More Monday Male Beauty

A Broken Health Care System

We have not talked about the nation's broken health care system lately, but a recent story out of Virginia again highlights a system that seems operated more for the benefit of insurance companies than for meeting the needs of sick and/or injured citizens. This story deals with an attempt by the Virginia General Assembly - hardly the world's most august legislative body when it comes to giving a damn about average Virginia residents - to require insurance coverage to include artificial limbs. But wait, according to the insurance lobby, such limbs are luxury items and not necessary treatment. Tell that to someone who has lost a leg or an arm. Rather than offend the powerful insurance lobby, the General Assembly appears headed to capitulation - artificial limbs will only be an offered option, assuming the policy purchaser has the where with all to ask about the coverage. Here are some highlights from PR Newswire:

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Virginia's insurance lobby continues to fight hard against passage of a bill that would require insurance companies to offer coverage for artificial limbs as an option to their policyholders. The insurance industry wants to continue treating prosthetic limbs as a medical luxury while amputees demand that the costs be treated the same as other major medical expenses. . . . On Thursday in Virginia's General Assembly, Senator Fred Quayle [from Hampton Roads], one of the bill's (SB 1116) supporters recently amended the proposed legislation's language, changing it from a "required benefit" to an "offered benefit."

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"For the past two years, amputees in Virginia have been fighting for passage of a bill that requires health insurers to cover the cost of prosthetic devices and components," says Charles Coulter, an amputee activist. "There's no reason that an amputation and the requisite follow-up care, including an artificial limb, aren't covered by health insurance like every other disease, such as cancer or a heart attack. By denying amputees coverage for artificial limbs, we're denying them the opportunity to return to the life they once knew, and forcing many to quit their jobs in order to qualify for Medicaid, which does cover prosthetic devices and care."

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"The reality today is that no one ever expects to lose a limb, and as a result, few people rarely think about how to pay for a prosthesis or even know what kind of coverage they have through their insurance policy, until they need a prosthesis," Coulter said. "To deny them coverage for an artificial limb and force them to a wheelchair denies them the opportunity to reclaim the life they once knew, and that's not right."

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As always, Virginia is for sale to the lobbyists and the rights and true needs of average citizens get thrown on the trash heap. And for those who do not know, to qualify for Medicaid coverage, one must have first more or less made them self indigent and liquidated all of their assets.

Catholic Priest Expected to Admit Sexual Abuse of Teen

If one foolishly believed the Vatican, one would think that all of the egregious cases of sexual abuse of children and minors occurred in the distant past - in the 1950's, 1960's or maybe early 1970's. However, like so much said by the Vatican, that story line is not true. Many cases of abuse occurred much more recently and like so many others were swept under the carpet by the hierarchy or deliberately covered up. A case in point is a story out of Charlotte, North Carolina, in which the abuse occurred in the LATE 1990's. Yes, less than a decade ago not some time in the distant past. In this sad tale, the abuse was perpetrated by Robert Yurgel (pictured on the right at left), a member of the order of Capuchin Franciscan Friars, who worked in several Charlotte parishes. I realize that at times I may sound like a broken record, but unless stories of the Catholic Church's moral bankruptcy continue to be highlighted, many people will falsely believe that the Church has come clean. Here are some highlights from the Charlotte Observer:

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The Rev. Robert Yurgel, the Catholic priest accused of molesting a 14-year-old boy in Charlotte a decade ago, is expected to plead guilty today in a deal with prosecutors that will send him to prison for more than seven years. . . . Yurgel, a member of the order of Capuchin Franciscan Friars, was indicted in 2008 and charged with eight counts of taking indecent liberties with a child and six counts of statutory sex offense.

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Yurgel's case is the first involving a Catholic priest in which the alleged sexual misconduct happened in Charlotte, though the 46-county Diocese of Charlotte had such cases in the 1980s and 1990s in Boone and Salisbury. Revelations of child sexual abuse by priests – and sometimes cover-ups by their bishops – have scandalized many Catholic dioceses across the country. The dioceses of Raleigh and Charleston, for example, have paid millions to settle victims' claims.

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The alleged victim, now 24, has sued Yurgel, the Catholic Diocese of Charlotte and the Capuchin Franciscan Friars. The lawsuit says Yurgel molested him and accuses the diocese and the Franciscan Friars of covering up the sexual abuse. The lawsuit says Yurgel molested the boy in the room behind the altar at St. Matthew, now the largest church in the Charlotte diocese, and in the rectory of Our Lady of Consolation Church in Charlotte. The lawsuit alleges that the abuse also occurred at the boy's home when his parents were away, as well as in the priest's car.

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The lawsuit also includes an e-mail the teenager allegedly sent Yurgel in October 1999. The teen professed his love for the priest in the message, which was mistakenly sent to a church employee as well, according to the lawsuit. Top church officials were informed about the e-mail, the lawsuit says. Yet instead of trying to determine if the teen had been molested or notifying law enforcement, the lawsuit alleges, Bishop William Curlin, who then headed the diocese, contacted the Franciscan Friars in New Jersey and arranged a “rush transfer.” Yurgel was reassigned to New Jersey the same month the lawsuit says the e-mail was sent.

Monday Male Beauty

Effort to Repeal Virginia Marriage Amendment Killedes

Recognizing the inherent discrimination written into the Virginia Constitution with the passage of the so-called "Marriage Amendment" in 2006, Del. David Englin (D-Alexandria), introduced H.J. 657, which would have repealed the Marshall-Newman Amendment which was championed and deceptively advertised by The Family Foundation, the Virginia affiliate of Daddy Dobson's Focus on the Family. Sadly, as too often happens in Virginia, the bill was killed in committee, thereby preventing any meaningful discussion of the measure. Because of the Marriage Amendment, Virginia remains one of the most anti-gay states in the country - something that does not help Northern Virginia be competitive in the recruitment of progressive businesses which can easily locate in Maryland which treats its citizens with more equality. I am particularly displeased that Delegate Ken Alexander - MY delegate - voted to kill the bill. I guess Alexander doesn't want my vote and the vote of the many gays in his district in the future. Here are some highlights from the Washington Blade:

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A legislative attempt to repeal the constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and civil unions in Virginia was defeated Monday when lawmakers voted to kill the measure.Lawmakers on the Privileges & Elections subcommittee in the Republican-controlled state House voted 7-1 to pass indefinitely on the initiative, meaning lawmakers would not take up the measure again this session.

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Those voting in favor of tabling the subcommittee measure were Del. William Janis (R-Henrico), Del. Lacey Putney (I-Bedford), Del. Frank Hargrove (R-Hanover), Del. John Cosgrove (R-Chesapeake), Del. Jeffrey Frederick (R-Prince William), Del. Clarence Phillips (D-Russell) and Del. Kenneth Alexander (D-Norfolk).

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Del. David Englin (D-Alexandria), the sponsor of the repeal, said “it’s unfortunate” the measure didn’t pass and noted legislators went against his proposal because “the majority on the subcommittee just really, fundamentally doesn’t believe in equal rights for all people based on sexual orientation.”“I think that, even in a state like Virginia where it’s an uphill battle, we keeping pushing and pushing because all people have a fundamental right to be treated with equal dignity,” he said. “I think eventually we’re going to see the day where the Marshall-Newman Amendment is repealed.” Englin said he “absolutely” intends to reintroduce the measure next session.

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Another measure sponsored by Englin, H.B. 1625, was defeated in a House General Laws subcommittee Jan. 21. The bill would have allowed local governments to pass ordinances regarding housing discrimination, including measures to bar discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

More Facts Revealed in Anti-Gay Mormon Church Effort

I think most of us are little surprised to learn that the Mormon Church had even more involvement in the push to pass Proposition 8 than previously revealed. A new disclosure filing by the Mormon Church begins to fill in some of the blanks and I suspect that if the California investigators really do their job, much more will be revealed in the future. Whether or not the involvement will be enough to support a possible revocation of the Mormon Church's tax exempt status will remain to be seen. As more facts come out, it says to me that the Mormon Church holds the concept of separation of church and state in disdain. Here are some highlights from the Sacramento Bee:

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The Mormon church has revealed in a campaign filing that the church spent nearly $190,000 to help pass Proposition 8, the November ballot measure that banned gay marriage in California. The disclosure comes amid an investigation by the state's campaign watchdog agency into whether the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints violated state laws by not fully disclosing its involvement during the campaign.

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While many church members had donated directly to the Yes on 8 campaign – some estimates of Mormon giving range as high as $20 million – the church itself had previously reported little direct campaign activity.
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[I]n the filing made Friday, the Mormon church reported thousands in travel expenses, such as airline tickets, hotel rooms and car rentals for the campaign. The church also reported $96,849.31 worth of "compensated staff time" – hours that church employees spent working to pass the same-sex marriage ban.

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"As I read this report, it seems to raise more questions than it answers," said Fred Karger, who filed the initial complaint against the church with the Fair Political Practices Commission in November. Karger, the founder of Californians Against Hate, a group that opposed the measure, said he believes the church was involved financially long before the first expenditure it listed in September. "I think there is still a lot of missing parts of the report because we know they've been active since June," Karger said.

Reflections on Same Sex Love

The enemies of gay marriage depict and define same sex relationships solely in turns of physical sex acts. They utterly - and I believe intentionally - ignore and disregard the emotional and psychological elements of a committed gay relationships which ultimately involve the same sort of soul to soul bonding that occurs in a committed heterosexual relationship. Our enemies' goal is to depict us as perverts and in fact argue somehow that we less than human so that they can arouse others to hate us. Yes, their words about us are lies - very pernicious lies - aimed at hurting and denigrating.

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It is important that we always remind ourselves that these nasty words are lies. Better yet, we need to show the world that they are lies. Yesterday the boyfriend and I attended two anniversary gatherings for gay couples that clearly demonstrated the untruths disseminated by our enemies. One couple was celebrating 25 years together and the other was celebrating 28 years together, obviously showing the lie of claims by homophobes that gay relationships are unstable and cannot last.

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Both gatherings were moving, but particularly the first where the couple has faced serious challenges and health issues, yet have remained committed and loving towards each other - a number of us found ourselves teary eyed in fact. Interestingly, at this same affair they had an Episcopal priest who had known the couple for many years and said a few words. Among her remarks, she recited a folktale that involves one's soul being split at birth and the other one half being placed in the person that will make one whole. It was an apt description of this couple and to me illustrates the strength of true love and commitment that occurs when "your other half" is found. Whether that other half happens to be in another of the same sex truly should not matter. True love is true love - no matter what our detractors say about us.

Sunday Male Beauty

Medieval Papacy Continues

The Nazi Pope is continuing his drive to take the Roman Catholic Church intellectually back to the Middle Ages, both in terms of its vitriolic anti-semitism and rejection of modern knowledge. A case in point is the elevation of an Austrian pastor who has been quoted as calling Hurricane Katrina God's punishment for sin in New Orleans is being promoted to the rank of biship. More to the point, Rev. Gerhard Wagner said that he was convinced that the death and destruction of Hurricane Katrina earlier that year was "divine retribution" for New Orleans' tolerance of homosexuals and laid-back sexual attitudes. Blame the homos seems to be about all the intellectual horsepower left in the Vatican even though the place is crawling with bitter old self-hating queens in dresses. It is really pathetic. Here are some highlights from the Times-Picayune:

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An Austrian pastor who has been quoted as calling Hurricane Katrina God's punishment for sin in New Orleans is being promoted to the rank of bishop. The Vatican announced Saturday that Pope Benedict XVI has tapped the Rev. Gerhard Wagner, 54, to be auxiliary bishop in Linz, Austria. It made no mention of the reported remarks about Hurricane Katrina.

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In 2005, Wagner was quoted in a parish newsletter as saying that he was convinced that the death and destruction of Hurricane Katrina earlier that year was "divine retribution" for New Orleans' tolerance of homosexuals and laid-back sexual attitudes.

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Kath.Net, a Catholic news agency in Austria, released in 2005 excerpts of what it said were comments Wagner made in a parish newsletter in Linz about Katrina. It said the newsletter quoted Wagner as saying that Katrina destroyed not only nightclubs and brothels in New Orleans, but also abortion clinics. "The conditions of immorality in this city are indescribable," Wagner was quoted as saying.

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What about the immorality of bishops and cardinals who enabled and/or covered up the sexual abuse of children and youths? Oh, I forgot. That means nothing to the Nazi Pope and those who slavishly listen to his drivel.

Herbert Hoover Lives

Once again, Frank Rich has a great column in today's New York Times that examines just how out of touch with reality the Republican Party has become. Indeed, the Party seems to be reading the play book used by the GOP as the country and world slid into the Great Depression. I know that the Christianists base of the Party has a disdain for accurate history, but one would think that there would be someone not drinking the Kool-Aid. Despite the government efforts made to date, banks which have received billions in taxpayer rescue funds are still sitting on funds and not making the loans needed for the economy to function. And the GOP seems utterly blind to what is happening. Here are some column highlights:

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HERE’S a bottom line to keep you up at night: The economy is falling faster than Washington can get moving. President Obama says his stimulus plan will save or create four million jobs in two years. In the last four months of 2008 alone, employment fell by 1.9 million. Do the math.

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The abyss is widening. Of the 30 companies in the Dow Jones industrial index, 22 have announced job cuts since October. Unemployment is up in all 50 states, with layoffs at both high-tech companies (Microsoft) and low (Caterpillar). The December job loss in retailing is the worst since at least 1939. The new-home sales rate has fallen to its all-time low since record-keeping began in 1963.

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The crisis is at least as grave as the one that confronted us — and, for a time, united us — after 9/11. Which is why the antics among Republicans on Capitol Hill seem so surreal. These are the same politicians who only yesterday smeared the patriotism of any dissenters from Bush’s “war on terror.” Where is their own patriotism now that economic terror is inflicting far more harm on their constituents than Saddam Hussein’s nonexistent W.M.D.?

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you might think that a loyal opposition would want to pitch in and play a serious role at a time of national peril. Not by singing “Kumbaya” but by collaborating on possible solutions and advancing a policy debate that many Americans’ lives depend on. . . . The current G.O.P. acts as if it — and we — have all the time in the world. It kept hoping in vain that the fast-waning Blago sideshow would somehow impale Obama or Rahm Emanuel. It has come perilously close to wishing aloud that a terrorist attack will materialize to discredit Obama’s reversals of Bush policy on torture, military tribunals and Gitmo. The party’s sole consistent ambition is to play petty politics to gum up the works.

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The more disturbing problem is that the party has zero leaders and zero ideas. It is as AWOL in this disaster as the Bush administration was during Katrina. If the country wasn’t suffering, the Republicans’ behavior would be a laugh riot.

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The Republicans do have one idea, of course, but it’s hardly fresh: more and bigger tax cuts, particularly for business and the well-off. That’s the sum of their “alternative” stimulus plan. . . . We also now know conclusively that the larger Bush tax cuts, besides running up record deficits and exacerbating income inequality, were also at best a placebo on our road to ruin. In a January survey of economists, including former McCain advisers like Douglas Holtz-Eakin and Mark Zandi, The Washington Post determined that the job growth the Bush administration kept bragging about (“52 straight months!”) was a mirage inflated by the housing bubble.

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The Republicans don’t acknowledge the need for this transformation, or debate it in good conscience, preferring instead to hyperventilate over the contraceptives in a small family-planning program since removed from the stimulus bill. All it takes is the specter of condoms for the party of Vitter, Foley and Craig to go gaga. The Republicans’ other preoccupation remains Rush Limbaugh, who is by default becoming their de facto leader. While most Americans are fearing fear itself, G.O.P. politicians are tripping over themselves in morbid terror of Rush.

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Obama no doubt finds Limbaugh’s grandiosity more amusing than frightening, but G.O.P. politicians are shaking like Jell-O. . . . . He [Limbaugh] has hijacked what’s left of the Republican Party; the Obama honeymoon remains intact. The nightmare is that we have so irrelevant, clownish and childish an opposition party at a moment when America is in an all-hands-on-deck emergency that’s as trying as war. To paraphrase a dictum that has been variously attributed to two of our most storied leaders in times of great challenge, Thomas Paine and George Patton, the Republicans should either lead, follow or get out of the grown-ups’ way.