Father's Day Thoughts - A Father's Gift

I lost my father in the fall of 2006 - strangely, he died on my son's birthday, something that has made that date bittersweet ever since. On this father's Day I want to re-publish a post from over three years ago because the gift my dad gave me continues to mean so much and did so much to help me deal with his passing. I sincerely hope that other fathers of gay children can learn from his example. Sadly, the boyfriend never got to meet my dad. I can only think that they would have hit it off famously. Here is 2007 post:
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One thing that I will discuss later in more detail, but wanted to comment upon now - since I saw a photo minutes ago that made me think about it - is how much it meant for me to be accepted by my dad when I came out (a photo of him a few years back is posted at right). We had not always had the best relationship because he was stubborn and not at all good at showing his emotions (I believe this due to his having been raised from age 3 onward in an orphanage that had aspects to it like something out of a Charles Dickens novel). Moreover, in my struggle to hide “my terrible secret,” I never let anyone become completely close to me or allowed anyone to fully know me. It was as if a glass wall separated me from everyone. I could be fully myself only when I was alone.
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When I came out to my parents – I had originally planned on NEVER telling them – my dad freaked out for a couple days. Mostly, I think, because he was wondering what to say to people about him having a gay child, especially since I had been quite visible in the Virginia Beach community. After that, he was fully supportive. The first time the [former] b/f and I visited my parents, he and my dad hit it off and came to like one another a great deal. Before he died last September, my dad and I reached a closure and sense of peace between us that had eluded us all my life. For that, I know I am very lucky.
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To any parents reading this blog, I cannot stress enough to you the wonderful and priceless gift you give to your child when you accept them fully, including their sexual orientation. I am so fortunate that my dad gave me that gift.

Hillary's Gay Problem - Continued

I and others have written about Hillary Clinton's almost choke like reflex when it comes to allowing the word "gay" to come from her lips. It's like the thought of uttering the word frightens her. John Aravosis was among those who have noted this phenomenon. Not surprisingly, gays and the LGBT communit continue to be invisible on Hillary's campaign website. Today at America Blog John has an update on this issue. As I have stated, if Hillary cannot bear to say the word "gay" in public, why do some gays foolishly think she's going to be forceful on gay issues? Here's what John Aravosis found:

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I wrote the other day about how Hillary seems downright afraid of saying the word "gay" (and don't even try to get her to say "lesbian"). I thought it might be interesting to see, in a real-world gay event, just how often Hillary used the words gay, lesbian and lgbt as compared to Obama. Well, what better event to test the candidates than the LOGO gay forum last August where all the Dem candidates were quizzed about gay issues. Here's what we found, in terms of how often Obama and Hillary used the following gay-related words:

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Obama: 7 gay, 5 lgbt, 3 lesbian

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Clinton: 2 gay, 1 lgbt, 0 lesbian

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So that's 15 references for Obama, 3 for Hillary. And notably, no "lesbian" at all for Hillary.

Hillary's Gay Problem - Why Can't She Even Utter the Word?

I have been complaining for a long time now about the fact that the LGBT community is invisible if one looks at Hillary Clinton's campaign website or listen to her statements to general audiences. We simply do not exist. In contrast, on Obama's website and in his commenets to general audiences we are frequently mentioned. Nonetheless a large segment of the LGBT community acts as if Hillary is some kind of would be savior. Personally, I believe that if she will not mention us now except in interviews with gay media outlets that rarely are viewed by the general public, it is lunacy to expect her to battle for LGBT issues if she becomes the nominee or is ultimately elected. The Clintons sold out the LGBT community with DOMA and DADT and I expect Hillary will do it again - but only after collecting as much money from gays as possible. In short, shes play the LGBT community as a bunch of simpletons. Fortunately, others are starting to echo my concerns, particularly at America Blog that also has a video of Hillary's interview on LOGO where she can barely say the word "gay." Here are some highlights:

Last month, a gay Philadelphian LGBT publisher raised the issue that Senator Obama, though often addressing LGBT issues and including us in his major speeches, was not granting his publication an exclusive interview. Senator Obama quickly addressed the issue and granted an exclusive interview to the national LGBT publication, The Advocate.

Tonight, following the Pennsylvania Primary, Senator Obama once again showed his commitment to our community by including us in his address to the nation. Senator Clinton, speech, once again, did not include us, and it brings up the issue that hers never do.

Obama mentions us in his speeches, a lot. And yes, Hillary will say those are just words. But you know, Obama was willing to chastize his own community for their homophobia in a speech given on Martin Luther King's birthday in MLK's own church to thousands of black leaders. Those are words that matter. Here's to hoping that Hillary can find it in herself to utter the word gay (and even lesbian) in a setting that isn't limited to a gay audience.

[N}otice how repeatedly in the interview Hillary hesitates and stumbles at places where you would naturally expect her to say the word "gay" - she doesn't say it - she kind of stops, doesn't say gay, then moves on. She's not comfortable saying the word. Obama is. I think that tells you something about how they feel about the issue inside.

Condi's "Closest Female Friend"

Michelangelo Signorile has an interesting post on his blog (http://signorile2003.blogspot.com/2007/09/condis-best-friends-yesterday-on-show-i.html) about Condi Rice and her friendships that include gays and co-ownership of property with a woman. This news might well drive the fundies crazy (always a worthwhile endeavor in my view):

Yesterday on the show I had an interesting conversation with Washington Post diplomatic correspondent Glenn Kessler, whose new book is The Confidante: Condoleezza Rice and the Creation of the Bush Legacy.There have long been questions about Rice's sexual orientation and her personal life in general. As Kessler notes, "She has built a wall of privacy around her that is never breached." But Kessler had access to Rice's closest friends and to Rice herself, and he reveals some eyebrow-raising information that hasn't been out there before.

Rice's "closest male friend" is openly gay, a man by the name of Coit D. Blacker, a Stanford professor (Rice served as the provost as Stanford in the late 1990s for six years) and a Democrat who served in the Clinton administration. Blacker, whose partner is also mentioned, advised Al Gore's campaign in 2000, while his close friend Rice served as a chief confidante for a president who has tried to make gays into second class citizens in the U.S. Constitution.

But wait, it gets better. Rice's "closest female friend" is a woman named Randy Bean (pictured here), who is unmarried and whose sexual orientation is not stated. She is described as a "liberal progressive;" she's a documentary filmmaker who works at Standford University and once worked for Bill Moyers. She and Rice and Blacker (again, who has a partner) are discussed as a "second family," a term Bean uses, also saying that, "on friends, [Rice] goes narrow and deep."

According to newly revealed information in the book (which Kessler found through real estate records), the two women, Rice and Bean (yes, hilarious), own a home together and have a line of credit together.

Even if Rice is heterosexual, however, it is fascinating and mind-boggling that this woman whose best male friend is an openly gay liberal and whose best female "friend" is a "liberal progressive," would work for a president who has opposed every gay rights initiative and tried to enshrine religious hatred in the Constitution.

I can only wonder if this information will give Daddy Dobson, Tony Perkins and Rev. Wildmon the vapors.

Central Kings students wear pink to send bullies a message

This is a nice story (http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/Front/858884.html) from Nova Scotia that proves that sometimes the younger generation has the courage to do the right thing. I am very impressed with the two seniors who orchestrated the defiance of the bullies. Some times relatively small actions speak volumes:

CAMBRIDGE — Two students at Central Kings Rural High School fought back against bullying recently, unleashing a sea of pink after a new student was harassed and threatened when he showed up wearing a pink shirt. The Grade 9 student arrived for the first day of school last Wednesday and was set upon by a group of six to 10 older students who mocked him, called him a homosexual for wearing pink and threatened to beat him up.

The next day, Grade 12 students David Shepherd and Travis Price decided something had to be done about bullying. "It’s my last year. I’ve stood around too long and I wanted to do something," said David. They used the Internet to encourage people to wear pink and bought 75 pink tank tops for male students to wear. They handed out the shirts in the lobby before class last Friday — even the bullied student had one.

"I made sure there was a shirt for him," David said. They also brought a pink basketball to school as well as pink material for headbands and arm bands. David and Travis figure about half the school’s 830 students wore pink. The two friends said they didn’t take the action looking for publicity, but rather to show leadership in combating what they say is frequent bullying in schools.

Merv Griffin Media Storm

I have been following a number of blogs and articles on the recent death of Merv Griffin at age 82 and the various attempts to sanitize history to avoid a direct discussion of his sexual orientation. Unlike closeted anti-gay politicians who, in my view, deserve to be outed due to their hypocrisy, Griffin certainly had the right to stay in the closet during his lifetime if that is what he chose to do. However, I am surprised at the strong reactions and threats of lawsuits to the mere reporting of what was apparently an open secret among some circles in Hollywood and elsewhere. I also do not understand the threats of libel suits since, in general, one cannot libel a dead person. Moreover, truth is an absolute defense to a libel or defamation claim, and if factual evidence existed to back up the story, then no one in the press should have been afraid of a libel suit.

In any event, via Pam's House Blend and America Blog, I found this post at QueerTwoCents.com (http://queertwocents.blogspot.com/2007/08/gay-merv-griffin-ray-richmond.html) that looks at the changing news reporting on Griffin's death and the obvious efforts to down play his homosexuality. It is a bit surprising that in Hollywood in 2007, some are still apparently terribly worried about being labeled as gay. I can perhaps understand some young rising star, but Griffin was long retired and largely out of the public eye. It is truly sad that in this day and age, people still feel ashamed of who they are through no choice of their own all because of the bigotry of others. Here are highlights of the post:

Early this morning I posted a very insightful article by The Hollywood Reporter writer Ray Richmond entitled, Merv Griffin Died A Closeted Homosexual. His piece has caused quite a stir. Later in the day, a reader alerted me that my link to the article was no good; I knew I would have to put on my sleuthing cap to figure out what was going on. I soon discovered at the site of my favourite blog mistress, Pam (Pam's House Blend), that both The Hollywood Reporter AND Reuters had pulled Mr. Richmond's article.

Fortunately, one of Pam's House Blend readers, Stephanie, in Victoria, posted the still active link at canada.com for the Reuters piece, with the original article, here .

This afternoon, writer/editor Kevin Allman posted an interview on his blog after speaking with Ray Richmond about the removal of the article. He asked Mr. Richmond, "Do you think they were pressured to take it down?" He replied, "Sure. I’m sure it was taken down because there was fear of litigation, and that the post was libelous and/or defamatory. And I certainly don’t believe that to be the case." Mr. Richmond added that he hoped to speak with his bosses at The Hollywood Reporter, stating, "I will have discussions with them, and I will hope at some point we can have it restored online. It seems that scotching the post gives the appearance of liability when there isn’t any. It was simply a factual, very informed discussion of the larger issue of the media’s difficulty in allowing someone to be labeled as gay in the mainstream, as if that is somehow a huge shame. My whole reason for doing the piece for the Reporter was to shine a light on that fact. Unfortunately that appears to be the case...even internally." Mr Richmond also said that he has not been contacted by anyone representing Merv Griffin.

I wanted to put the truth out there in a loving and concerned way. One could make the point that it was his business alone, but I don’t think this was true, because he was a public figure and this was who the man was."

Mr. Richmond made some excellent points. Does anyone else think that the idea of suing to keep the lid on someone's not so well hidden sexuality is absurd? Talk about the truth being in jeopardy. Sadly, however, Merv Griffin is not the only deceased celebrity in recent history to undergo a straight-wash attempt by mainstream media.

Later this afternoon, The Hollywood Reporter restored the article. Mystery solved, or so I thought. I decided to investigate some more and this is what I discovered: the original title, "Merv Griffin Died A Closeted Homosexual" had been CHANGED to, Griffin never revealed man behind the curtain, AND the text of the original article itself had been ALTERED. Some text was DELETED and some new text was ADDED.

See the revised story (with highlights of the modified language at QueerTwoCents.com

Church Cancels Funeral After Discovering Decorated Vet Was Gay

Here's another example (http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/08/081007service.htm) of loving "Christians" who will not provide a funeral for a Navy veteran who died while awaiting a heart transplant after learning he was gay. If you ask me, Pastor Simons, pictured at left, looks pretty gay himself.

Sinclair was not a member of any church. His brother was a member of High Point Church and when Sinclair's health began to fail members of the congregation prayed for him. The nondenominational church is led by the Rev. Gary Simons, the brother-in-law of televangelist Joel Osteen.

When Sinclair died High Point offered to host a funeral. But the offer suddenly and at the last minute was rescinded, the Dallas Morning News reports, when the church discovered Sinclair was gay. Sinclair's sexuality came to light, the paper reports, when the family submitted photographs of Sinclair's life that it wanted to display at the funeral. Among the pictures where photo's of Sinclair hugging and his partner, Paul Wagner.

Living Apart - Reply to Comments

Some have acted as if I blame society for what has occurred between Raymond and me. Yes, I speculated on what might have been for us - and all in the LGBT community for that matter - if society was different. But I was not playing "The Blame Game, "Playing Victim," or intending to be narcissistic in my post.

Yes, I made decisions that perhaps were wrong or might have been made differently. Hindsight is always 20/20. For the record, I have no regrets over having three amazing children, each of whom will bring gifts to the world and who strongly support gay equality. Also, due to my life in the straight world if you will, my coming out has made some individuals have to rethink their bias and bigotry in a way that would not have happened otherwise.

In my defense, I would state that, although I was a bit late in starting my efforts to make things better for the LGBT community, I have since pushed activism, publicly debated against Virginia's marriage amendment, helped form HRBOR, helped expose a fraud like "ex-gay" Michael Johnston (http://www.washingtonblade.com/2003/8-8/news/national/exgay.cfm) and other hypocrites. In fact, if more long time openly gay (that being a relative term since most still try to live "under the radar" around here) members of the gay community were as out spoken as I have been in my brief "out" career, this area would be much different than it is at present. The fact that I am probably the only attorney in a metropolitan area of 1.6 million who will publicly say the words, "yes, I am gay" tells me that I am not off playing "victim." Others are busy doing that - not me.

If I have pity or sadness for either one of us, it is Raymond, who by the standard of commentators did the right thing by never being in the closet, has always been out and proud, and paid a very heavy price for it in his younger years.

Iran: Mobilization in Paris Against the Repression of Homosexual Iranians

It is nice to know that somewhere in the world someone cares what is happening to gays in Iran. Sadly, Chimperator Bush's regime has done nothing to stop the execution of teenagers. Likewise not a peep out of the Christianists who whine constantly about abortion, yet seem to care nothing for children once the leave the womb (e.g., Bush threatens to veto bill that would extend health care to poor children). For all the bad mouthing the French have received from the Chimperator's mindless supporters, at least in Paris, the Iranian government's outrages are not going unnoticed. Above is the official photograph of the execution of Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni posted outside the embassy of the Islamic republic in Paris:

Cité Gay Celebrations in memory of two gay Iranian hung two years ago whereas other executions are imminent…Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni, two Iranian teenagers of the province of Khuzestan, were hung publicly on the place of Mashhad, in the North-East of Iran, on July 19, 2005. This case mobilized the international community had regard at the age of the boys, and the fact that they would have been condemned to died because of their supposed or proven homosexuality. The Iranian capacity, for its part, had affirmed that the sorrow was marked for the abduction and the rape of a 13 year old minor. Before their execution, Mahmoud and Ayaz had spent 14 month in prison. They, moreover, had received 228 blows of whip each one, for disorder of the law and order, alcohol consumption and flight. In memory with the two young people assassinated by the Iranian capacity, is celebrated in some cities of the world, “Candle Day”, day of the memory taken again in particular by activists French gay of Spartakus.

http://translate.google.com/translate?sourceid=navclient-menuext&hl=en&u=http://www.iran-resist.org/article3647

Parents Choose to Accept Son Over Church and Friends

Here's a refreshing story from the Muskegon Chronicle that shows not all conservative religious adherents are bigots (http://www.mlive.com/news/muchronicle/index.ssf?/base/news-12/118449451566160.xml&coll=8&thispage=1):

In 2005, while his parents were getting ready for a Super Bowl party at their home in Spring Lake Township, Ari Beighley (pictured at left) asked if his mother had a couple of minutes to talk. Two hours later, mother and son emerged from conversation, their lives irrevocably changed. "Even when we were talking that day, I remember thinking: Things are never going to be the same again in this family," said Ari's mother, Colette Beighley.

"In a sense, everyone had his or her own 'coming out.' " By the end of the year, Ari Beighley's father, the Rev. David Beighley, 56, had his ministerial license "withdrawn" by the West Michigan District of the Wesleyan Church for, among other things, questioning the denomination's position that homosexuality is a sin, he said.

David Beighley, who also has his doctorate in family psychology, said even before his son "came out," he had a "growing uneasiness within me regarding some of the church teachings." The family sought out a new church home at Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, which is a "welcoming" congregation to gays and lesbians. After his ministerial license was revoked, David Beighley said, "I felt a curious freedom."

The Sky Isn't Falling- Experience may be trumping hysteria over gay marriage.

Today's Washington Post has a gay-supportive editorial on gay marriage (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/04/AR2007070401384.html) that largely points out the obvious. Full marriage rights for sam-sex couples has not resulted in any of the dire consequences predicted by the lunatic Christianist fringe. In fact, Massachusetts continues to have the lowest divorce rate in the country versus the far high rates in Bible belt gay bashing states. Here are some higlights from the editorial:

WHEN THE high court of Massachusetts ruled in 2003 that the commonwealth's constitution gave same-sex couples the right to marry, detractors railed against "activist judges" who were "imposing" their will on the people. Only the people, through their elected representatives, should decide something so fundamental, they said. Thus began an effort to amend Massachusetts's constitution by referendum to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman. Four years and about 10,000 same-sex marriages later, here's what the people have said: never mind.

Despite dire predictions, the institution of marriage didn't crumble under the weight of homosexuals seeking the rights and responsibility that come with it. The sky didn't fall in Massachusetts. Nor has it buckled in the District of Columbia and the five states that offer civil unions or domestic partnerships to gay couples. Washington state's domestic partnership law goes into effect next month. Oregon's domestic partnership law and New Hampshire's civil unions take effect in January 2008. Acceptance of gay marriage is by no means widespread. Marriage is restricted to one man and one woman by constitutional amendment in 26 states and by state law in 19 others. But the tide is slowly changing. Opinion polls show growing acceptance of gay rights.

As an interesting aside to the editorial, check out John Arivosis on AmericaBlaob as to why the term "homosexual," consistently used by the anti-gay Christo-facists, is out dated (and derrogatory) See: http://www.americablog.com/2007/07/dear-washington-post-please-stop.html

Student's Reality too Much for Granby High Principal

I previously posted about play banned from being performed at Norfolk's Granby High School. To make matters worse, the play was written and is produced by students at the school pictured in the photo above. As is all too typical of this area, there is a double standard of what can be forced on students who do not conform to Christianist religious views. Christian themed religious plays are fine, real world based plays are banned. Here's the report from one of the local TV stations:

The performances of a student-produced play at Granby High School in Norfolk have been banned because of the show's content. Cleo Atolin knows too well the fear and anxiety his character Cleo faces when he decides to tell his parents he's gay.

“I don't feel like I'm a mistake or think that I am a mistake. I'm gay,” said Atolin. “My parents are worried that I will regret it. I told them, I'm not going to regret, it because it’s something I need to do.” The 18-year-old wrote a monologue for the musical Pet Sounds, or the Life and Times of Nigel Zingraff and Petula Clark.

“We had a religious play, Godspell, but we can't have something that goes on really at school and how to handle those kinds of situations.” The musical also deals with the touchy issues of racism and self esteem.

Today's Virginian Pilot had this to say as well:

Bruce Hanson, Granby’s theater teacher, said he understands the administrators’ decision but feels hurt. “We can do a play where a man sleeps with his mother – 'Oedipus Rex.’ Mass murder – 'King Lear.’ Jews in a concentration camp – 'The Diary of Anne Frank,’ ” said Hanson, who is gay. “But we can’t have one about a boy coming out of the closet.” Students said they were disappointed but not surprised.

It is really difficult living in this area at times. I am going to make every effort to see the play and support our local students.

Update on Iran's Abuse of Gays

Things are bad for gays in many countries, but the Islamic countries definitely stand out as the worse. In Iran, The maximum punishment for adultery and gay sex is death, and teenage boys as young as 15 are eligible for the death penalty. Unfortunately, I doubt that the following report from Pink News.Co.UK (http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-4580.html) will launch a new trend:

Nearly all of the young men arrested at a party in Iran earlier this month under suspicion of being gay have now been released.Eighty-seven young men were originally arrested, and seventeen were held for "homosexual conduct" and drinking alcohol in a crackdown by Iranian police.Amnesty International have said that they are not aware of any evidence that the men attending the party identify themselves as gay or were engaging in same-sex sexual activities. Sixty of the men were released unconditionally, while 26 were released on bail.

Last month PinkNews.co.uk reported how a witness as the time of the arrests, who would only describe herself as Peyman, described how "all my friends were arrested while seven or eight policeman beat them with batons." Arsham Parsi, the executive director of the Iranian Queer Organisation said: "Obviously this crackdown is yet another systematic violation of human rights, along with brutal suppression of womens' movements in Iran and must be strongly protested by all human rights organisations as yet another violation of people's private rights and liberties.

Sadly, human rights are not a priority for Chimperator Bush's administration, which doesn't even want to be bound by the Geneva Conventions rules on treatment of prisoners.

God's Perfect Love Requires No Ex-gay "Cure"

Some language in a post on Ex-Gay Watch by Eugene Wagner really touched me and very much describes the evolution I had to made spiritually to arrive at a place of self-acceptance with my sexuality. I cannot express it any better, so here's a portion of his post:

If there’s one pivotal event that I hope I adequately account for in every retelling, it’s how I came to truly understand, for the first time, that God loves me exactly the way I am, and that I don’t have to change who or what I am to earn his acceptance.

It’s equally important to understand that God brought me to this point before I began questioning everything I’d been taught by the church about my “condition,” and not the other way around. I certainly didn’t interpret God’s unconditional acceptance as a license to do whatever my whims might happen to dictate, and I still don’t.

Words cannot fully convey just how revolutionary it was to come to the realization that not only did I not have to become somebody else in order to appease God, but he didn’t want me to be somebody else. Yet somebody else was precisely what I was trying to become through my efforts to “reclaim my natural heterosexuality.”

For better or for worse, whether because of genetics, hormones, psychological influences or some combination of the three, my homosexuality is a permanent, integral part of who I am, and God made it clear to me that he wasn’t interested in fundamentally altering the personality of somebody he had already fallen in love with, as even a partial shift in orientation would have entailed for me. Maybe it’s different for someone whose attractions were more fluid to begin with, but I wouldn’t know.

For the full post, see: http://www.exgaywatch.com/wp/2007/06/perfect-love/

More On Bush's Witch Doctor Nominee

Several people have asked for more information on Chimperator Bush’s nominee for Surgeon General, particular his participation in ex-gay cure ministries. Here is some of the information I have pulled together:

1. The church he founded, Hope Springs Community Church in Lexington (http://www.hopespringschurch.com/index.cfm) has a number of “Change Ministries: Here’s one that appears to focus on male sexuality issues – which I suspect includes being gay (and probably “pornography addiction” which is very prevalent among so-called evangelicals):

Men’s Sexual Integrity: Offers an opportunity for men to heal from sexual brokenness and find strength to overcome unhealthy sexual behaviors in a safe and confidential environment. Find the support and accountability you need and develop a closer relationship with the one who can heal, Jesus Christ.

2. Lindsay Beyerstein, a freelance writer based in New York City, has some further details on Holsinger on her news blog , Majikthise, which provides coverage of national, and international politics http://majikthise.typepad.com/majikthise_/2007/06/surgeon_general.html . BarbinMD has some fun facts about the man who could be America's next top doc:

– Holsinger founded Hope Springs Community Church, which “ministers to people who no longer wish to be gay or lesbian.” Holsinger said that he sees homosexuality as “an issue not of orientation but of lifestyle.” [Lexington Herald-Leader, 6/1/07]

– In serving on the United Methodist Judicial Council — the “court” that resolves “disputes involving church doctrine and policies in the nation’s second-largest Protestant denomination” — Holsinger “opposed a decision to allow a practicing lesbian to be an associate pastor, and he supported a pastor who would not permit an openly gay man to join the church.” [Lexington Herald-Leader, 6/1/07]

– In the early 1990s, Holsinger resigned from the United Methodist Church’s Committee to Study Homosexuality “because he believed the committee ‘would follow liberal lines.’” He also warned “that acceptance of homosexuality would drive away millions of churchgoers.” [Arkansas Democrat Gazette, 5/26/07; Time, 6/24/91]

In addition, when surgeon general nominee Dr. James Holsinger was serving on the board of the Confessing Movement of the United Methodist Church, the board issued a statement accusing the "radical homosexual/lesbian lobby" and those who support homosexuality of precipitating "a crisis in the United Methodist Church."

Personally, I believe having this guy as Surgeon General would be a disaster for serious medical knowledge. Again, why didn't Bush simply nominate a witch doctor. Such a nominee would certainly be as credible as a nut job who thinks being gay is "a lifestyle choice." I guess to this guy living and breathing is a "lifestyle choice" as well.

Homoeroticsm at Annapolis

This photo of U.S. Naval Academy plebes climbing the Herndon Monument at Annapolis, Maryland looks pretty hot to me. These guys don't look too afraid of some man-on-man grappling to me!!

Stop Bush's Surgeon General Nominee

Pam's House Blend (http://www.pamshouseblend.com/showDiary.do;jsessionid=F4E426EBD084BC5CDE683A0B970F7AAC?diaryId=1857) has useful information on how to voice your opposition to Chimperator Bush's pro-reparative therapy nominee for Surgeon General:

This appointment needs approval from the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, which is composed of the following members:

DemocratsChairman Edward Kennedy (MA)
Christopher Dodd (CT)
Tom Harkin (IA)
Barbara A. Mikulski (MD)
Jeff Bingaman (NM)Patty Murray (WA)
Jack Reed (RI)
Hillary Rodham Clinton(NY)
Barack Obama (IL)Bernard Sanders (I) (VT)
Sherrod Brown (OH)

Republicans
Michael B. Enzi (WY)
Judd Gregg (NH)
Lamar Alexander (TN)
Richard Burr (NC)
Johnny Isakson (GA)
Lisa Murkowski (AK)
Orrin G. Hatch (UT)
Pat Roberts (KS)Wayne Allard (CO)
Tom Coburn (OK)

You can get their staffers on the phone by calling the Capitol switchboard at 202 224 3121. You can submit email comments to the HELP Committee at help_comments@help.senate.gov.

The primary role of the Surgeon General is health education. A nominee who appears to reject the conclusions of the leading professional and scientific bodies--in order to embrace and promote dogmas derived from his personal religious beliefs--is a bad fit for the job, and should be rejected.

For the Democrats in the running for President, a "No" vote should be a litmus test for LGBT voters. Anyone who votes to confirm this bozo is no friend of the LGBT community.

Bush Surgeon General Nominee Runs Program to "Cure" Gays

The Daily Kos http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/6/1/11540/63349) is reporting that last week with little fanfare, Chimperator George W. Bush announced his intention to nominate James W. Holsinger, Jr., to serve as the 18th Surgeon General of the United States. While Holsinger previously ran the State of Kentucky's health care system and the University of Kentucky's medical center, there's more to the story: Holsinger is a Christianist who believes homosexuality can be "cured."

Bush said that as America's chief health educator, Holsinger "will be charged with providing the best scientific information available on how Americans can make smart choices that improve their health." Too bad he apparently doesn't trust the conclusions of the APA, AMA and a host of other medical and mental health experts when it comes to reparative therapy. Things do not bode well for America's health care with this guy in charge.

The Lexington Herald-Leader (http://www.kentucky.com/454/story/85442.html)has published this story on this nomination:

The nomination of University of Kentucky professor Dr. James W. Holsinger as U.S. surgeon general has come under fire from groups that fear his actions as a high-ranking official in the United Methodist Church indicate he is anti-gay.

Holsinger, 68, who holds UK's Charles T. Wethington Jr. Chair in the Health Sciences and is a former chancellor of UK's Chandler Medical Center and a former state Secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, is being challenged for his role in decisions by the United Methodist Judicial Council. That highest "court" rules on disputes involving church doctrine and policies in the nation's second-largest Protestant denomination.

In his role on the nine-member Judicial Council, Holsinger has opposed a decision to allow a practicing lesbian to be an associate pastor, and he supported a pastor who would not permit an openly gay man to join the church. In both instances, Holsinger's supporters say, he was correctly interpreting and applying church policy. (The church's bishops voted later to allow the gay man to become a member.)

Worse yet:

Holsinger and his wife, Barbara, were members of Lexington's First United Methodist Church, which asked them to set out and start a new congregation.

They founded Hope Springs Community Church in a warehouse at 1109 Versailles Road. Calhoun called it a socially diverse congregation with a "very vital recovery ministry." It serves the homeless and those with addictions to drugs, alcohol and sex; and it has a Spanish-language Hispanic congregation with its own pastor.

"It's built around compassion for people who struggle with a lot of issues," he said. Hope Springs also ministers to people who no longer wish to be gay or lesbian, Calhoun said. "We see that as an issue not of orientation but of lifestyle," he said. "We have people who seek to walk out of that lifestyle."

Why didn't Bush simply nominate a witch doctor? If there was any remaining doubt that Bush is an idiot tool of the Christianists, this nomination ought to remove it completely. How much longer will it be safe for gays to live in the USA?

Anti-Gay Censorship is Alive and Well in Norfolk

Musical Banned by Granby High School Due to Sensitive Material.

Norfolk's Granby High School has banned the presentation of a new musical, Pet Sounds, because it has a gay theme. Fortunately, the 40th Street Stage, a private forum, will host the presentation, which is described as follows:

The new musical, Pet Sounds, or The Life and Times of Nigel Zingraff and Petula Clark, directed by Bruce K. Hanson, is a charming coming of age story about a gay sixteen-year-old Nigel Zingraff, who, after being outed, can't decide to stay out or go back into the closet. Along with his two best friends, Kamea and Theo, Nigel is a student at the New York School of Performing Arts.

Pet Sounds portrays real-life high school students experiencing real-life situations. The show uses the elements of musical comedy to present a less than perfect view of the lives of student in America. Based on the songs made famous by Petula Clark, Pet Sounds has a score mostly written by Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent, which includes: "Downtown", "Don't Sleep in the Subway", "Who Am I?" and "My Love."

Ex-Gay for Pay Stephen Bennett Trashes White House

As I predicted in my May 29th post, the fundies are going absolutely crazy over the White House acknowledgment of Mary Cheney and Heather Poe as the parents of Vice President Dick “Darth Vader” Cheney’s new grandson. The Life Site News web site has a lengthy discussion of the commentary of professional ex-gay Stephen Bennett (See:http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/may/07053008.html). I hope they make Chimperator Bush's life Hell in a way only they can do. Here’s part of the story on Bennett’s diatribe:

Stephen Bennett, a pro-family advocate who left the homosexual lifestyle and now has a ministry to convince others of its dangers, expressed his concern about the White House’s decision to caption the photo this way. “What is extremely troubling is the official White House caption that appears underneath the photo on the official White House website,” said Bennett. Rather than merely stating that the child is the “child of their daughter Mary Cheney," the White House photo caption states, “... His parents are the Cheney's daughter Mary, and her partner, Heather Poe.”

“Since when have two homosexual women been able to naturally procreate?,” commented Bennett. “Fact is Mary Cheney, the Vice President's daughter - in one way or another - received a male's sperm. She is the biological mother, parent number one, and some man, somewhere out there, is Samuel David's real biological father, parent number two.”

Of course, Mr. Bennett is anything but an objective commentator. He has made a career out of being an alleged “former homosexual” and operates Stephen Bennett Ministries which promises that: “SBM’S FIRM UNWAVERING STAND: NO ONE IS BORN “GAY” AND COMPLETE CHANGE IS COMPLETELY POSSIBLE. THERE IS REAL HOPE – DON’T SETTLE FOR OR BELIEVE ANYTHING LESS.” If you don’t believe me, check out his “ministry’s” web site: http://www.sbministries.org/. It looks to be quite a business operation and seeks "donations" to support the "ministry." A few years back, Mr. Bennett initially threatened to sue me when I contacted him and challenged his use of bogus scientific research put out by Paul Cameron (Cameron’s organization has been identified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center). When I responded that I would welcome a a lawsuit and an opportunity to prove in court that the SBM claims were untrue, Bennett suddenly became conciliatory and claimed that he had no idea that the false information was on his website. Here’s his e-mail to me:

From :
Stephen Bennett
Sent :
Wednesday, October 8, 2003 4:51 PM
To :
"Michael Hamar"
Subject :
Re: Your Implied Legal Threats

Michael: I am aware of Cameron. News items are sent to us for publication on our news page and I personally was unaware this linked to Cameron. As a Christian, I am interested in promoting the truth - and you will never convince me otherwise - that homosexuals can change. Also, I come from an evangelistic standpoint, to share the gospel of Christ with all – homosexual or heterosexual. I speak the biblical truth on homosexuality - because God does. If the Bible never mentioned it, believe me, I wouldn't either. We base our ministry and beliefs on the Bible - and that will also never change. I sincerely appreciate you bringing this link to my attention and yes – that article/link will be removed.

Stephen Bennett

www.SBMinistries.org

Unfortunately, Bennett still associates himself with organizations that continue to cite Cameron's bogus research based on some of the recommended links on his web site.