Author of California SB 777 Answers Lies of Conservative "Christians"

This op-ed article (http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/12/31/perspective/8_26_3112_29_07.txt) from the newspaper serving San Diego and Riverside Counties, California, is a rebuttal of the disingenuous claims (i.e., lies) being put out by the opponents of recently passed SB 777 that was signed into law by Governor Schwarzenegger. The author of the article, Sheila Kuehl, is a Democratic state senator from Santa Monica who authored SB 777, which was signed into law and is set to take effect next month. I recommend reading the entire op-ed piece because it illustrates how the Christianist intentionally distort the truth and seek to frighten the ignorant and uninformed. As I have said countless times, I do not understand how these self-professed Christians can justify their dishonesty and lies when the faith they claim to embrace forbids lying and bearing false witness. It is crucial that we know the tactics of our enemies and seek to expose them as liars as often as possible. Here are some highlights:

When society tells a young person ---- in subtle or, often, not so subtle, ways ---- that they are less valuable, perhaps because of the color of their skin, their religious practices or the gender of the person they want to take to the prom, the whole society suffers.

When we mandate that every young person must go to school, we must also provide the safety and dignity of an education free from harassment, discrimination and violence. That is why, over the last several years, I have authored several laws that strengthen civil rights protections for students and improve school safety. This year, as a simple cleanup measure, I authored SB 777 to include civil rights protections that have already been required for the last eight years by law to be more clearly spelled out in California's Education Code.

Seeing an opportunity to confuse their supporters by pretending the bill added protections to the code, the opposition has invented a number of inflammatory and false claims about the operation of SB 777. A bit of clarity, not to say truth-telling is in order.

First bit of balderdash: SB 777 certainly would not ban reference to "mom" and "dad" in the curriculum. Because nothing in SB 777 changes law that has been in place for eight years, you might have heard if such a ban had been put in place. In addition, if you did try to ban all reference to "mom" and "dad," it would be promoting a bias against heterosexuality, which is prohibited under current law, which means SB 777, as well. Ironically, SB 777 actually makes it clearer that this type of discrimination is prohibited by spelling out the legal definition of sexual orientation (heterosexuality, bisexuality and homosexuality) in the section of the Education Code that prohibits discrimination in school programs and activities.

Second bit of balderdash: SB 777 does not create a radical new definition of gender that will allow boys and girls to shower together and force schools to have unisex bathrooms and locker rooms. California has prohibited gender discrimination in schools using the exact same definition of gender found in SB 777 since the year 2000. Interestingly, precisely the same allegations were attempted 35 years ago by opponents of Title IX, which banned gender discrimination in schools under federal law. Those rather amusing predictions did not come true under Title IX and they have not come true under the law concerning schools that has been in effect in California since 2000, a law that is simply repeated in SB 777.

Third bit of balderdash: SB 777 does not change the content requirements for textbooks and other instructional materials. Although the opposition makes a valiant attempt to create confusion about the scope of current law, discrimination based upon a student's actual or perceived disability, gender, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or association with a person who has any of these characteristics has been prohibited in all publicly funded school programs and activities (including textbooks and classroom instruction) since 2000.

A repeal of SB 777 cannot strip away the existing protections for students against discrimination that have been in the law since 2000, the only effect of a repeal of SB 777 would be to confuse the public as to the scope of the existing civil rights protections for students. Perhaps, after all, that is the goal of the opposition. If you don't know your rights, you can't use them.

Christianist Wingnut Meltdown in California

HOMOSEXODUS! Revealed: 'Gay' plans to target 2-year-olds.

That is the headline for a new story on Wing Nut Daily a/k/a WorldNetDaily.com. (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59259). The story is based in reality only insofar as it references a new California statute recently signed into law by Governor Schwarzeneggger which simply took anti-discrimination language used in other areas of California law, such as employment and puts that in the education code. The new law provides that "No teacher shall give instruction nor shall any school district sponsor any activity that promotes a discriminatory bias because of a characteristic [including perceived gender.]"

Doesn't sound too subversive or bad, does it? Well the loony tunes crowd is having apoplexy, particularly Karen England, pictured at left, the head of the Capitol Resources Institute, an anti-gay "pro-family" organization. How dare the existence of gays, lesbians, gay parented families, etc. be acknowledge! They want us faggots to remain invisible. In my view, these people are sick, not to mention unhinged. One reason for their crazed response to the new law: California is one of the largest text book buyers in the country and "pro-family groups" are worried publishers will not print a different version (i.e., versions that protray gays negatively) for other states. Here are some quotes from Wing Nut Daily:

A list of school resources, sponsored by a homosexual-advocacy group called Safe Schools Coalition, suggests that for those who are only two years old, there's "Felicia's Favorite Story," which tells how she was "adopted by her two mothers." The list also promotes a book called "Are You a Girl or a Boy?" by Karleen Jiminez, a resource for children ages 4-8 when advocating homosexuality, bisexuality, transgenderism and other alternative lifestyle choices. It's described as "A sweet book about a gender-different kid."

Other resources being promoted in light of California's adoption of SB 777 as state law include books authored by officials for Planned Parenthood and the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network. One book, called "Tackling Gay Issues in School," is for kindergarten through grade 12, and offers a "rationale (for the inclusion of les/bi/gay/trans issues in school)." It features recommended "extracurricular" activities for classes.

And Karen England, a spokeswoman for Capital Resource who is a primary organizer behind the Save Our Kids plan to put the issue before voters and ask them to reject it, noted "All along, Capitol Resource Family Impact has maintained that the true agenda behind SB 777 is to infuse school curriculum with pro-homosexual, and other controversial lifestyles, propaganda. The proponents of the bill countered that this was not true and the law would merely 'streamline' anti-discrimination laws for schools. Based on our 20-year experience with the homosexual lobby, we know that a common tactic is to maintain innocence and then utilize vague language to push a radical agenda. We expected the same of SB 777 and we are already witnessing the same pattern," England said.

WND already has reported how the Gay Straight Alliance has forwarded instructions to its California chapters with information on how to make sure homosexuality is taught in public schools, and its warning having students and parents simply "tolerate" homosexuality is not enough. WND also has reported how thousands of requests for information about homeschooling and Christian school are bombarding organizations that support those efforts.

I guess Wing Nut Daily endorses having more messed up individuals like Matthew Murray - who was home schooled by his religious fanatic mother - turned out of these home school programs.

Southern California Fires - Another Katrina?

Some news outlets are reporting that the Chimperator is trying to avoid another Katrina like fiasco in the wake of the devastating fires in Southern California that have forced nearly 1 million residents to evacuate. From news coverage last night, this is the largest displacement of residents in this country since the Civil War. Personally, I don't trust the Chimperator to manage anything well, based on his track record. Moreover, many stories hinted that the lack of National Guard personnel who are in Iraq was hampering the fire fighting efforts. California's lieutenant Governor reportedly asked the Chimperator to NOT visit. GOP Governor Schwarzenegger will also likely get some blame. Here are some highlights from the Los Angeles Times ( http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-fire24oct24,0,5795853.story?coll=la-home-center):

Exhausted and sometimes discouraged, firefighters struggled for a third day Tuesday to wrest control of more than a dozen wildfires in Southern California that threatened such familiar landmarks as the Mt. Palomar Observatory and the resort communities around Lake Arrowhead.Fire crews threw everything they had at the fires, but though there were notable successes, the toll of acreage, homes and lives lost continued to rise -- as did the volume of criticism from those who said the region was woefully unprepared for the cataclysm.

"If we had more air resources, we would have been able to control this fire," said a frustrated Orange County Fire Authority Chief Chip Prather. "Instead we've been stuck in this initial attack mode on the ground where we hopscotch through neighborhoods as best we can trying to control things."Prather spoke at a news briefing Tuesday morning less than a mile from what had been an idyllic residential enclave at Modjeska Canyon, near El Toro in eastern Orange County. As he spoke, the canyon was erupting in an inferno that forced firefighters to retreat and destroyed an undetermined number of homes.

In a story that was repeated in many places throughout the region, there simply were not enough firetrucks to chase down the fire that swept from Running Springs into the steep, winding roads of Fredalba on Tuesday morning, said Brian Savage, a division supervisor with the Culver City Fire Department who was among the first to begin battling back the flames.

The White House, eager not to repeat its experience in Hurricane Katrina, announced that President Bush would travel to Southern California on Thursday to tour damaged areas and monitor the federal government's response. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and R. David Paulison, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, arrived in California on Tuesday."The world is watching how much of . . . the southern part of the state is on fire," said White House press secretary Dana Perino. "The federal government is very concerned, [and] the president is concerned himself. The Bush administration was harshly criticized for reacting too slowly to the threat from Hurricane Katrina and botching the jobs of evacuation and reconstruction once the storm had devastated New Orleans and other Gulf Coast communities.

Of course, New Orleans was/is majority black, while Southern California is not and includes some GOP strongholds (e.g. Orange County). Just a coincidence that Bush is more concerned? Also, I wonder how much fire equipment could have been purchased with the billions squandered in Iraq and not even accounted for ($1.2 billion in the case of one contractor)?

Schwarzenegger urges Republicans to Seize Centre

As the Financial Times notes (http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/32e19f68-7ff9-11dc-b075-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1), Schwarzenegger is actually right about what the GOP needs to do if it wants to avoid a potential blood bath in November, 2008. However, the Party has trapped itself from being able to take such an approach inasmuch as the primaries give undue power to the "grass roots" Christianists, who vote in primaries and often assist in campaigns. As a result, the GOP candidates have almost been in competition to out Christianist each. Should a subsequent change in tactics be made, the candidate will be accused of flip-flopping or worse. The moral is that sometimes you need to think twice about who you are getting into bed with. Now the GOP is stuck with the Christianists. Here are some highlights:

Arnold Schwarzenegger, the governor of California, has urged Republican presidential candidates to capture the political centre ground ahead of next year’s election by focusing on healthcare reform and education. As the campaign has unfolded, leading candidates have drifted to the right to win support from social conservatives.

Shifting the debates to centre-ground topics would be a positive move, he added. “Being somewhat in the centre . . . is not a detriment. If you sell [your ideas] well and if you explain it well, that’s what leadership is all about, bringing people along.” The California governor was one of his party’s few successes in last year’s mid-term elections, winning a second term in spite of Republicans losing control of the US Senate and Congress.

He has implemented new climate-change legislation and proposed sweeping reform to the state’s health insurance system. His “post-partisan” stance on these issues was justified by the mandate he won, he said. “I feel because I have good approval ratings, and because I won a Democrat state with 57 per cent of the votes, that . . . I can get people to cross party lines.

After Vetoing Gay Marriage Bill Schwarzenegger Signs 4 Other LGBT Laws

While there has been much coverage of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's veto of the marriage legislation, he in fact did sign six bills that will improve the lives of millions of LGBT Californians and their families. One bill, SB 777, will require the Department of Education to monitor the way schools adhere to the state's anti-bias laws and specifically mandates the department to ensure the protection of LGBT students. This bill has the fundies going absolutely beserk and foaming at the mouth. The bill states:

“No teacher shall give instruction nor shall a school district sponsor any activity that promotes a discriminatory bias against any person because of a characteristic listed in Section 220. [Section 220 of the Education Code includes “sexual orientation”.] No textbook or other instructional materials shall be adopted by the state board or by any governing board for use in the public schools that reflects or promotes a discriminatory bias against any person because of a characteristic listed in Section 220.”

One would think the world was ending based on the hysteria found on Christianist web sites. The spittle is flying everywhere much to my delight, I might add. Here are some examples of "Christian" love at its finest:

Catholics for the Common Good: "SB 777 is a bill that will likely promote discrimination and bigotry against people who understand marriage is the foundation of the family that provides children with a mother and father. Thanks to the Governor Schwarzenegger, viewpoint discrimination is now enshrined in California law." "Current law already protects homosexuals, bisexuals and transgendered people from discrimination, but SB 777 will actually lead to the inclusion of advocacy for behaviors and lifestyle choices of protected classes in school instruction and activities when it takes effect in January, 2008." "The new law is so radical, it deletes the definition of students' sex – the objective reality of being male or female – and replaces it with the subjective construction of gender as determined by students."

Capitol Resource Institute: Under the guise of preventing discrimination and bias against homosexuals, transgenders and other sexual variants, SB 777 will force innocent school children to accept alternative lifestyles. “We are shocked and appalled that the governor has blatantly attacked traditional family values in California,” stated Karen England, Executive Director of Capitol Resource Institute. “With this decision, Governor Schwarzenegger has told parents that their values are irrelevant. Many parents will have no choice but to pull their children out of the public schools that have now become sexualized indoctrination centers.” “SB 777 will result in reverse discrimination against students with religious and traditional family values.” Governor Schwarzenegger has signed into the law the highly controversial SB 777 (Kuehl) that will permit transgender students to enter the locker rooms and restrooms of the gender with which they identify. “School boys have always made excuses to get into girls locker rooms–now they won’t need any because it will be a state-sanctioned policy,” stated England.

Americans for Truth (Peter LaBarbera a/k/a Porn Pete's newist Christianist organization): Teaching California Kindergarteners to be Transsexual, Bisexual and Homosexual? By prohibiting any textbook or instruction “reflecting adversely” upon a variety of sexual lifestyles, SB 777 would, in effect, require all instruction to positively portray transsexuality, bisexuality and homosexuality because silence on these sexual lifestyles would no longer be permitted. Consequently, schools would have to promote “same-sex marriages” and even sex-change procedures. “SB 777 requires all teachers, all textbooks, and all instructional materials to promote cross-dressing, sex-change operations, bisexuality, and homosexuality, including homosexual ‘marriages,’” said Randy Thomasson, president of Campaign for Children and Families (CCF), a leading California-based pro-family organization, who observed today’s pro-SB 777 rally at the State Capitol. The new, “non-discriminatory” materials would have to include:
• Sex-change handouts (Omitting sex-change material in sex education class would “reflect adversely”)

• Transvestite speakers (Limiting classroom speakers to biologically-born men and biologically-born women would “reflect adversely”)

• Transsexual, bisexual and homosexual videos (Showing videos depicting only the traditional family or man-woman relationships would “reflect adversely”)

You get the idea. Since California is one of the largest purchaser of school textbooks, any modifications made to textbooks to meet this new legal requirement could spill over into other states where to be sure the Christianist will go crazy as well.

California Assembly for Second Time Adopts Gay Marriage Bill

The Sacramento Bee is reporting that the California Assembly on Tuesday voted to allow gay couples to marry in a challenge to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has said he would veto the bill if it passes the full Legislature:

Lawmakers approved the measure on a party-line vote, with the majority saying the Legislature should not to wait for the state Supreme Court to act on the issue. It passed 42-34.

"This does in fact provide equal marriage rights for all citizens of California," bill author Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, said as he began what marked the lengthiest debate so far this year on the Assembly floor.

"By denying a group of individuals the right to marry, we denigrate that entire group and deny them citizenship."

The bill now goes to the Senate, which adopted a similar measure in 2005. In his veto at that time, Schwarzenegger wrote that a gay marriage bill would violate Proposition 22, an initiative passed by California voters in 2000 that bars the state from recognizing out-of-state, same-sex marriages.

Only time will tell if Schwarzenegger, who was helped early in his career by wealthy gays and has never fully revealed his past, will again betray LGBT Californians.

NOTE: I DO NOT GENERALLY POST FRONTAL NUDITY, BUT IN MY OPINION, ARNOLD'S HYPOCRISY REQUIRES FULL EXPOSURE.