual lobby has gone into full demand mode, particularly GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) and the Human Rights Campaign. Obama Education Secretary Arne Duncan hosted a national summit on bullying with homosexual activists present and featuring former GLSEN president and "safe schools" czar Kevin Jennings. There's a renewed press for passage of H.R. 4530, national legislation that goes beyond stronger anti-bullying measures to incorporate mandatory pro-"gay" propaganda.
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As the pressure groups scream for pro-homosexual policies, they simultaneously seek to prohibit all speech opposing homosexual behavior, which is viewed as harassment or contributing to it. Compulsory re-education is the only solution, because saying "no" to homosexuality always leads to such tragedy, or so they claim. In the fantasy world of these child-corruption advocates, there's an unbroken line connecting the actual bullies to any and all who stand up against sexual deviance.
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One wonders if any of these kids ever heard a clearly articulated warning against homosexuality. Or were they faced with a continuous onslaught of pro-homosexual diversity lessons, novels and events like the "Day of Silence"? Were they surrounded with liberal teachers as role models and the bad example of a homosexual school club? What part did any of this play in the sad belief that homosexuality was an inevitable destiny, instead of a wayward yet changeable sexual inclination? Under almost continuous pressure to accept a lie – confusion and then despair may be the predictable result.
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But there's a solution. First and foremost, kids should be told the truth that no one is born gay. Despite any budding feelings he or she may have, many people who felt similarly at that age went on to change both their feelings and behavior, and to be well-adjusted adult heterosexuals, some married with children. The gay lobbyists actively prevent kids from knowing this option. Why can't they be "pro-choice" regarding homosexuality?
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Let's consider the real goal of homosexual activism: that everyone becomes comfortable with homosexuality, that even personal revulsion is no longer acceptable. This re-imagined "gay" utopia depends upon a widely accepted lie.
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True to form, Harvey repeats the lie that many have "left homosexuality." The truth, of course, is that none of the ex-gay rackets can ever produce more than a few dozen such individuals at most and even then almost all of them are typically on an ex-gay ministry payroll. The so called ex-gays for pay, if you will. If Ms Harvey's bull shit isn't nauseating enough, Matt Barber - now affiliated with Jerry Falwell's Liberty University - has to chime in. Like Harvey, Barber has ZERO credentials in medicine or mental health issues. In fact, all of his education comes from Christianist colleges: Colorado Christian University, a glorified Bible college, and Pat Robertson's Regent University. Here are highlights from Barber's rant against gays who are tired of the bullshit and lies such as are his stock in trade:
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Unfortunately - though not surprisingly - extremist ‘gay' pressure groups, like the incongruously named ‘Human Rights Campaign,' Ellen DeGeneres and other liberal activists are shamelessly exploiting these tragedies as a means to achieve their own selfish political ends.
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"In a recent statement, Ms. DeGeneres said: ‘There are messages everywhere that validate this sort of bullying and taunting and we need to make it stop. We can't let intolerance and ignorance take another kids life.'
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"Indeed, actual bullying and taunting must not be tolerated. But what ‘messages' is Ms. DeGeneres referring to, and how do ‘we...make [them] stop?' I'll translate from liberalese to plain English. What Ellen meant was this: ‘Public defense of God's express, self-evident and unequivocal design for human sexuality must be stopped under force of law.
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It makes me physically ill to watch as the HRC and other ‘gay' militants lick their chops and rub their hands together over the tragic suicides of these troubled, sexually confused young men," continued Barber. "Before they were even laid to rest, the radical homosexual lobby pounced leveraging these suicides to demand that government codify each of their extremist, social engineering demands. This is political exploitation at its slimiest and it pours salt on the wounds of loved ones.
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But Christians are also praying that these wicked and callous political vultures who seek to exploit these suicides become confounded and fail fantastically. Their mission is not one of ‘tolerance' or ‘diversity.' Quite the opposite: Their goal is to fan flames of anti-Christian bigotry and discrimination, evangelizing on behalf of their own perverted god: moral relativism. We simply won't let them get away with it," concluded Barber.
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If anything is sickening, it is seeing shameless liars like Harvey and Barber making a living off of the misery of others and then through a slight of hand renounce the reality that THEY are indeed murdering LGBT teens and youths through their vile propaganda and screeds. Harvey and Barber make the nastiest of whores look virtuous.

Wednesday Male Beauty

It's Time to End the Special Privileges Afforded to Religious Belief

I am all for freedom of religion - something the U. S. Constitution and the individual state constitutions promise, but sadly do not deliver upon. Why? Because some religious beliefs are given special rights and privileges at the expense of other religions and the rights of other citizens. Unfortunately, the set of religious beliefs still given the most special rights and status is that of conservative Christians. A belief system that promotes hatred of others, the denigration of others, and an incessant push for a Christianist theocracy. It's the elephant in the room that no one wants to challenge notwithstanding the damage it does to so many other citizens. In a post that looks at the LGBT-Muslim dynamic and the two groups common enemy, fundamentalist Christians, Zack Ford has some good analysis on the need to take on religious believers head on and end the privilege and deference given to their undemocratic and often hate fueled views. Here are some highlights:
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The archnemesis of the queer community is not any particular faith, or any particular religious text, or any tenet of any particular religious institution. It’s belief itself. It’s the belief that gay = wrong. It’s the belief that gay = sin. It’s the belief that gay = chosen. It’s the belief that gay = unnatural. The list goes on and on, but the problem is belief.
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Facts are on our side. Decades of psychological research and the simple testimony of hundreds of millions of people from across our entire globe remind us that any belief against homosexuality is flawed and misinformed.
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But belief persists. That’s because belief maintains significant privilege in our society. We have to respect beliefs. We have to leave them unchallenged. We even have to cater to them. It is this shield of faith that helps our oppressors maintain their dominance in society.
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No matter what religious groups we work with, one thing goes unchanged: belief. As long as we’re defending, reinforcing, reconciling with, and making compromises with people guided by faith, we are only helping maintain the shield of faith. It is that religious privilege that holds us back, and yet the stigma of acknowledging it still seems too great for so many. We wouldn’t have this problem if we were all atheists, but faith is privileged, so people want it, and so the quest to have it both ways continues, as does the oppression such foolishness perpetuates.
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When people aren’t hedging the facts of my existence to support their misguided beliefs, I’ll support them. It doesn’t matter how they identify themselves. But as long as the focus is helping protect faith-based beliefs, we’re just sustaining our own oppression. So, should we defend Muslims? Absolutely. Should we defend Islam? Not at all. I’m sure, though, that my words will fall on the many deaf ears of those in the LGBTQ movement eager to defend Christianity.
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Those who love and let love we should love and let love in return. Those who bully and let bully? Why waste our time making nice with them?

GetEQUAL: Close The GayTM

For some time now, this blog and a number of others have been supporting the "Don't Ask, Don't Give" campaign to withhold all contributions to the Democratic Party and its various committees and affiliates until such time as the Democrats deliver on promises to the LGBT community, including DADT repeal, the passage of ENDA, and DOMA repeal. The point is, why reward those who are lying to you and playing you for a fool. Now, GET Equal has jumped on board with its "We'll Give When We Get EQUAL" campaign which piggy backs on the earlier effort. Better yet, Get Equal has a pledge that one can sign and send to the liar in chief in the White House demanding an executive order suspending discharges under DADT.

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I am way past listen to the Democrats' bogey man arguments that the GOP will pass all kinds of anti-gay measures, so keep giving tour money and votes to us. Truth be told IF the Democrats had the party discipline that the GOP has shown over the last 19 months, they could block GOP efforts even if in a minority position in the U.S. Senate. That, of course, takes leadership - something that has been sorely lack in the White House. Here are highlights from the release that GetEQUAL sent out yesterday (here's the link to send Obama a message):
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As I watch my inbox fill up with reports of LGBT young people taking their lives, I am sick with disgust when I see countless political fundraising emails asking me to give time and money to campaigns. While we sit under the crushing weight of homophobia, biphobia and transphobia endorsed by the federal government, I'm getting totebag offers from the Speaker of the House of Representatives. I have had enough!
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Today, GetEQUAL is announcing a campaign called "We'll Give When We GetEQUAL," asking LGBT Americans and straight allies to withhold time and money from political entities that are not fighting as hard for our equality as they are for our checkbooks and our volunteer hours.
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There are numerous promises that we need our elected officials to make good on, but for now we're asking for just one: an Executive Order signed by the President that will immediately stop military discharges under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
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There will be some who say we haven't given Democrats enough time, and that Republicans are finally turning a corner on LGBT rights. Neither of these claims are true. Both are excuses that we have heard for decades, and that have brought us no closer to full equality. Our tolerance and patience -- while we lose our jobs, are denied our right to marry, are forbidden to serve our country openly, and are forced to watch our youth kill themselves because they have no dignity or hope -- is GONE!
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We are asking President Obama, the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, to sign an Executive Order to IMMEDIATELY halt all military discharges of lesbian, gay, and bisexual soldiers -- and we're inviting you to participate in that effort.

CNN Links Conservative "Pro-Family" Groups to Gay Suicides

In a move long, long overdue in the mainstream media, CNN has connected the dots and publicly said what many in the LGBT community have been saying for a long time: that these conservative "family values" organizations are fueling homophobia and working over time to make LGBT citizens outcasts, which fuels bullying and other forces that contribute to gay suicides. CNN needs to take it the next step and hang responsibility around the necks of politicians that do the bidding of these groups and/or, like our "fierce advocate" in the White House lack the backbone and moral strength to stand up to them and call them out. Focus on the Family, Family Research Council, NOM - all of these groups are accessories to suicides which demonstrates that their "pro-life" whining is utter bullshit. They claim to worry about the unborn, but then do all they can to make life a living Hell for those already born. These folks truly make the Pharisees of the Bible look reputable. Here are some highlights from CNN:
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In light of the recent suicides reportedly brought about by persistent bullying, CNN has taken upon itself to address not only a national bullying crisis, but any homophobia or anti-gay behavior seen as contributing to such bullying. The network apparently believes that socially conservative groups contribute to the problem of putting kids down who have homosexual tendencies.

CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin and author Rosalind Wiseman agreed that conservative groups who oppose protective measures for gay students simply treat them as outcasts. Wiseman, author of "Queen Bees and Wannabees," called their efforts "anti-child."
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"These groups don't think homosexuality is normal," Toobin remarked of conservative groups. "They think it's wrong. They think it is a menace to society. So they are the ones who are making it harder for kids, who feel isolated enough as it is, to come forward."
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"I mean, this is not some sort of value-neutral approach by these conservative groups. They are trying to make homosexuality an outcast condition, and that's part of the problem," Toobin insisted. Wiseman agreed, adding "And really, what that really comes down to is being anti-child and anti-against the dignity of every single child who walks in through the doors of that school."
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Anderson Cooper brought the gay-rights issue into the debate. "I've been reading a lot, particularly right now, a case in Minnesota where there are a lot of conservative groups, anti-gay groups who say, you know, this is an attempt to promote some sort of gay agenda in schools," Cooper remarked of efforts to encourage young students with gay tendencies to be themselves.
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Wiseman complained that sex-ed programs are difficult to introduce to schools' curricula, tacitly suggesting social conservatives were also to blame for that situation.
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See the full article for a partial transcript. I certainly hope that this coverage will spill over into other news outlets and lay responsibility for gay suicides at the feet of the anti-gay Christianist organizations.