What Respect , If Any, Is Due Donald Trump?

As readers of this blog no doubt have gathered, I have no respect for Donald Trump and I refuse to attach the word "president" to his name and I will not surrender to the bullshit argument that one should show him respect because of the office he holds.  Trump ha shown only disrespect for his office and has brought a level of crassness, vulgarity and corruption to the White House never seen before.   Richard Nixon looks almost noble in comparison and George W. Bush comes across as thoughtful and knowledgeable in contrast.  Trump has lowered the dignity not only of his office but of the nation as a whole.  Just travel abroad and see how many times you need to explain that you did not support the man to moral and decent people who still cannot believe America lowered itself by allowing such a foul person in the White House.  A column in the Washington Post lays out an argument as to why showing no respect to Trump is the decent thing to do.  Here are excerpts:

What respect — if any — is due President Trump?

I ask that because, ever since his State of the Union speech, I’ve been wondering if congressional Democrats were out of line when dozens of them refused to stand for him as he entered the chamber. My Post colleague, the enviably talented Dana Milbank, took the Democrats to task for their behavior. He said the office of the presidency, if not the man, deserves our respect.

I respectfully disagree. In the first place, I am unable to separate the man from the office. Trump certainly hasn’t. He has shown no respect for the presidency, not a nod of homage to the aura of his predecessors, some of whom he must have heard about. He has used foul language in describing certain emerging nations, wakes in the morning engorged with brattiness and tweets denunciations of almost anyone. In an instant abdication of all dignity, Trump began his presidency with a squalid visit to CIA headquarters, where he stood before a memorial for the fallen ranting about the size of his inaugural’s crowd. It was an epic act of civic sacrilege. Trump is frequently dismissive of his own aides. This, though, is their own affair. They are men and women who seemingly lack pride or, in an act of self-abnegation not seen since Henry II submitted to flagellation for the murder of Thomas Becket, choose to suffer for their own foolish actions. They hitched their wagons to a star, but he was really a one-man black hole who swallows truth. In assessing what respect Trump is owed, it is not the man I consider but his victims. All presidents have victims, of course. The lives of countless people, both here and abroad, were ruined or ended by George W. Bush’s Iraq War. The issue with Trump, however, is not over policy. It is about empathy. Bush himself was wrong about so much, but he is a courteous man who treated everyone with dignity. That is not the case with Trump.  The politicians, however, can take care of themselves. It is Trump’s other victims that I have in mind when I consider if the man deserves any show of respect. Should I stand for a president who has called Mexican immigrants criminals? If I do, does it show respect for some abstraction called the office of the president or a lack of respect for the actuality of the Mexican people?

Similarly, do we ignore how Trump mocked the physical disability of a New York Times reporter or attacked Gold Star parents Khizr and Ghazala Khan? What about the Charlottesville protesters who Trump equated to neo-Nazis? I envision all these people feeling abandoned when Trump is cheered.
 [H]is aides are stalked by their former selves.  Whenever they accompany Trump anywhere, they should feel the contempt they have diligently earned by putting themselves at the service of a man who will sooner or later reward their stupidity with disdain. These are people who, in many cases, knew Trump was hugely unsuited for the presidency but let their demented hatred of Hillary Clinton and their personal greed blind them to the consequences. When they accompany Trump, they should feel the contempt Trump himself feels for people he’s bought. They are bimbos . . . .

There will be a presidency after Trump. With any luck, the next president will restore the dignity of the office, not merely with appropriate ceremony, but by acknowledging the honor and obligation of precedence. But until that happens, Trump gives us no choice. At the next state of the union speech, I’d like to see even more members rise to the occasion — by keeping their seats.

I would go further than the author and urge members of Congress to refuse to attend.   A half empty audience would be most appropriate.  Plus, it would drive Der Trumpenführer nuts. 

Ageism in the LGBT Community

At the recent Equality Virginia Commonwealth Dinner, there were a good number of younger members of the LGBT community. As an honoree, I found them to be universally respectful and pleasant. Since the event tends to draw those of a more activist bent, I suspect many were simply more inclined to be respectful of older activists.  The same cannot be said for young gays in clubs and some social settings.  Indeed, older members of the community are often greeted with nastiness and almost a form of condescension aimed at those of us no longer in our 20's or early 30's - young and beautiful, if you will.  By their standards, when I came out and first engaged with the LGBT community shortly after my 50th birthday, I was already ready for the grave and certainly not an object for romantic interest.  Since then, I feel I have made contributions to the LGBT community and have tried to make a different.  Not to sound peevish, many of the young club boys cannot say the same.  Some even seem oblivious to the threats facing our community and the need for activism and more than shallowness.  Attitude magazine looks at a new movie "Prime Time" that looks at the vibrancy of gays of a certain age who likely would never get a second glance from many of today's gay youth.  Here are excerpts:

Most of my film works up till now have been set among groups of older people, primarily older men – railway enthusiasts, model car racers, hobbyists seeking friendships and affinities in local clubs or like-minded communities, or, in the case of one film, retired people out taking early-morning exercise. I am drawn to the unseen rituals that characterise these various social interactions, and the unspoken codes and signs that bind individuals to these groups. But I have always also been struck by the energy and vitality and self-confidence of the people I have met, and who I have featured in my films. While I like to step back, with my camera, and observe the quirks of human behaviour, I also want to highlight and celebrate that energy and vitality and self-confidence – especially at a time when those qualities are increasingly associated with (and commodified in) a cult of youth.

If this exaggerated focus on youth is an inescapable part of mainstream culture, it is, even more, the case perhaps on the gay scene. For a couple of years now, I have been following and befriending an American network of older gay men, known as ‘Prime Timers’. It’s a largely Stateside phenomenon to date, in which members of the community get together on a regular basis to go on group excursions together. One of these, a Caribbean cruise, is the subject of my latest film, ‘Prime Time’.

While making the film, once again I found myself in the company of people who had time on their hands, but who also, in their latter years, clearly exhibited a real zest for life. As a younger gay man, alert to the pressures exerted by a physical ideal that people are meant to find desirable or aspire to possess, I wanted to show a different aspect by portraying the marks and contours of older male bodies in a sensual, affirmative way. I was in the presence of people who were totally comfortable in their own skin, and I wanted to convey that sense of self-possession and ease, and its attractiveness to me.

The film got me thinking more generally about the question of how and when we can properly say we are in the prime of our lives. You can be young and fit, buff and gym-toned, absolutely at your physical peak, but do your best years still lie in front of you, when your physical powers may be starting to diminish, but the wider experience you have accumulated more than compensates? I reflected on this through the mirror of the cruise ship itself: a little utopia floating on the ocean, in which time seems to both fill out, and stand still.

Although ‘Prime Time’ can be summed up in a snappy one-liner – ‘it’s a film about cruising on a cruise ship.’ – it’s also my attempt to grapple with something more universal, even existential: how we both measure and deny the passing of time. 

Let me say it first.  Yes, I confess that I typically post "male beauty" photos of young guys.  There are several reasons, the first being that it is very hard to find quality sexy, racy photos of mature/older guys.  For finding photos, the choices tend to be x-rated "daddy" porn sites that are generally too risque for Blogger if one wants to remain a non-mature website (and most of the men are beefy, football player types - a body type that frankly does nothing for me) or hair style/color product models. Of course, this scarcity of older male models in and of itself underscores the larger problem of America's cult of youth.  

Safe Schools Act Reintroduced in U. S. Senate With GOP Sponsor

The Safe Schools Improvement Act has been reintroduced in the United States Senate by Senator Bob Casey (D-PA)and lead cosponsor Senator. Mark Kirk (R-IL) - along with 15 other cosponsors. This is the first time that a Senate bill specifically addressing bullying and harassment due to actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity has been introduced with bipartisan support. I applaud Senator Kirk and members of the GOP supporting the bill's introduction. While legislation of this type should be a non-issue to sentient, rational individuals, the forces of the Christianist dark side of the Force, if you will, consistently oppose any legislation that might impede the ability of Christo-fascists to make life a living Hell for LGBT Teens. It's certainly not something that I believe Christ would support, but its indicative of the foul and perverse poison Christianity has become under the harlots of the professional Christian set and hate groups such as Family Research Council and the American Family Association. Here are highlights from the Windy City Times:
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The Safe Schools Improvement Act, which is endorsed by the over 80 members of the GLSEN-led National Safe Schools Partnership, would require schools to implement comprehensive anti-bullying policies that address bullying and harassment and ensure the safety and well-being of all their students. In the last Congress, the Senate and House versions finished the Congress with, respectively, 17 and 131 bipartisan cosponsors. A bipartisan House bill is also expected to be introduced in the coming weeks by Rep. Linda Sanchez.
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"Anti-LGBT harassment hurts the children of both Democrats and Republicans, as do all of the forms of bullying and harassment addressed by this important bill," GLSEN Executive Director Eliza Byard said. "Senators Casey and Kirk show we all share a common vision of schools that keep students safe and focused on learning.
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Said Sen. Casey: "I am pleased to introduce the Safe Schools Improvement Act to help ensure that every child receives a quality education that builds self-confidence. This bill is a crucial step towards ensuring that no child is so afraid to go to school that he or she stays home for fear of bullying."
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Nearly two-thirds of middle and high school students (65%) said they had been bullied in school in the past year, according to From Teasing to Torment: School Climate in America, a 2005 report from GLSEN and Harris Interactive that surveyed more than 3,000 students. Students at schools with a comprehensive anti-bullying policy similar to the one required by the Safe Schools Improvement Act were less likely than other students to report a serious harassment problem at their school (33% vs. 44%).
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LGBT students experience bullying and harassment at an even more alarming rate. Nearly 9 out of 10 LGBT students (84.6%) said they've been harassed in the past year because of their sexual orientation and 63.7% because of their gender expression.
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"Every child has a right to a safe place to learn," said NEA President Dennis Van Roekel. "NEA strongly supports the Safe Schools Improvement Act and ridding schools of bullying and harassment. Our children are America's greatest resource. And as educators, we want nothing more than to create a climate of civility and respect for all students, including LGBT students, in every public school."

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It would be wonderful if the bill passes both houses of Congress, but for that to happen politicians will need to stop prostituting themselves to Christianist extremists and put the welfare of children and youths first. Sadly, that may be expecting too much from today's GOP.

Athlete Ally Launced by Wrestling Star Hudson Taylor

As numerous stories have told, the world of athletics remains a world fraught with homophobia where sports stars feel pressured to remain closeted for fear of the negative consequences on their careers. It's a sick situation that holds true in many professions, especially in red states where attorneys, accountants, doctors and many others remain in the closet to avoid firing and social ostracism. But these professions to not have the public adulation so often reserved for sports heroes. Now, champion collegiate wrestler, and now coach at Columbia University, Hudson Taylor (pictured at right) is trying to end this situation. Although straight himself, Taylor has launched Athlete Ally which has a goal of ending homophobia in sports. Its a worthy goal not only for those already in the sports world but even more so that LGBT youth can someday see gays prominently represented in that world and lending role models to younger generations. Here's how Athlete Ally describes itself:
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ATHLETEALLY.COM was created by HUDSON TAYLOR as a resource to encourage athletes, coaches, parents, fans and other members of the sports community to respect all individuals involved in sports, regardless of perceived or actual sexual-orientation or gender identity or expression.
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The site goes on to ask that people sign a pledge to end homophobia in sports so that competitors can be valued for the skill and ability and not merely on the basis of sexual orientation. Here's the motivation behind the pledge:

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ATHLETE ALLY PLEDGE: “I created the Pledge so that we, as an athletic community, can take proactive steps to end homophobia in sports. When we inspire entire teams and athletic departments to commit to a new standard of athletic integrity, we will change the environment in locker rooms and on playing fields. Adding your name to the growing list of supporters is the first step to make a difference.”
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A resounding "Thank You" goes out to Hudson Taylor.

LGBT Standing United

De Sube left a very kind comment on yesterday's post about the Equality Virginia conference on Transgender issues yesterday. She understates her own contribution and deserves a huge "thank you" for all the work and coordination that she put into the event. I think the thing that I gained the most from the conference - I was thinking about it while mowing the grass earlier today - was a renewed appreciation that all of us in the LGBT community share something in common: we are all God's sons and daughters and each of us shares in a common humanity that should take precedence over everything else.

Would that the hate merchants of the Christian Right would ever bother to take the time and get to know us and talk with us. I suspect that if the Christianists ever did - something that will sadly I doubt will ever happen - they would find out that we are all in essence alike. True, how we perceive ourselves, who we fall in love with, how we pesent ourselves varies greatly. However, beneath the surface we are the same. Moreover, we all deserve respect and the chance to find happiness without others denigrating us and endeavoring to make us something less than fully human.