Brody's Notes & Scribbles

In Brief

2012-01-30T21:54:00.003-05:00

Staff Reports

Maryland Governor Calls For Compassion & Justice In Debate Over Same-sex Marriage

MD. Governor Martin O’Malley

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND -- Maryland's Democratic Governor Martin O’Malley- whose made it clear that same-sex marriage legislation is a high priority for his administration- underscored a need for rational thinking and polite public discourse over the issue in a speech at the 24th National Conference on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Equality held in Baltimore over the weekend, saying that there is a need for using compassionate rhetoric.

O'Malley said [...] "it’s important not to let passionate views prompt people to use “words of hurt, rather than words of healing,” adding, “Laws matter, but words also matter, and if compassion and understanding and justice are what we want, then we must choose laws and we must choose words of compassion, understanding and of justice.”

The Governor acknowledged that his call for understanding and justice when discussing the issue of same-sex marriage was in fact touched off by remarks made by his wife, First Lady Katie O'Malley, during her speech at the open of the conference last Thursday. Mrs. O’Malley, a sitting Baltimore District Court judge, told attendees “there were some cowards that prevented it from passing” referring to last year’s efforts in the Maryland State House to legalise same-sex marriage which failed. The bill had passed the state Senate last year, but stalled in the House of Delegates.

Judge O'Malley issued a statement Friday noting that she regretted the comment, although some lawmakers in Annapolis were unimpressed with her apology.

For his part the governor in speaking to reporters after his speech, confirmed that his remarks were made with his wife’s speech in mind:

“I love my wife very, very much, and for the last 20 years she has done the very difficult job of balancing a host of responsibilities and doing it very, very well, and none of us speak perfectly, and sometimes we make mistakes, and she’s had the humility and the strength to apologize for the mistake that she made in her choice of words,” O’Malley said. The governor also said he thinks his wife feels “very badly” about the comment.

The governor has recrafted the language of the legislation to more carefully address concerns about religious freedom. O'Malley told reporters he believes momentum is growing for the legislation.

“I think there is a much broader coalition in support this year,” O’Malley said. “I think as we progress, more and more people appreciate that the protection of individual rights and the protection of religious freedom are intertwined, and they are part of the effort that all of us share to reflect in our laws a more perfect union.”

The National Organisation for Marriage and a coalition of churches including Bishop Harry Jackson who has led efforts to oppose same-sex marriage in neighboring Washington D. C. held a rally opposing same sex marriage legislation Monday in Annapolis. Hearings on the bill are set be held Tuesday.

Washington State House Committee Votes To Advance Same Sex Marriage Proposal

OLYMPIA, WASHINGTON -- The Washington State House Judiciary Committee approved its version of a bill to legalise same sex marriage on a party line vote Monday, with seven Democrats voting for, and six Republicans voting against. The state's Senate is expected to vote on its companion bill within days. Three GOP amendments were rejected, including one that would have added private businesses and individuals, such as bakers and photographers, to the religious exemption in the measure that doesn’t require religious organizations or churches to perform marriages, and doesn’t subject them to penalties if they don’t marry gay or lesbian couples.

Representative Jay Rodne (R-Snoqualmie), called the bill “an act of raw political power to modify the definition of marriage,” adding, “There has been no compelling justification to abandon traditional marriage.” Opponents of same sex marriage have already promised a referendum battle at the ballot if the Legislature passes the bill and it’s signed into law.

Senator Ed Murray, a Seattle Democrat who is sponsoring one of the bills, said Monday that he expects a floor vote on same sex marriage in the Senate on Wednesday. A Senate committee voted to advance Murray’s bill Friday. Before last week, it wasn’t certain the Senate would have the support to pass the measure, due to a handful of undecided Democrats. But last Monday, after the first public hearing on the issue, a previously undecided Democratic senator, Mary Margaret Haugen, said she would vote in support of the measure, all but ensuring its passage.

Both legislative efforts have the backing of several prominent locally based national businesses, including Microsoft, Nike and Starbucks. If a marriage bill is passed during this legislative session, gay and lesbian couples will be able to be wed starting in June unless opponents follow through on their threat to file a referendum to challenge it. A referendum cannot be filed until after the bill is passed by the Legislature and signed into law by Gregoire. Opponents then must turn in 120,577 signatures by June 6.

Washington has had a domestic partnership law since 2007 and an “everything but marriage” expansion of the domestic partnership law since 2009.

Brody's Notes... Why Voting on Rights is a Lousy Idea

2012-01-30T20:05:00.000-05:00

By Matt Baume | WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA -- Maine, Washington, and Maryland are closer than ever to marriage equality, but the Governor of New Jersey thinks that civil rights should be put to a popular vote -- whether it's marriage today, or school desegregation in the 50s.

Des DownUnder On Sundays

2012-01-29T23:52:00.000-05:00

By Desmond Rutherford | ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA -- SEX: Goodness Or Madness?

What is it that makes prudes so mad about sex, especially about people enjoying sex? Why do so many think they have the right to define the limits of other people's consensual sexual activities?

To even begin to find an answer to the question of why many get so involved in the sex lives of others, we have to admit, for the sake of this discussion, that sex is a primary instinct of all living things that require the female to be fertilised by a donation from the male. See how easy sex education is?

The problem is, that the moment religious and conservative people hear the word 'donation', they think they must give some money to someone. They have been conditioned to respond in this way from the moment they could walk and talk, but it's really a result of their ancestors passing along their confusion about donations for sex with the fertilising donation itself, from generation to generation. Even a prostitute is not expecting or wanting to be fertilised. Indeed, they generally take measures to keep the deposit from activating, unless of course they are being paid to carry luggage, like a rent boy sometimes is.

To get back to the subject in hand, which is usually enjoyable, no matter whose hand it is, it is important to realise that the demarcation between sex for reproduction, and sex for pleasure is arbitrarily being decided by differing cultures. Some societies are very restrictive in trying to keep sex as an indulgence reserved only for people of opposite gender, after they have taken vows of servitude to each other in front of their community, during a ceremonial service conducted by that community's collector of religious financial donations. Those donations have no relationship to the fertility donations that occur between the blessed couple, or in one of them, when they manage to get that far, sometime after the service.

All the preceding donations are very different to the ones made to a prostitute, who is usually happy with a lesser amount, but then their overheads are smaller, unless the donor has been saving up for awhile. In addition, it must be said that the results of the prostitute's services are much more tangible, down to earth, and the organ playing is often superb. It is, however, in these types of cultures, something of a paradox that those who attend the services of a prostitute then feel the necessity to go back to the house of the religious money collectors to confess that they enjoyed the service supplied by the prostitute. It's a continuous conundrum to consider that the only way a celibate celebrant cleric could conceivably commiserate with such confession is to consult the collection of constricting conceptions in a current copy of an ancient book completely out of context with the rights of human freedom to make donations.

The collectives of accusatory Christian Cults, with curious Biblical quotes, constantly engender the homosexual gender issue as being an agenda which curses the course and cause of not only Christian culture, but the future of Western civilisation. Where do they get this idea? Is it because their sects deny sex as the expression of our secular love for each other that they are frightened of gender freedom and marriage equality? Or is it that they never realise, are never willing to admit, that we humans are always becoming who we can be?

The sects seem unable to heed our need to love beyond that one kind of love in which we donate only a small physical part of ourselves so that life may be conceived. They obsess only over the physical act of sex, missing the fact that when we humans are motivated by love we can create much more than just the physical.

Love is a creative force that can be viewed from a Socratic path by which we bring our potential into being, and help others with their own efforts. From the love of the good that we find, we learn to love the same in others, and we learn to love others even when they are different. We find we can love the many, same or different; the love of goodness in all life, and then beholding with one whom, so it seems in our minds, we create love, and share it, forever.

Love is not a god wanting us to praise it, fear it or be ashamed of it, as the apocalyptic cults would have us believe. For those cults, the nativity of love is a negativity of life. Babies are born to live, but their burgeoning awareness of how to create love can be repressed. They can be taught to hate life; to try stop others from creating love. Teaching a child, from birth, to fear and hate love is truly evil.

Despite life in all its beauty surrounding them, those cults crucify love, in some bizarre belief that denying beauty in this life brings happiness after death. This is their madness, their insanity, their inanity which drives their fear and hatred of life; their fixation with death. In their confused madness they deny that love is a goodness to be found in life. Love is beyond their feeble notion of sex being nothing more than animal lust. Confusing sex and love, they absurdly condemn sex as a necessary sinful release, to be tolerated only for procreation in wedlock. They have no conception that love creates more than children; love can create goodness, because its beauty is what we can be aware of, in this reality we call life.

Love is the only sane and satisfying reason for life, but the repressive religious cults would have us believe we cannot become, or be, the goodness which is the beauty of life itself. Goodness is available to us all, not because of whom we love, but because love is something we can make. It is our birthright to be free to make that love with each other regardless of gender. Our awareness, and appreciation of the beauty, the goodness in life, is the motivation to create families and express ourselves in art, and solve the problems of our lives, and to just laugh and play with the cosmos. It is our living human right to be able to do them joyously, amidst all of life's pain and sorrows and tribulations, or subject to the mad beliefs of those cultists.

And despite the cultists' inane rantings, we celebrate the discovery of life's beauty and goodness, by donating, by dedicating ourselves to finding happiness; by consenting to create love with each other.

If, like some, you think this is too lofty a thought, too romantic an attitude, to believe in the beauty of the human experience of life, then ask yourself if the alternative is preferable; misery under the slavery and threats of the repressive religious cults and their primitive beliefs.

Sex, sanity, life, love, beauty, truth and goodness, or the madness of those repressive cults. It really isn't a difficult decision, is it?

Brody's Notes... NJ Senate Advances Same-Sex Marriage While Governor Christie Confirms He'll Veto & Asks For Ballot Measure

2012-01-24T19:25:00.006-05:00

New Jersey Republican Governor Chris Christie

By Brody Levesque | TRENTON, NEW JERSEY -- The New Jersey State Senate Judiciary Committee, in a party-line 8-4 vote Tuesday, advanced a bill that would allow same-sex marriage to be legal in the state. After three hours of testimony which at times led to impassioned arguments, dozens of supporters and opponents of the bill delivered three-minute remarks. Earlier this month, Democrats introduced the bill, S1, the first in the new legislative session to symbolize their commitment to its passage and importance.

In today's hearing, same-sex marriage equality advocates focused on the state's current civil unions law, which has led to legal inadequacies particularly in areas pertaining to survivor benefits, hospital visitation, or child custody issues. During his testimony, Daniel Weiss, who is currently a lead plaintiff in a marriage equality lawsuit filed in New Jersey Superior Court last June, told lawmakers that when he was summoned to a hospital in New York City after his spouse John Grant was hit by a car and sustained life-threatening injuries, Weiss said the brain surgeon asked him; “What is a civil union?"

Opponents' arguments included claims that same-sex marriage redefines the traditional centuries old meaning of marriage and numerous quotes from the Bible condemning homosexuality. There were also statements that even with broad religious exemptions written into the proposed law- protecting religious organisations the rights to not to solemnize same-sex weddings or provide facilities for their celebration- the bill would still threaten religious freedom.

New Jersey Republican Governor Chris Christie holding a town-hall meeting in Bridgewater, told the audience that an issue of such magnitude should be decided by residents:

"Let's make sure that political maneuvering is not what judges this and let's make sure this is not someone just trying to have fun and create a campaign issue," the Governor said. "The institution of marriage if too serious to be treated like a political football."

The Governor is advocating for ballot measure saying that a proposed constitutional amendment should be drafted and put to a voter's referendum, a position Christie held when he campaigned for office in 2009.

"I think this is not an issue that should rest solely in my hands, or the hands of the Senate President or the Speaker or the other 118 members of the Legislature," he said. "Let's let the people of New Jersey decide what is right for the state."

Senate President Stephen Sweeney, one of the measure's Democratic sponsors, said "Civil rights is not to be placed on the ballot." Sweeney noted that civil rights issues like the right to marry are guaranteed under the state's constitution and do not require a public vote. "Civil rights is not to be placed on the ballot. It’s to be voted on by the people in this house." Sweeney's remarks came when the hearing was interrupted to share the governor's announcement.

Senator Ray Lezniak, another sponsor of the bill, directly addressed the Governor's remarks just prior to the committee voting to advance the bill. Lesniak also said same-sex marriage is a right guaranteed by the Constitution. "It's up to us to implement it as legislators. It's not like sports betting," he said. "It's a civil right that’s guaranteed in the constitution."

A spokesman for Christie told LGBTQNation Tuesday afternoon that the Governor has not changed his stance on same-sex marriage. As far as the governor is concerned the aide said, he believes in traditional marriage.

Senator Sweeney stated that enough votes exist to pass the bill in the Senate in a floor vote as tentatively scheduled to happen on February 13. However, Democratic legislative leaders in both houses are still working with their GOP counterparts to muster the two-thirds majorities required to override the Governor's promised veto. In the Senate, a sole Republican senator publicly supports the bill, and the veto threat from Christie holds the potential to make other members of the GOP caucus wary about crossing the governor.

In Brief

2012-01-23T21:15:00.003-05:00

Staff Reports

Maryland Governor To Deliver On Marriage Vow Made Last Summer

ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND -- Maryland's Democratic Governor Martin O'Malley is set to introduce a marriage equality bill. The Governor is hosting a breakfast gathering of Maryland same-sex couples gathering at his official residence, Government House afterwards announcing his draft legislation at a news conference.

A senior aide said that the Governor will be joined by legislators, LGBTQ friendly clergy and some of the state's labor leaders who are supportive of the same-sex marriage bill. A same-sex marriage bill cleared the Senate last year but fell short in the House of Delegates. In an effort to garner attract more support, the bill will include more explicit protections for religious organizations who have been vocal in their opposition to same-sex marriages.

Last July, the Governor who is a devout Catholic, whose earlier position was in favour of Civil Unions instead of marriage said:

“At the end of the day, I think all of us need to look at this issue from the eyes of children of gay, committed couples and ask ourselves how one family could be protected less in the eyes of the law than another family,” O’Malley said, flanked by lawmakers who support the legislation. “I don’t think that’s an injustice that can be allowed to stand.”

At that same press conference, he vowed that he would bring a same-sex marriage bill to the Maryland Legislature when it reconvened in January 2012.

Special: LGBTQ Community Ally Representative Gabrielle Giffords Will Resign Her Seat Wednesday

2012-01-22T17:08:00.002-05:00

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords

By Brody Levesque | HOUSTON, TEXAS -- Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who represents Arizona's 8th Congressional District which encompasses Pima County and the area in and around the city of Tuscon, Arizona, announced today in a video taped YouTube message to her constituents and supporters that she will resign from Congress this week.

Giffords, popularly known as 'Gabby, cited her continuing efforts toward recovery from wounds she received in the assassination attempt last January 8th, which resulted in Giffords suffering a life altering head wound, as primary reason for stepping down from her seat.

The congresswoman has astonished family, friends, and her doctors with her remarkable recovery since the shooting which left six others dead, including a sitting federal Judge.

"I have more work to do on my recovery so to do what is best for Arizona I will step down this week," she said in a video message posted to YouTube. "I will return and we will work together for Arizona and this great country."

A statement posted on her Congressional website stated that Giffords will attend Tuesday night's presidential State of the Union address as one of her final acts as a member of the Congress before submitting her resignation to House Speaker John Boehner the next day, Wednesday. The statement also says Giffords plans to "finish" the Congress on your Corner event where the shooting happened before she leaves office.

MSNBC reported:

Prior to that shooting, she had been considered a rising Democratic star, and had been considering a bid for Senate this fall. During the course of her recovery, she has been absent from Capitol Hill except for a surprise return to vote in August on an agreement to raise the nation's debt ceiling.
“I salute Congresswoman Giffords for her service, and for the courage and perseverance she has shown in the face of tragedy. She will be missed,” House Speaker John Boehner said in a statement.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi reacted to the announcement in a statement saying Giffords "has been a true bright star - a dynamic and creative public servant. Gabby's message of bipartisanship and civility is one that all in Washington and the nation should honor and emulate." Pelosi continued, "I join all my colleagues in Congress in thanking Gabby for the honor of calling her colleague and wishing Gabby and Mark great success and happiness. She will be missed in the House of Representatives, but her legacy in the Congress and her leadership for our nation will certainly continue."

WATCH:

Brody's Notes... New Jersey Lawmakers Say Veto-proof Marriage Equality Coalitions Possible

2012-01-20T22:49:00.000-05:00

Staff Reports

TRENTON, NEW JERSEY -- Marriage equality legislation in New Jersey may survive a veto by Republican Governor Chris Christie. From yesterday’s Wall Street Journal:

New Jersey Democrats believe they are within spitting distance of securing enough support to override a veto of same-sex marriage legislation if Gov. Chris Christie chooses not support it.
State Sen. Raymond Lesniak, one of the bill’s sponsors, estimated the chamber had between 24 and 27 supporters for legislation to allow for same-sex marriage in New Jersey. It takes 27 votes in the 40-member state senate to override a governor’s veto.
“I’m wishing and hoping,” said Lesniak, who also acknowledged that some potential supporters still needed “shoring up.”
Lesniak, a Democrat representing Union County, counted up to 23 Democrats and four Republicans as supporting a gay marriage, but wouldn’t disclose specific names of those he believes would vote to override a veto.
Assembly Speaker Shelia Oliver, a Democrat, has said that she has majority support for same-sex marriage legislation, and that she would work to garner the 54 votes necessary for a veto override in the 80-member Assembly.

Brody's Notes... 80+ U. S. Mayors: Marriage Equality Needs To Happen Now

2012-01-20T21:35:00.002-05:00

Houston Mayor Annise Parker

By Brody Levesque | WASHINGTON -- In a news conference launching its "Mayors for the Freedom to Marry" pledge campaign, the New York based Freedom to Marry same-sex marriage equality advocacy organisation, announced a bipartisan coalition of city mayors- who were meeting in Washington for the annual U.S. Conference of Mayors- publicly stating their unity to support marriage equality for LGBT citizens and their intention to work toward that goal.

Over 20 mayors attended the morning news conference at Washington's Capital Hilton, including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I), Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D), openly lesbian Houston Mayor Annise Parker,(D) and Boston's Democratic Mayor Thomas Menino who told those in attendance;

"It was nearly eight years ago that my city was the first large city in the country to marry same-sex couples. Back then, it was a big deal. People were protesting everywhere, and we were the focus of international news. Well, eight years later, I’m here to tell you that marriage for gay couples has made my city of Boston a much better place."

Former Obama White House Chief Of Staff, Chicago's mayor Rahm Emanuel also signed pledge, but had to leave the meeting to return to Chicago before today's news conference. According to Freedom to Marry's National Campaign Director, Marc Solomon, who led off today's news conference, more than 80 mayors already have signed the pledge.

Houston's openly lesbian Mayor Annise Parker, who recently celebrated 21 years with her partner Kathy, shared her personal story saying that denial of marriage "makes it more difficult to provide our children insurance; it makes it more difficult to assure custody and it makes it more difficult to provide them access to the benefits of our society.”

Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa said that Mayors should sign on to this effort because marriage discrimination can really harm local communities:

"Law-abiding, tax-paying families deserve the same opportunities, rights and responsibilities afforded to every other family in this country. The more support we build in our cities and states, the stronger case we can make for extending the freedom to marry to loving couples, no matter where they live. Because, if we truly believe in family values, we should value all families. Denying gay and lesbian couples the freedom to marry weakens society by hurting our communities, neighbors, and families."

Brody's Notes... Maryland Police Chief Says Claims Of Rapes By Transgendered Persons False

2012-01-20T20:54:00.005-05:00

Montgomery County MD Police Chief Thomas Manger

By Brody Levesque | TOWSON, MARYLAND -- In a letter to Baltimore County Maryland freshman Democrat councilman Tom Quirk, who introduced a Human Relations bill Tuesday night that would protect transgender people at work and when they use the restroom, Montgomery County Maryland Police Chief Thomas Manger called opponent's claims of rapes or sexual assaults occurring in bathrooms after a similar measure was passed in his jurisdiction in 2007, untrue. In his letter written last week, Chief Manager wrote "Since this law has been in effect, we have had no reported rapes committed in restrooms by men in women’s clothing.”

The leading opponent of the measure, Ruth Jacobs, president of Maryland Citizens for a Responsible Government, said lawmakers should also be concerned about women’s safety.

“Promoted as a 'gender identity anti-discrimination bill,' Human Relations Bill No. 3-12 forces the public to recognize men as women, thereby allowing men access to women's bathrooms, This takes away from a woman being a woman," she said. "These people are confused about their gender." Jacobs added, “The bill is a direct attack on women's privacy."

Mark Patro, president of the Baltimore County’s Parents, Families and Friends of Gays and Lesbians (PFLAG), told The Baltimore Sun, "This bill is about protecting people from discrimination. The bill is not about bathrooms."

Transgender bathroom use in the county suddenly became an issue last spring when a transgender woman, Chrissy Lee Polis, 22, was attacked last April 18, when she got into a confrontation with two female patrons over use of the women’s restroom in a Rosedale, Md., McDonalds as she attempted to enter the woman’s bathroom.

The proposed law appears to have enough support on the seven-member county council to pass. In addition to Quirk, three other council members — Democrats Vicki Almond, Cathy Bevins and Kenneth Oliver — have signed on as sponsors. The council plans to discuss the legislation at a work session in February 18th along with an extended public speakers session.

In addition to Montgomery County's law, neighboring Baltimore City and Howard County have anti-discrimination laws. However, the bathroom provision is a controversial issue. The issue of restroom accommodation sank the Maryland General Assembly’s proposed anti-discrimination law last year.

In Brief

2012-01-19T20:56:00.003-05:00

Staff Reports

SOUTH CAROLINA EQUALITY ANNOUNCES EQUALITY LICENSE PLATE

Courtesy of South Carolina Equality

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA -- South Carolina Equality, the Palmetto State’s LGBT education and political advocacy organization announced today that South Carolina joins Indiana this week as one of three states to claim pro-equality license plates, Maryland being the first in 2008.

Christine Johnson, executive director of South Carolina Equality, in an e-mail said;

“2012 represents our 10th Anniversary of providing LGBT advocacy in the Palmetto State, and we can think of no better way to kick off our year of celebration! We begin the New Year feeling grateful and fortunate that South Carolina license plate policy allows a broad expression of diverse opinion and organizational support. We have collaborated with the DMV to create a license plate we hope will appeal not just members of the LGBT community, but their families, friends and allies.”

The license plate, which will be available for purchase to the public in late January 2012, was created as a way of "allowing residents of South Carolina to publicly display their support of community, culture and policy that encourages and advocates for equal treatment for all South Carolinians, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity," according to Johnson's e-mail.

The SC Equality specialty plates will cost South Carolina residents one of the lowest specialty license plate fees in the state ($25.00),in addition to regular registration or renewal fees.

SC Equality Board Chair, Dean Pierce said, “South Carolina is now a national leader in securing a pro-equality license plate. We wish LGBT equality supporters in every state could take advantage the public advocacy opportunity our great state has provided to South Carolina Equality”.

SC Equality announced that it is hosting three license plate launching events in Columbia, Charleston and Greenville, Friday, January 20th, for the statewide debut of the license plate.

Homophobic Nurse In Texas Veteran's Hospital Forced To Retire After Harassment Of Lesbian Marine Corps Vet

Lance Corporal Esther Garatie

DALLAS, TEXAS -- A spokesperson for the Dallas Veterans Affairs Center has confirmed that Lincy Pandithurai would "retire from federal service" effective Saturday, January 21, 2012. Pandithurai, a nurse practitioner, was accused of homophobic harassment directed at Lance Corporal Esther Garatie, an honorably discharged lesbian Marine Corps veteran who was seeking treatment for severe depression and possible post-traumatic stress disorder.

According to Garatie, Pandithurai reportedly said to her among other things, "The reason you are so upset is because you feel the darkness surrounding you, and you feel guilty about being a homosexual and living in sin. I'm going to prescribe you some anti-depressants, maybe they'll help, but I'm not saying that you aren't going to continue to want to kill yourself."

In a statement released today, the Veteran's Affairs spokesperson said;

The Administrative Investigation Board has completed its investigation. The board was able to substantiate material portions of the veteran's claims. VA North Texas Health Care System will continue to provide an environment where veterans can receive the physical and emotional healing that they desire and deserve. As such, we remain committed to respecting diversity and providing the best possible care to all veterans. Our commitment to equal rights remains strong as we practice our core values of integrity, commitment, advocacy, respect and excellence."

The story first broke last November by the Dallas Voice who reported that Garatie went in for counseling after suffering from depression and suicidal thoughts. Instead, she was greeted by a bizarre three-hour tirade from nurse Pandithurai.

At the time Garatie told the paper, she had initially sought treatment for severe depression and possible post-traumatic stress disorder and after coming to the VA Hospital was screened by Pandithurai who inquired about her sexual orientation.

“She sat down and looked at me, and her first question was, ‘Are you a lesbian?’” Garatie wrote in a statement. “Her second question to me was, ‘Have you asked God into your heart? Have you been saved by Jesus Christ?’"
She concluded, "This is when I realized that I was no longer a United States veteran in her eyes, I was just a homosexual.”

Following the incident, Garatie and a friend, Jessica Gerson, authored a Change.org petition effort calling on the VA hospital for Pandithurai to be fired. The online petition drew over 19,500 signatures, and in response the VA hospital launched an investigation last November taking Pandithurai away from patients in the interim.

Upon learning of Pandithurai's removal Thursday, the 28-year-old Garatie issued this statement:

"I really want to thank all of the people that have come together to support me and other veterans," she said "Thank you for standing up against anything like this ever happening -- to any veteran -- ever again."

NEW STUDY: OLDER GAY MEN’S MENTAL HEALTH JEOPARDIZED BY SEXUAL MINORITY STRESS

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA -- Sexual minority stress, along with aging-related stress, jeopardizes the mental health of midlife and older gay men, according to a new study published by the American Journal of Public Health. In the study, sexual minority stress included the men’s perceptions that they needed to conceal their sexual orientation or that others were uncomfortable with or avoided them because of their sexual orientation.

The study also found that legal marriage for same-sex couples may confer a unique protective effect against poor mental health. Having a same-sex domestic partner or same-sex spouse boosted the emotional health of the studied men, but having a same-sex legal spouse appeared to be the most beneficial relationship arrangement. Said lead author Richard G. Wight, MPH, PhD, Associate Researcher at the Department of Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, and Visiting Scholar of Public Policy at the Williams Institute at UCLA: “This study shines a light on the mental health of a generation of gay men who survived the early years of the AIDS crisis and came of age on the heels of the gay rights movement. Whether legal marriage benefits mental health within same-sex couples in the way it has been proven to benefit different-sex couples deserves much more empirical attention, particularly given that same-sex marriage is not available in most states and was only briefly available in California in 2008.”

The study’s findings further suggest that targeted campaigns may be necessary to address this generation of gay men’s heightened risk for poor mental health. In addition to sexual orientation stigma, the studied men’s mental health was also negatively affected by having experienced the loss of many of their peers to AIDS. General aging-related stress, such as concerns over finances and independence, also affected the mental health of these midlife and older gay men.

The study was based on self-administered questionnaires completed in 2009 or 2010 by approximately 200 HIV-negative and HIV-positive gay-identified men between the ages of 44 and 75. The studied men were a subsample of participants in the UCLA component of the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study, one of the largest and longest running natural-history studies of HIV/AIDS in the United States.

The study was conducted by the Department of Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, and the Williams Institute, School of Law, at UCLA and the Department of Sociology and the Health Equity Institute, San Francisco State University.

Brody's Notes... SANTORUM MOCKS ROMNEY’S OPPOSITION TO SAME-SEX MARRIAGE

2012-01-19T19:46:00.001-05:00

From Think Progress

Igor Volsky

By Igor Volsky | CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA -- Rick Santorum reiterated his long-standing opposition to same-sex marriage during a campaign stop in South Carolina Wednesday evening and even mocked other lawmakers who, he suggested, only paid lip service to “defending” traditional marriage.
“I fought the battle,” Santorum said, before bending down towards the microphone and whispering, “it’s one thing to say ‘I support it’ and it is another thing to actually go out and fight the battle.” “President Obama says he supports traditional marriage, but everything he’s doing is trying to undermine it,” he charged. “Look at Governor Romney, when he was in Massachusetts. Look at the people he appointed to the court who undermined the privilege of marriage between a man and a woman.”

Watch:

Brody's Notes... Your Canadian Marriage is Safe

2012-01-19T08:23:00.000-05:00

By Matt Baume | WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA -- Washington, Colorado, New Jersey -- state legislatures are moving even faster than we thought on marriage equality. But it's not all good news. Meanwhile, Canadian turmoil calls thousands of marriages into question, and preparations continue for the impending decision in the Prop 8 case.

In Brief

2012-01-18T20:43:00.003-05:00

Staff Reports

Debate On Tennessee’s “Don’t Say Gay” Bill Delayed

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE -- A pending piece of legislation dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" bill- which would ban Tennessee public schools from teaching about LGBTQ issues- was delayed from a vote Wednesday after its sponsor claimed two fellow Republicans on the committee "weren't very familiar with it" and wanted more time to review the proposal.

The legislation sponsored by Representative Joey Hensley, (R-Hohenwald) which was scheduled to be heard Wednesday by the House Education Subcommittee, limits all sexually related instruction to "natural human reproduction science" in kindergarten through the eighth grades. A similar measure passed the Senate in 2011. Representative Hensley said he plans to now amend his version to reflect the language of the Senate measure telling reporters that he believes it will pass. Opponents of the bill claim it will prevent teachers and school officials from preventing the bullying of LGBTQ youths.

Opponents To Proposed Constitutional Amendment Banning Same Sex Marriage In North Carolina Announce Strategy

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Coalition to Protect All North Carolina Families made up of state and national LGBTQ and human rights groups, faith organizations, communities of color, nonpartisan organizations, and business and community leaders are organising to lobby one million persons in the state before the May 8th primary in hopes of defeating the proposed North Carolina constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages.

The Coalition maintains that if passed, the amendment could have dangerous implications on domestic violence laws, threats to domestic partner benefits for public employees, harm to the state's most vulnerable populations, including the working class, disabled, elderly and children.

North Carolina's state law currently defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman, but supporters of a constitutional amendment say it doesn't go far enough.

NBC17 News in Wake County, North Carolina reported:

"What the amendment does is lets the citizens of North Carolina to determine what constitutes a marriage," said Rep. Nelson Dollar, co-sponsor of the amendment.
Dollar said it will have no effect on private companies that pay for partner benefits.
North Carolina is the only state in the Southeast that doesn't have an amendment banning gay marriage in its constitution. The North Carolina Senate voted 30-16 and the House 75-42 in September to take the issue to voters.
According to an Elon University poll done in September, 56 percent of North Carolinians oppose a ban on gay marriage. Elon surveyed 594 North Carolina residents, including both landlines and cellular phones.

Planned vote to repeal same-sex marriage in New Hampshire has been delayed

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE -- Republican House leaders have delayed the vote on the repeal of the state's same-sex marriage law marriage according to House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt, (R-Salem), said in an e-mail to the media Tuesday afternoon.

"We must deal with some critical financial and economic-related legislation first, as well as legislative redistricting, prior to any discussion of gay marriage," he said. "It's critical to keep to keep legislative priorities in their proper order. The legislation [The Repeal Bill] will not be considered for a floor vote until February."

Bettencourt had previously indicated in late December that the House would most likely vote on the issue Jan. 11 or today.

Legislative sources said Wednesday that the bill was not listed on the House legislative agenda, however, one lawmaker told a New Hampshire newspaper that she had been ready to vote today to oppose a repeal of the state's same-sex marriage law.

State Rep. Laura Pantelakos, D-Portsmouth, confirmed that the measure did not appear on the House calendar, but lawmakers were expected to cast their votes Wednesday, she said. According to the House Majority leader, the vote on House Bill 437 was never formally scheduled, claiming that he was only speculating as the House Speaker William O'Brien, R-Mont Vernon, is in charge of the House calendar.

But Pantelakos, a lawmaker in the House for 34 years, said that was news to her. "I was definitely looking to vote on it today," she said.

Pantelakos, 76, said she spent the entire day in Concord yesterday and had not heard about a delay. She said it's not unusual for the GOP leadership to postpone action on bills.
"I don't know why it was put off," Pantelakos said. "I assume someone has said they won't get enough votes for it and want to push it back. It's not a good way to do business."
The bill's lead sponsor is Rep. David Bates, R-Windham. Bates said yesterday there was never any plan to debate his legislation today. The top priority today is a legislative redistricting bill, he said.
Although the vote on gay marriage will occur in February, the overall focus has not changed, Bettencourt said.
"Today, our citizens are most concerned about pocketbook issues like taxes, controlled spending, job creation and creating a business-friendly environment, and that is where we intend to remain focused," he said.
More than 1,800 gay couples have gotten married in New Hampshire since the same-sex law took effect two years ago, according to the state Division of Vital Records.
Pantelakos said she has received many emails from constituents who say the law should remain in place. "It's an issue we don't ever need to be dealing with," she said. "Our Constitution, it says we are all equal, so why shouldn't they be allowed to marry?" Pantelakos said. ~ The New Hampshire Eagle Tribune

More than 1,800 gay couples have gotten married in New Hampshire since the same-sex law took effect two years ago, according to the state Division of Vital Records. The state's Democratic Governor John Lynch, has promised to veto the same-sex marriage repeal bill.

Brody's Notes... Gay Youth Group First In Nation To Get Specialty Auto Licence Plates

2012-01-17T20:36:00.003-05:00

Courtesy of the Indiana State Bureau Of Motor Vehicles

By Brody Levesque | INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA -- Indiana is the first state in the nation to offer specialty automobile license plates promoting awareness of gay youth groups. The Indianapolis based Indiana Youth Group helps children in the gay, lesbian and transgender community. Volunteers travel throughout the state providing support for often-troubled adolescents.

The new plates will be available beginning in February throughout the state and feature six hands in red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple, which is the logo of the Indiana Youth Group.

The Indianapolis-based youth organization said it was denied a request for a specialty plate twice. The specialty plate costs an additional $40 with $25 directly benefiting the group which provides training for schools and service agencies and works to promote tolerance.
The group applied for a specialty license plate in 2008 and was denied without being given a reason, according to Mary Byrne, Executive Director of the group.
When she re-applied last year, Byrne said she was informed by phone that the BMV didn’t feel her organization was statewide.
The group accused the BMV of lacking clear standards to evaluate plates and violating the First Amendment by using unilateral discretion in ruling on applications.
But BMV spokesman Dennis Rosebrough said the Indiana Youth Group was turned down because it failed to provide evidence that its services have a statewide impact and because it planned to use the license plate funds to pay staff salaries. The money, he said, cannot be used for operating expenses.

Indiana’s American Civil Liberties Union had sued the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles in September after the Indian Youth Group’s request for the plate was twice denied.

The Indiana Youth Group said after the lawsuit was dismissed in January 2010 that they would apply for the new plate a third time, which was approved last month by the state's Bureau of Motor Vehicles.
Micah Clark, Executive Director of the American Family Association of Indiana, reacted to the news telling a christian news website Tuesday:

"You have to question what the BMV was thinking when they approved a license plate for a group which recruits teens into the homosexual lifestyle. Since health risks do not seem to matter, what is to prevent a cigar club from now getting a license plate from the BMV?"
"State agencies should be neutral in the politically charged culture war especially the promotion of homosexuality among minors. It is very disappointing that Indiana is the first state in the nation to have a license plate celebrating youth involved in homosexual behaviors," said Clark.

Bil Browning, longtime Indiana LGBTQ Equality Rights activist, and founder of The Bilerico Project LGBTQ activist website told LGBTQNation Tuesday:

"I'm not surprised to see that Micah Clark is up to his old tricks. Mr. Clark espouses his far-right views on LGBT rights all across Indiana, but his organization seems to do little else. Indiana Youth Group, on the other hand, spends its time helping suicidal youth and college planning. Since Mr. Clark is usually an advocate of smaller government, I'm shocked to read that he thinks the Indiana state legislature should spend it's time approving a not-for-profit youth organization's specialty license plate.
Many universities, sports teams and not-for-profits are regularly issued speciality plates if they meet the required guidelines. Surely the legislature shouldn't waste time approving the "Columbus Sunrise Rotary Club" plate, the "Clark-Floyd Counties Convention and Tourism Bureau" plate, and the "National Wild Turkey Federation" license plate - all of which got their plates the same way that IYG did."
While Mr. Clark calls for the state to remain "neutral in the politically charged culture war" that his brand of extremist Christianity has attempted to wage, his previous advocacy for the "In God We Trust" license plate should be remembered. In Mr. Clark's world, "neutral" means "do what I want." As much as Mr. Clark may wish it so, Indiana state government doesn't revolve around him, his religion, or his puritanical views on sexuality. They are, instead, neutral; Mr. Clark is not."

Anti-Gay Groups Protest SPLC with Claims of Hate and Intolerance

2012-01-17T19:50:00.002-05:00

Special To LGBTQNation

Peter LaBarbera speaking as Rev. Pat Wooden listens.
Photo courtesy of Dr. Heidi Beirich

By Heidi Beirich | MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA -- About a dozen African American pastors joined anti-gay extremists today in condemning the Southern Poverty Law Center for using its “hate group” label to describe faith-based organizations that demonize the LGBT community, characterizing it as part of an orchestrated liberal plot.

The pastors spoke at a press conference staged outside the SPLC offices in Montgomery, Ala,. by Americans for the Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH), which the SPLC lists as an anti-gay hate group.

“The SPLC has moved from monitoring actual hate groups like the KKK and neo-Nazis to slandering mainstream Christian organizations with that very same hate group label,” said Matt Barber of the Liberty Counsel, affiliated with Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University. “By extension, the SPLC is smearing billions of Christians and Jews worldwide as haters simply because they embrace the traditional Judeo-Christian ethics.”

Rachel Conner of Abiding Truth Ministries, also listed as a hate group, charged that “the Southern Poverty Law Center has now become a tool of the God-haters, promoting hatred in the form of vicious lies against Christianity.”

“This has nothing to do with hate and tolerance,” said Peter LaBarbera, president of AFTAH. “It has everything to do with pro-gay politicking.”

According to SPLC staff, "In fact, it has everything to do with hate and intolerance."

Mark Potok, editor of the SPLC’s Intelligence Report responded to the accusations:

“Our listing of anti-gay hate groups is completely unrelated to religion, Christianity or the Bible. These groups are listed because they repeatedly lie in an effort to defame LGBT people, an exercise they’ve been extraordinarily successful at. The idea that we are criticizing these groups because they represent Judeo-Christian morality is simply ludicrous.
The SPLC does not identify anti-gay hate groups based on their religious views. Instead, the SPLC lists anti-gay groups on the basis of spreading known falsehoods and demonizing propaganda against LGBT people, such as the claim that gay men largely orchestrated the Holocaust."

In 2007, LaBarbera claimed that there was “a disproportionate incidence of pedophilia” among gay men — a devastating accusation, but one that is entirely false, according to all the relevant scientific organizations. LaBarbera has also compared the alleged dangers of homosexuality to those of “smoking, alcohol and drug abuse,” and the AFTAH website describes it as a “lethal behavior addiction.”

In a written statement read at the news conference, Abiding Truth Ministries founder Scott Lively called on God to destroy the SPLC: “My prayer, as one who really does hate irrational prejudice, is that the Lord by His sovereign power will remove this dangerous, hate-spreading organization from our nation and cause its leaders and members to repent for their wickedness. … I want to make clear that I am asking God himself to destroy their organization.”

What Lively might not know is that others have tried, including Klansmen who pleaded guilty to firebombing the center’s office in 1983.

Heidi Beirich, Ph.D. is Director of the Intelligence Project for the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Des DownUnder On Sundays

2012-01-15T00:13:00.001-05:00

By Desmond Rutherford | Adelaide, Australia -- Say Can You See The American Empire

The U.S.A.'s place in the world and its influence on other nations and cultures is not only apparent in the wars of the 20th century but goes right back to their Declaration of Independence.

The concepts of freedom and individualism are paramount, predominant and prevailing in all the documents associated with the U.S. Constitution. The idea, that a government of the people, by the people and for the people could be successful in ensuring the liberty and respect for each other as human beings in pursuit of happiness, has spread to many throughout the world.

The leaders and politicians of many nations and governments do not yet understand what this actually means for the future of the species, in global terms. They have not comprehended the nature of freedom as a basic inherent personal and individual human right. Neither do those politicians or the leaders trust the people to make autonomous decisions which are in the best interests of the members of their nations. This trust was the actual foundation of the American Constitution; that the people would act and govern in a way that encouraged freedom, goodness and respect for each other.

The American people, in each of the states, must make a decision; either follow the intent of the Constitutional documents, or abandon them as a failed attempt to advance the human race beyond the boundaries of war, selfishness and belligerence.

The current attitudes expressed by the conservative candidates for the upcoming Presidential election clearly reveal that they have misconstrued, deliberately or through ignorance, the concept of governing by law which respects individual freedom. Many of the candidates, if not most, display absurd disregard for universal human rights and equality under the law, particularly where minorities, like LGBTQ citizens, are affected. They would rather exercise, under the guise of law, restrictions on our people for the sake of their own religious beliefs, or, as is so often obvious, for their personal accumulation of wealth and power.

That they do this with complete disregard for the poverty they create is monstrous.

That they do it whilst bemoaning the state of the deprived is hypocrisy beyond sanction.

That they do this whilst praying for the poor is sanctimonious, and an affront to any true follower of Christ's teachings of love and compassion for one's fellow human beings.

"Republicans and other U.S. right wing conservatives are as insane as any of the Caesars were..."

The U.S.A. is not the only nation with a constitutionally documented interest in the recognition of human rights being incorporated equally under law. It is, however, on the brink of becoming yet another nation to abandon the law of equality and freedom, in favour of enshrining political and economic corruption as acceptable cultural values. That it should do so under threat of reinstating the Christian version of the laws of the Abrahamic God as the law of the land, is tantamount to the ancient Roman Senate appointing the insane asylum, known as the Imperial house of the Caesars, each one of whom became desirous of being regarded as a god. It is an irony that will probably be lost on today's Republicans that with the Roman Senate granting 'extraordinary powers' to Octavian (Augustus Caesar) the Roman Republic became the Roman Empire, unless of course they do know this and the American Empire is their goal.

Political cartoon by Rex Babin, The Sacramento Bee

It can be said with some confidence that the current Republicans and other U.S. right wing conservatives are as insane as any of the Caesars were, and that it is more than possible that they would indeed seek to don the mantle of a God for themselves in the palace of the White House if it were not for the U.S. Constitution. The fact that the Constitution can be altered is not unknown to them.

Right now the world is in danger of having one of the most powerful influences for human progress and protection of human rights being diminished, not in military might but in its ability to abide by progressive civilised concepts of the humanist secular state. Already, regressive legislation has changed the nature of the protections once thought to be safeguarded by the Constitution, not only of the U.S.A., but other countries as well. Some of these regressions have yet to be rejected by the courts, but frighteningly, judges are not safe from being deposed by united conservative forces.

Fortunately for humanity, some other nations are starting to assess the benefits of democracy, or are adopting it, despite their quite large populations being under the rule of questionable, restrictive and alternative, theocratic, despotic or communist regimes. Those nations will be influenced, one way or another, by the outcome of the 2012 U.S.A. elections; not necessarily in the best interests of their peoples or even all people.

So the question of decision remains for the people of the United States of America, but it is not a simple choice between the Democrats and the Republicans. If the Republicans appear to be promoting mass insanity in defiance of reason, and with disregard for the Constitution, then the Democrats are subject to criticism for not defending the human values they say they champion. It is here that President Obama must not just be encouraged and supported, but pressured to understand that bipartisan compromises with the insane are madness for the whole nation, poisoning the freedoms of mankind globally.

Our freedoms are being threatened; our freedom of thought, speech, our recognition of equality human rights for all, our intrinsic rights as human beings to express consensual love for each other sexually.

The American people have a choice between the positive, enlightened concepts of separation of religion and state, of combating the increasing political and economic corruptions, or choosing to revert to what will effectively be the Old World style dominionist rule, by monarch and God; something which the New World of America was supposed to replace for the sake of human equality, freedom, and progress.

The promise, the vision, the dream of America cannot survive under the conservative and Republican efforts to make the future resemble what they think the past was, and neither can the rest of the human race. We are a global community now, even if we do have diverse cultural values, and we will all survive or suffer together.

That doesn't mean people should be deprived of their religion. It does mean they must not try to enforce their religion on those for whom such beliefs are an anachronism, or anyone else for that matter.

Otherwise, welcome to the New Inquisition, heralding the new Dark Ages of Ignorance - The American Empire...'under God'.

Oh, say it won't be...

Brody's Notes... New Jersey's Largest Newspaper Calls For Constitutional Amendment For Same-Sex Marriages

2012-01-13T23:02:00.004-05:00

By Brody Levesque | NEWARK, NEW JERSEY -- The Editorial Board of The Star Ledger newspaper- New Jersey's largest- is calling for the possibility of an amendment to the State's Constitution that would legalise same-sex marriages there. Published in the Thursday edition, the editors wrote:

It is heartening to see Democrats rally for a second charge on gay marriage after their failure to pass the measure in the days before Gov. Chris Christie took charge.
But let’s face it: This is not likely to succeed while Christie remains in office. He will veto it, as promised, and obedient Republicans in the Legislature will fall in line behind him, as always.
That’s the political lay of the land for the next two years, at least. If Christie wins re-election, this stalemate could drag on for six years. To most New Jersey citizens, that is simply not acceptable.

According to sources in Trenton, the governor is not saying what he’ll do in terms of the same-sex marriage bill, which the Democratic legislative leadership considers a major priority for this year's session.

“They have a right to set their agenda, I’ll set mine, we’ll see who gets there first,” Christie said to reporters at an event in Camden . “When forced to make a decision, if forced to make a decision on it, I’ll make a decision.”

Christie has said previously that he favors the state’s civil unions law that was adopted in 2003.

The Star Ledger's Editorial notes:

It is clear by now the civil union law has failed to deliver equal rights. And the problem is not just the documented cases of gay couples facing discrimination in hospitals, workplaces or the insurance market.
The term “civil union” suggests that gay couples are somehow not worthy of full marriage, that they cannot be allowed to enter this club, that their sexual orientations make them second-class citizens. Dress it up all you want, that view is offensive on its face. The message it sends to gay couples and their children is toxic.

In the debate over the possibility of passage of the same-sex law, one prominent Democratic lawmaker says he will not change his vote, State Senator Jeff Van Drew (D-Cape May), who opposed the bill. He said he supports strengthening the civil union law, but stops short of wanting to call it marriage.

“I deeply respect the civil liberties and rights of all New Jerseyeans, but I also believe that marriage over the centuries has been unique between a man and a woman,” said Van Drew. “I am am willing to work diligently to make civil unions contractually and legally more effective, but I will not be voting for marriage equality.”

The Star Ledger editorial finished with:

So what is to be done? Sponsors of the gay marriage bill hope they can win new converts in the next few months, enough to override Christie’s expected veto. Some even hope the governor will change his mind. That would be the ideal outcome.
Remember, too, that supporters of gay marriage have filed suit, so the state Supreme Court could save the day by endorsing full marriage equality, as courts have in several other states.
But there is a third option — to amend the state constitution, bypassing the governor entirely, as suggested here by Josh Zeitz, who served as a senior aide to former Gov. Jon Corzine.
The beauty of this approach is that Christie has no power to stop it. Amendments approved by three-fifths of each house, or by a simple majority for two consecutive years, are placed on the November ballot for final approval by voters. So with just a one-vote majority, voters could decide the issue in the fall of 2013.
Yes, it is a risky business to put minority rights up to a majority vote. How long would Southern voters have held onto the ban on interracial marriage if the Supreme Court had not finally intervened in 1967? If voters rejected marriage equality at the polls, the Legislature and the court would be more likely to reject it in the future.
But if all else fails, a constitutional amendment is worth a try as a last resort. Polls show New Jersey voters are ready to approve marriage equality today. And the tide is clearly moving in that direction, especially among young people. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has shown that it can be a popular cause, even in states with large Catholic populations such as New York and New Jersey.
This fight has been long and difficult, as winning civil rights for minority groups always is.
But the day will come when gay couples in New Jersey won’t have to look across the Hudson River and dream about equal treatment under the law.
They’ll have it right here at home — whether the governor likes it, or not.

Brody's Notes... Update: Canadian Justice Minister Announces All Same-Sex Marriages Are Legal

2012-01-13T21:02:00.003-05:00

By Brody Levesque | TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA -- The Globe & Mail, Canada's national newspaper has reported that "the federal government has quelled a growing controversy with a declaration that all same-sex marriages performed in Canada are legal."

In Ottawa, Justice Minister Rob Nicholson issued a statement Friday that reversed the department’s earlier legal opinion that same-sex marriages performed in Canada were legal only if they are accepted as such in the home nation of the same-sex marriage couples.

According to the paper, Nicholson announced that a “legislative gap” that caused the confusion will be closed.

“The confusion and pain resulting from this gap is completely unfair to those who are affected,” Mr. Nicholson said. “I want to make it clear that, in the government’s view, those marriages are legal.”
The controversy erupted on Thursday when The Globe and Mail reported that federal lawyers were fighting Ms. McCarthy’s clients’ divorce case by saying that same-sex marriages involving non-residents are not legal unless their home country recognizes them as legitimate.
Martha McCarthy, a lawyer for the lesbian couple whose Toronto divorce application has turned into a test case, said that Mr. Nicholson’s statement has assuaged her concern.
Brenda Cossman, a family law expert at the University of Toronto, said the government can readily amend divorce legislation to state that the laws of the place where a couple obtained their marriage will also dictate their divorce procedures.
Ms. Cossman said that Canada could also exempt same-sex marriages from an “arcane” set of international rules that state that the legal system of a couple’s domicile takes precedence over those of the country where they were married. ~ The Globe & Mail

In Brief

2012-01-12T23:28:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

New Jersey School Board Files Tenure Charges Against Teacher Who Made Anti-Gay Facebook Posts

Viki Knox From Facebook

UNION TOWNSHIP, NEW JERSEY -- The school board of Union Township, New Jersey has filed tenure charges against Viki Knox, the high school English teacher whose anti-gay remarks on Facebook raised a firestorm over her free speech rights and her role as a public school teacher.

The board formally filed the charges against Knox in late December, a step that begins the lengthy and costly process to fire Knox, school board president Ray Perkins said. He could not comment on the findings of the district's three-month investigation of Knox's conduct."Every student, no matter what race, creed color or sexual orientation ought to be able to come to school and feel comfortable in a learning environment that’s welcoming and nurturing," Perkins said.

In her Facebook post, Knox had described gay people as "perverted spirits" whose sin "breeds like cancer." "Why parade your unnatural immoral behaviors before the rest of us?" Knox wrote, "I DO NOT HAVE TO TOLERATE ANYTHING OTHERS WISH TO DO. I DO HAVE TO LOVE AND SPEAK AND DO WHAT’S RIGHT!"

The inflammatory thread was forwarded to attorney John Paragano, a former Union Township councilman and municipal judge who urged in a letter to Chief School Administrator Patrick Martin, that Knox be dismissed.
"Hateful public comments from a teacher cannot be tolerated," Paragano wrote. "She has a right to say it. But she does not have a right to keep her job after saying it."
According to state records, Knox has taught for at least 20 years, including 10 in the Union district, and earns $70,688 a year. On her Facebook page, she had described herself as a special education teacher. A spokeswoman with the Office of Administrative Law said full details of the charges are not yet available, but that the tenure charges were based on "unbecoming conduct."
The case will be assigned to and heard by an administrative law judge, who will then recommend how Chris Cerf, the acting education commissioner, should decide on the matter.
The state Department of Education does not impose a social media policy on school districts, but a number have adopted or are considering such policies, along with increased training for teachers on the appropriate use of Facebook, Twitter and other media, said Frank Belluscio, a spokesman for the New Jersey School Boards Association. ~ The New Jersey Star-Ledger

New Hampshire Legislature Expected to Vote on Repealing Marriage Equality

Governor John Lynch, (D)

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE -- New Hampshire's lawmakers are expected to vote on the bill which would repeal the state’s marriage equality law next week. An senior legislative assistant speaking on the condition of anonymity indicated that a vote on the measure has tentatively been scheduled for next Wednesday, January 18th.

The measure is expected to pass in the GOP majority controlled legislature, but Democratic Governor John Lynch, who signed the same-sex marriage equality legislation into law in 2009, has publicly stated he will veto the current repeal measure. Political Observers and pundits note that it's unclear whether the Republicans could muster enough votes to override the Lynch’s veto.

A University of New Hampshire Survey Center poll conducted last October found that 62 percent of registered New Hampshire voters support the state's marriage equality law, and nearly 44 percent of those polled said they would consider voting against any lawmaker who supported the repeal bill.

Brody's Notes... Canada's Justice Minister: We're Not Revisiting Same-Sex Marriage Debate

2012-01-12T22:33:00.007-05:00

Canadian Minister Of Justice, Rob Nicholson

By Brody Levesque | OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA -- The Canadian Minister Of Justice, Rob Nicholson , announced Thursday afternoon that the Canadian government will rework the current marriage law which would allow non-resident couples married in Canada to obtain divorces. In a statement released by Minister Nicholson, he said: "I want to be very clear that the Government has no intention of reopening the debate on the definition of marriage."

"This case today involved the fact that, under current law, some marriages performed in Canada could not be dissolved in Canada. I will be looking at options to clarify the law so that such marriages performed in Canada can be undone in Canada."

Speaking to reporters from an event in North Vancouver, B.C. on Thursday afternoon, Canada's Tory Prime Minister Stephen Harper said; "We're not going to reopen that particular issue. This is a complicated case and the minister of justice, I think, has put out a statement clarifying the government's position on that. This I gather is a case before the courts where Canadian lawyers have taken a particular position based on the law and I will be asking officials to provide me more details,” the Prime Minister said.

The controversy erupted as what appeared to be a reversal of the law was revealed in legal filing in a Ontario court brought by a lesbian couple seeking a divorce. Legally wed in 2005 under the statue in Toronto, the couple were informed they cannot seek or obtain a divorce because an opinion by a Department of Justice lawyer stated their marriage is not legal under Canadian law since they could not have lawfully wed in Florida or England, where the two partners reside. The Department had taken a legal position that same-sex marriages involving non-residents are invalid – and cannot be dissolved – unless they are recognized as legitimate in the couple’s home country. That quickly sparked confusion at home and abroad from activists and couples who married in Canada.

The Globe and Mail reports that former prime minister Paul Martin, who brought in the law allowing gay and lesbian couples to legally marry, said the government’s position in the Toronto divorce case is “absolutely ridiculous.”

“We validated those marriages and you cannot retroactively invalidate marriages that you validated,” Mr. Martin said in an interview.

The federal position is based on two central propositions. First, couples who came to Canada to be married must live in the country for at least a year before they can obtain a divorce. Second, same-sex marriages are legal in Canada only if they are also legal in the couple’s home country of state.
Legal experts and politicians are seriously at odds over how residency requirements ought to apply to foreigners who were not warned that they might be unable to divorce.
Gay activists warned Thursday that their formidable lobby will mobilize to fight any attempt by the Harper government to push back hard-won rights.
“Have thousands of same-sex couples been misled by Canadian officials for nearly eight years?” said Helen Kennedy, executive director of the gay rights group, Egale Canada.
It also emerged that the Toronto case was the second time in the past year that Justice Department lawyers have intervened to raise obstacles in a same-sex divorce case.
Several months ago, it launched a legal intervention in the case of a Canadian man, Wayne Hincks, and his partner, who had obtained the status of a civil partnership in Britain.
The Crown contended that a civil partnership obtained in Britain is not equal to marriage under Canada’s Divorce Act – notwithstanding the fact that Britain considers a civil partnership tantamount to marriage. ~ The Globe & Mail

Speaking on the condition of remaining anonymous, an official with the Department of Justice told LGBTQNation Thursday evening that the problem really was that there were no divorce provisions built into the law nor were there clarifications that should allow for same-sex marriage in a more definitive sense for non-residents thus creating what amounts to a legal anomaly.

Brody's Scribbles... Vegging

2012-01-11T22:27:00.000-05:00

By Bart Vogelzang | VANCOUVER ISLAND, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA -- Are you like me, and once in a while you just don’t have the drive, enthusiasm, or energy to do anything? I don’t know if it is called by the same name everywhere, but here it is often called ‘vegging’. It may not be terribly obvious to all, but it derives from ‘acting like a vegetable’, which essentially means doing nothing much at all.

I’ve never exactly figured out why I get that way, but I’ve managed to determine that it is not related to blood glucose levels, blood pressure, or illness. I have my suspicions though, as I’ve noticed a few ‘coincidences’ that might be more than that, maybe even causal.

Often I will snap out of it if I get cooler. While sitting there, barely moving enough to change the TV with my remote, I don’t even want to get up to go to the can, despite an ever growing need. Eventually, the forces of nature leave me no choice, and I drag my sorry ass out of the chair. Doing my thing doesn’t seem to make any difference to my lethargic mood, but if I should step outside into the brisk cooler air (not in mid-summer, of course) I almost immediately shed that dragging anchor, and perk right up. Full of energy, I head back inside, only to find that minutes later I am back in la-la land. The only thing is, even hotter temperatures in summer don’t seem to cause this reaction, so it’s hard to know what’s up. It may be akin to those days of sleepy driving in the hot sun, which are believed to be caused by positive ions.

I’ve also noticed that I’ll get this bizarre near-immobility when I have tasks or challenges ahead of me in the near future, but ones that I really don’t want to tackle. I’m not talking about dangerous things, but just those ugly, nasty, repulsive tasks like clean up the attic, or the basement crawlspace, or maybe washing the car, or, worst of all, going to a meeting I don’t want to attend. I’m always amazed at how quickly I can become fully motivated and energized simply by clearly, and cleverly, deciding to simply not take on that unwanted job. It’s actually a little bit scary to think that I’m able to create near paralysis simply by being reluctant about something else. It makes me wonder how many other people don’t do things, anything, simply because they are facing an unrelated task that is destroying their motivation. How much better it would be for all of us so afflicted if we could determine our blocking challenge, and either remove it or just overcome it, so that we can get on with the pleasure of energized enthusiastic living. Hey, thinking about it, isn’t that what we all do at Income Tax Time? We feel like shit for weeks beforehand, but once it’s sent away we feel renewed spirit, even if we are poor as anything after sending off that money.

Is there any conclusion to be drawn from this? Pay your taxes early, and thereby freeze from lack of money for heating your residence, and feel on top of the world. I wonder if vegging is related to that other peculiarly human phenomenon of wanting something but not knowing what it is. Perhaps I should sit and vegetate over that. Okay, silly season must be upon me.

In Brief

2012-01-10T20:14:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

Troy Michigan Mayor Accused Of More Homophobic Remarks

Janice Daniels

TROY, MICHIGAN -- Troy Mayor Janice Daniels is embroiled in controversy again after members of a local high school Gay-Straight Alliance accused her of making disturbing homophobic remarks during a meeting Monday. Troy High School Gay Straight Alliance members Skye Curtis and Zach Kilgore said that during the afternoon meeting- which both students said was an attempt to reach an understanding after the Mayor's anti-gay Facebook slur went viral, garnering nationwide attention last month- the mayor while discussing mental health and suicide issues that affect members of the LGBTQ community, suggested putting together a panel of psychologists to show that homosexuality is dangerous to a person's mental health. "She definitely meant it in quite a negative connotation," Curtis told the local Patch media outlet.

"The mayor of Troy told my daughter this afternoon that she wants to bring in a panel of psychologists to explain to the high school's Gay-Straight Alliance that homosexuality is a mental disease," Rodney Curtis, Skye's father, wrote on his Facebook page.

A lesbian couple, Amy and Tina Weber were also present for the meeting and verified what the mayor had said. Amy Weber was so disturbed by Daniels' comments that she attended the Troy City Council meeting Monday evening and asked for an audio copy of the meeting between the Troy High GSA and the mayor, which the mayor recorded, during public comment.

When asked about the comment, however, Daniels said she said no such thing.

"That is a misrepresentation entirely," Daniels said in an interview with Troy Patch Monday evening. "I would like to meet with Skye and her parents to discuss these kinds of issues. Rather than have all this division, we need to come together, because I never said that."
"Her tune changed completely," Kilgore said. "Before, she was very for an anti-bullying event because she thought we could turn this into a positive thing. What we found out today was that she was not planning on doing that.
"She turned it into an anti-suicide thing, which is great, but she wanted to completely ignore the issue that started this."
“That bullying leads to suicide," Curtis continued. "Then we started talking about who could possibly speak, and she alluded to the fact that she wanted to bring in a panel of psychologists who would testify that homosexuality was a mental disease."
“This was implied by her," Kilgore clarified. "She didn’t explicitly say it. Somebody said something to the effect of, 'we can't tell these kids that what they're doing is wrong.'"
"And she said, 'well, I can get a panel to testify,'" Curtis said. "Which is really horrifying, because if we're trying to prevent suicide, telling a room full of gay kids that they have a mental disease probably isn't a way to prevent suicide." ~ Troy Patch.com

Michael Gregor, Director of Communications for Equality Michigan told LGBTQNation in an e-mail Tuesday;

“It’s shocking that Mayor Daniels continues to promote homophobia in her community. The comments made, if true, are both disrespectful and dehumanizing to gay and lesbian people who are represented by the mayor. It is exactly this type of behavior that contributes to harassment and violence targeting gay and lesbian people, especially teenagers. No public official should be creating such a harmful environment.”

Oklahoma Lawmaker Wants To Reinstate Anti-Gay "Don't Ask-Don't Tell" For State's National Guard

Rep, Mike Reynolds, (R-OK City)

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A Oklahoma City Republican lawmaker introduced a measure that would reinstate the controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy for the Oklahoma National Guard. Representative Mike Reynolds authored a measure that would prohibit anyone who was ineligible to serve in the U.S. armed forces under federal regulations that were in effect on Jan. 1, 2009, from serving in the state's Guard. Reynolds said the state is allowed to set its own standards for service in the National Guard and is not required to duplicate standards for the rest of the U.S. military.

House Bill 2195 would amend existing state law that allows any able-bodied U.S. citizen and who is at least 18 years old and not yet 70 to serve in the Oklahoma National Guard. When contacted by LGBTQNation Tuesday, the spokesman for the Guard, Lt. Colonel Max Moss said that the Guard would not comment on the pending legislation.

A spokesperson for Representative Reynolds said Tuesday that the measure was being introduced in response to requests from members of the Oklahoma National Guard.

Toby Jenkins, executive director of Tulsa-based Oklahomans for Equality, in a phone interview with LGBTQNation Tuesday evening said that the Reynolds measure is mean-spirited and actually is damaging to the morale of Gay Oklahoma Guard troops that are currently serving in combat operations in Afghanistan. He said his group is opposed to the the bill, urging the state's other legislators to kill the measure.

Jenkins also pointed out that it was the Tulsa based group's center that had U. S. Military recruiters on the premises the day that DADT was formally repealed last September 20th ready to sign up new recruits.

"Oklahoma has serious pressing issues- meth crimes, prisons that are filling up too fast, schools that aren't working and this is the issue he picks as the most serious in need of attention?" Jenkins said. "The other disturbing aspect to his bill," Jenkins added, "is that there is a section which would allow for a potential recruit to be interrogated about their sexual orientation, this is simply intrusive," he said.

Jenkins said that his group will work with LGBTQ allies in the state legislative committee where it currently is pending to try to stop the bill before it comes to a floor vote.

"It is this sort of thing, Reynolds and well even Sally Kerns which gives other people the idea that every Oklahoman is homophobic," Jenkins said. "But that is not the reality. The truth is that there are more inclusive and accepting persons in this state than outright bigots."

Brody's Notes... Unstoppable Civil Unions

2012-01-10T10:09:00.000-05:00

By Matt Baume | WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA -- We're just one week in and already 2012 is looking like a strong year for marriage, with encouraging action in Washington, Maryland, and Colorado. The governor of Michigan revokes health care coverage for domestic partners, leaving families with no access to medical care. And a binational couple in San Francisco gets a two-year reprieve, but their eventual fate may depend on whoever occupies the White House two years from now.

In Brief

2012-01-09T23:58:00.004-05:00

Staff Reports

New Jersey Democratic Lawmakers Set To Introduce Marriage Equality Legislation

TRENTON, NEW JERSEY -- At an afternoon news conference here Monday, the Democratic leadership of the New Jersey legislature told reporters they will introduce marriage equality legislation this week and would make the measure in both legislative bodies- Senate and Assembly- the legislative top priority.

Today's announcement means a likely confrontation with the state's Republican Governor Chris Christie, who has indicated that he will veto any such measure.

The bill, known as the “Freedom of Religion and Equality in Civil Marriage Act,” will be introduced Tuesday with the symbolic designation of S-1 to indicate its status as the first order of business. Senate president Steve Sweeney,Senator Raymond Lesniak, and Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg, will serve as prime sponsors.

“This is about doing what’s right and ensuring full equal and civil rights for all New Jerseyans,” said Sweeney. “Two years ago, I made a mistake in abstaining on marriage equality — a mistake that means same-sex couples continue to be denied the very basic civil right to live their lives as they wish. But today isn’t about me correcting my mistake, it’s about correcting a mistake for thousands of loving couples across the state who want nothing more than to be treated equally as their neighbors.”

Leaders also plan to fast-track the measure in the Assembly, where the bill will be known as A-1. Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver pledged to move the bill in a statement saying:

“This is the same wrong message we heard from segregation laws,” she said. “Separate treatment was wrong then. And separate treatment is wrong now. That’s why I am committed this session to posting marriage equality legislation and making its passage a priority as soon as possible.”

Should this measure pass both houses, the leadership acknowledged that it is unclear whether the legislature would be able to muster the two-thirds majority required to override the Governor's veto.

Senator Sweeney told reporters; “If the governor cannot raise himself by signing a law to ensure a basic civil right for all residents, we would hope that he would not lower himself by vetoing it,” said Sweeney.

Reed Gusciora, the first openly gay member of the New jersey's legislature, addressed the political implications for the Governor:

“In recent months, Governor Christie has been to four out of the six states that recognize same-sex marriages: Iowa, New Hampshire, New York and Massachusetts,” said Gusciora. “Moreover, when he visits Washington DC he is in a city that also recognizes such relationships. And in none of these places, has he seen any diminishment of the institution of marriage other than perhaps when he is in the presence of Newt Gingrich.”

New Jersey could become the seventh state in the United States to enact same-sex marriage equality. Last week Washington's Governor Chris Gregoire,(D) signaled her intention to prioritise same-sex marriage equality in her state's legislation session this year, and Maryland's Governor Martin O’Malley has said he will push for a similar same-sex marriage bill as that state begins its session.

Brody's Scribbles... Dogs Are Smarter Than Cats

2012-01-09T22:30:00.000-05:00

By Bart Vogelzang | VANCOUVER ISLAND, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA --

Ask just about anyone which are smarter, cats or dogs, and you’ll probably get the answer that dogs are smarter. I’m not sure exactly why, but I think it has to do with self-interest and false pride, rather than actual reality.

Think about it; what is it that we love so much about dogs that causes us to think they are smarter? They are eager to please us, no matter what. They can be trained to come, fetch, and do many tricks to entertain us. They will work for us in rescue work, police work, and military work, without any question of their loyalty and willingness to die for us. They will take neglect, abuse, and even imprisonment in chains, not to mention too small cages or abject deprivation unto death, and still wag their tags to show their love to us when we give a moment of our interest to them. They love us unquestioningly, and we love them for that. My question however, is whether that kind of blind devotion is actually a sign of intelligence.

Now think about cats; whilst it is happy to please us by allowing us to pet its fur, it will immediately remove itself, or even hiss a warning, if it becomes uncomfortable. If we deprive it of food or loving attention it will move out, and you’ll see it sitting in the front window of a neighbor’s living room almost before you can say, “What happened?” They set their own terms of reference with us, and even though they can be trained to do things we would like, even to the point of being guards, they do it as partners, not slaves devoted to us unconditionally. Indeed, if we aren’t careful, we will find they have trained us, not the other way around, because they value their independence too much to bend very far.

So which is smarter; the ones who do what they want and when they want, or the ones which do exactly what we want when we want it, with no thought to their own quality of life? I’m not totally sure, because it is hard to divorce my thinking from the emotion of my relationship with my best friends. I guess it is up to each of us to decide for ourselves which we feel are the smarter. In the meantime, I must get away from this computer, as my cat, Demcat, is amusedly waiting to be escorted to his kitty door, and my dog, Repub, is wagging its tail, licking slobber onto my feet, and looking for yet another pat on the head.

Des DownUnder On Sundays

2012-01-08T10:53:00.003-05:00

By Desmond Rutherford | ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA -- My Teenage Missing Link

Like old people tend to do, I was recently aware of reminiscing about my early teenage years; in particular about my school days, and specifically, my high school nickname, 'De-link'.

Now you might actually think you can work out how I was given this name, but I'm willing to bet you'd never get it right.

As fate (and my poor study habits) would have it, I had to repeat my second of year high school. I was pissed, to say the least; another year of being bullied and tormented by both teachers and students. Here's what happened.

I walked into the class room, late, because as a repeat student I had to be reassigned to a specific class and it took time for the school dictators to work out where I would go, or perhaps which teacher would put up with me. After all, who would want to deal with a snivelling, red-headed sports-hating boy who was only good for being ridiculed, bashed and intimidated?

So I walked into my new classroom, and the teacher told me to choose a seat. I sat down at the nearest desk, which was right next to the older, bigger, hirsute boy who, unbeknownst to me, was regarded by every student in the class as the most terrifying yeti on the planet.

I didn't know any better, so ever the polite nerd, I greeted him, "Hi, I'm Des."

He looked at me with astonishment, through eyes that hid behind a tangled fringe of black hair that wanted to curl, and told me his name was Barrad. I later learned he was referred to as 'The Barbarian'.

The teacher muttered something along the lines of, "Oh, that's just great, the outcasts sitting together."

I immediately lost it. I'd had enough. I stood up, swallowed my rage, and calmly told the teacher that we were not outcasts unless he treated us like outcasts. If it had been 1975 instead of 1958, I feel certain someone in the class would have proclaimed, "The Force is strong in this one." The truth was, I'd had it with being a victim. Besides which, I was going through puberty and didn't need this 'outcast' crap to think about, along with trying to work out why some boys looked better to me than others.

By Mark Brill from The Power Within graphic novel

The teacher just looked at me with a severe expression on his face and told me, "Don't be impudent; I'll have no delinquents in this class."

And for the next two years I was known as 'The Delinquent.' It was quickly shortened to 'Delinkie' and then to just, 'De-link'. I loved it. It was a term of respect and friendship. It changed my life. Looking back on it now, I wonder what would have happened if I had rejected the well meant intent of the friendly nickname. It's so difficult to sort out the slings and arrows of torment from the terms of teasing endearment.

The Barbarian seemed to become quite upset, over time, as I think he felt he was 'the missing link', and 'De-link' should have been his nickname. Luckily, he had his own friends in another class so I didn't need to worry about him.

Thus began the first time in my life in which I could relate to my class-mates without fear. It didn't hurt that I was nearly a year older than them. In hindsight, we had developed that link of trust so often missing amongst young teenagers, who are ever anxious about being hurt by each other.

For the next two years I lived without fear of being bullied or intimidated. I had made four great friendships which continued into my early twenties, when they all found girls to marry, and when I went out of my way to get laid as often as possible...until I became happily entangled in the bonds of love for these past forty years. And no, those high school friends were not gay, but we admitted to loving each other as we shared growing up together; teasing each other, exchanging our discoveries and wondering anew about life. I know some will think we were lucky, and I guess we were, but so often, it seems to me, we need to jump that chasm between fear and trust, the unknown and the known, instinct and intelligence, or our sophistication of thought becomes a missing link forever.

With that link to reality no longer missing, we have the means to recognise the real perils of our existence. We then can realise the rewards of sharing our lives in friendship and love, and we discover that living...well, it does get better...and I remember that even that teacher's attitude improved.

Editorial... Bryan Fischer? You sir, are an absolutely fascist idiot.

2012-01-06T23:16:00.001-05:00

By Brody Levesque | WASHINGTON -- There comes a point for any journalist who respects the ethics and good practises of this profession, that it becomes pointless to cover any individual in the public realm when that person's public uttering(s) and proclamations reach a critical mass of simple maliciousness and stupidity. I have now reached that point with Bryan Fischer, the American Family Associations's version of the Nazi Party Chief Propaganda Minister, Dr. Josef Goebbels.

For years, Fischer has been railing against women's rights over their bodies, LGBTQ people, and as of late any one person who professes belief in the Islamic religious tradition. Jody May-Chang, a freelance journalist who lives in Fischer's old stomping grounds in Idaho, has detailed quite precisely some of Fischer's more egregious statements and biased messages, summarizing the worst of Fischer's vitriol in the Southern Poverty Law Center Intelligence report released last Fall.

As you can see from the Twitter Image (above left) published earlier today by New York LGBTQ blogger and equality rights activist Joe Jervis, once again Fischer has brazenly displayed his disdain for his fellow American citizens. The bigotry and bias is simply incomprehensible to this correspondent.

Particularly frustrating is that not a single mainstream media outlet, or better still, notable Christian figure outside of the anti-gay extremists- who continue to voice their so-called adherence to 'christian values & family values-' has stepped up and delivered any kind of call for Fischer to cease and desist and called him out for his bigotry and hate speech.

Fischer hides behind his cherry picked bizarre interpretations of his "God's" holy book, with none of his actions bearing any resemblance to the teachings of that poor Jewish carpenter. His hate for Gays, his obvious disdain for women as his equal, his attacks on other religions particularly Islam, all point to a form of pure selfishness and despotic theocratic dogma that quite frankly, I'd label as a serious mental health issue.

I'm not going to give Fischer any more ink, it's just pointless and realistically it's no more than fanning the flames of hate. He's past pathetic as he obviously has no sense of humanity nor respect for others and human dignity. He is a fascist idiot.

He deserves contempt, not pity, as his radio show and ongoing indoctrination efforts of those persons in his audience whom are unable to see past his rhetoric and lying has led to disharmony and demonising of gays, women, and those who believe other than his twisted version of christianity. In short? He's a vicious evil bastard who wraps himself in an American Flag and carries the so-called Cross of christianity.

In Brief

2012-01-05T19:32:00.002-05:00

Staff Reports

IOWA Judge Orders New Birth Certificate Issued With Same-Sex Married Couple Names

DES MOINES -- A local Polk County Judge has ruled that the Iowa Department of Public Health must issue a new birth certificate in the names of a lesbian couple who are the parents of a now 2-year-old girl.

In a lawsuit brought by Melissa Gartner, 41, and Heather Gartner, 40, of Des Moines, they claimed that in 2009 the Iowa Department of Public Health refused to list both names of their names on the birth certificate as the legal parents of their daughter, Mackenzie.

Polk County District Judge Eliza Ovrom’s 12-page ruling stops short of declaring a constitutional right for same-sex parents to be named automatically on newborns’ birth certificates. But it faults state officials for failing to correctly interpret older Iowa laws in light of the April 2009 Iowa Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriages.

State administrators are bound by the 2009 case to interpret laws in a way that gives “full access to the institution of marriage,” Ovrom wrote.

“Pursuant to Varnum v. Brien, where a married woman gives birth to a baby conceived through use of an anonymous sperm donor, the Department of Public Health should place her same-sex spouse’s name on the child’s birth certificate without requiring the spouse to go through an adoption proceeding,” Ovrom concluded. “Petitioners have proven the Department’s actions are in violation of law and based on an erroneous interpretation of the law….”
Iowa law says that if a woman is married, the husband must be legally deemed the father unless there’s a court order that says otherwise. But state lawyers argued in the case that gender-specific parenting rights make it legally impossible to replace a “husband” with a same-sex “spouse.”
“If I had to summarize the department’s case in one sentence, it would be this: It is a biological impossibility for a woman to ever legally establish paternity of a child,” attorney Heather Adams argued at a hearing in November.
Ovrom’s ruling was based on provisions of Iowa law saying that an agency’s ruling can be legally reversed if it violates any provision of law or if it is based on an erroneous interpretation of a law “whose interpretation has not clearly been vested in the agency.”
She declined in light of those findings to rule on an argument that Iowa’s treatment of same-sex parents was unconstitutional. ~ The Des Moines Register

Conservative Magazine Sends Subscribers E-Mail Blast With Anti-Gay Hate Group Fundraiser Missive

Eugene Delgaudio delivers petitions to Capitol Hill 2009

WASHINGTON -- The roughly 60,000 subscribers to the conservative Weekly Standard’s e-mail list Thursday received a blatant anti-gay fundraising message with the subject line, “Congress to mandate pro-homosexual education?”

According to the Weekly Standard’s website, the outlet has a circulation of over 60,000, and calls itself “the most quoted, clipped, and talked-about magazine in Washington and political circles.” The fundraising appeal and anti-gay message was from anti-gay activist Eugene Delgaudio focusing on the Student Non-Discrimination Act, which would bar discrimination against LGBT students in public schools. Delgaudio is titular head of the Falls Church, Virginia, based Public Advocate of the United States, which claims its mission is to, among other things, provide “vocal opposition to…the furtherance of so-called “Gay Rights,” and says hate crimes laws protecting LGBT people “singles out Christians or moral thinking people…for persecution.” Earlier this year, the organization gave its Family Advocate Award to Marcus Bachmann for his working in counseling “ex-gays.”

The email said “radical homosexuals” were pushing the Student Non-Discrimination Act(SNDA), as part of an attempt to “indoctrinate” children while creating a “new America based on sexual promiscuity.” It went on to call LGBT people “deviants.”

Among the e-mail’s contentions, is that the SNDA measure would, “ Require schools to teach appalling homosexual acts so “homosexual students” don’t feel “singled out” during already explicit sex-ed classes;” that it will, “In fact, it will set them up to ram through their entire perverted vision for a homosexual America; and adds, “Sexual deviants being held up as models of virtue? If that makes you as sick as it makes me, you simply must join me in this battle for America’s children”

“It is alarming to see a political media outlet push this hateful rhetoric and act as a platform for the fundraising efforts of such an extremist group,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese. “Regardless of the alleged political bents of any news outlet, or any audiences, it is reprehensible and irresponsible for the Weekly Standard to partner with this fringe group. The Weekly Standard is now giving gravitas to outrageous lies about LGBT people. William Kristol should do the right thing – apologize and distance his publication from the hateful misinformation campaign of the so-called Public Advocate of the United States.”

The fundraising email calls SNDA the “Homosexual Classrooms Act” and says it is a means for equality advocates to advance “their entire perverted vision for a homosexual America.”

Read the E-Mail Here.

GOP Presidential Hopeful Rick Santorum Booed After Comparing Marriage Equality To Polygamy.

Rick Santorum

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE -- According to the New York Times, GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum engaged in an extended and sometimes testy exchange over same-sex marriage with a group of college students during a campaign appearance on Thursday.

Mr. Santorum was speaking at the College Convention 2012, a forum organized by New England College and open to students from all over the state, regardless of political party.

One student started the conversation by asking Mr. Santorum — a fervent opponent of same-sex marriage — why he did not think that equality required allowing members of the same gender to marry.while answering a question about marriage equality, Santorum said: “If you’re not happy unless you’re married to five other people, is that O.K.?” The audience booed Santorum, who continued on saying: “What about three men?” According to the media report, audience members continued booing Santorum as he exited the event.

“Rick Santorum’s anti-gay hate is not going to perform well in New Hampshire. His reception there is indicative of just how poorly he will fare with mainstream voters as the primaries progress,” said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. “Rick Santorum’s views are out of step with the majority of Americans across demographics and faiths. He is basing his campaign off of bashing an entire community of his fellow Americans. That may serve him well with certain constituencies, but it’s something most Americans will not stand for.”

Santorum has a long track record of trying to score political points off of bashing LGBT people. In addition to speaking out against marriage equality on a regular basis, he also has criticized LGBT families and adoption, and called the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) a means of forcing “social policy into the military.” Last fall, Santorum told a gay soldier he would reinstate DADT because "any type of sexual activity has absolutely no place in the military."

Brody's Notes... "It's time, it's the right thing to do, and I will introduce a bill to do it," Washington Governor Gregoire Announcing Legislation For Same-Sex Marriage

2012-01-04T16:33:00.000-05:00

Washington Governor Chris Gregoire
Official Portrait

By Brody Levesque | OLYMPIA, WASHINGTON -- In an announcement made Wednesday in front of an audience of activists and supporters of same-sex marriage equality, Washington Governor Chris Gregoire, (D), announced she will introduce historic legislation that if passed, would allow same-sex marriages in Washington state.

“It’s time, it’s the right thing to do, and I will introduce a bill to do it,” Gregoire said. “I say that as a wife, a mother, a student of the law, and above all as a Washingtonian with a lifelong commitment to equality and freedom. Some say domestic partnerships are the same as marriage. That’s a version of the discriminatory ‘separate but equal’ argument.”

At this time, six states plus the District of Columbia recognize marriage for same-sex couples under state law: Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont. Nine states—California, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington—provide same-sex couples with access to the state level benefits and responsibilities of marriage, through either civil unions or domestic partnerships. Same-sex couples do not receive federal rights and benefits in any state.

“Our gay and lesbian families face the same hurdles as heterosexual families—making ends meet, choosing what school to send their kids to, finding someone to grow old with, standing in front of friends and family and making a lifetime commitment,” Gregoire said. “For all couples, a state marriage license is very important. It gives them the right to enter into a marriage contract in which their legal interests, and those of their children if any, are protected by well-established civil law.”

Gregoire’s announcement today follows years of advocating for equal rights for gays and lesbians. In 2006, she signed legislation banning discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment, housing and other areas. In 2007, Substitute Senate Bill 5336 created the state domestic partnership registry. A year later, Gregoire signed House Bill 3104 which added additional rights and responsibilities relating to issues such as dissolutions, community property, estate planning, taxes, court process, conflicts of interest for public officials and guardianships. Legislation signed in 2009 requires state agencies to ensure that all privileges, immunities, rights, benefits, or responsibilities granted to married individuals are granted to an individual who is or was in a state registered domestic partnership.

“Throughout our history, we have fought discrimination,” Gregoire said. “We have joined together to recognize equality for racial minorities, women, people with disabilities, immigrants. Please join today to support equality again in our great state. It is the right thing to do and it is time.”

The proposal will be introduced during the legislative session that starts Monday.

Gregoire has supported giving gay and lesbian partners the same rights that married couples have today, but has never endorsed same-sex marriage publicly.
The announcement represents a change for Gregoire. While running for governor in 2004, she supported legal rights for same-sex couples but said, "I do not believe that Washington state is ready to support gay marriage."
In a 2008 interview, when she ran for a second term, Gregoire explained her beliefs in more detail.
"There are two issues here," she said. "One is the state's responsibility. To me, the state's responsibility is to absolutely ensure equality. The other is a religious issue, and I leave it to the churches to make that call about marriage."
State Sen. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, a gay lawmaker and leader in the marriage effort, said the gay-marriage legislation being developed would "amend the statutes to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry and to get a marriage license under Washington state law." However, he said, churches wouldn't be required to perform marriage services for gay and lesbian couples. ~ The Seattle Times.

“Governor Gregoire made crystal clear why marriage equality matters and why the legislature should pass it this year,” said Zach Silk, campaign manager for Washington United for Marriage. “She has shown tremendous leadership on this issue which affects so many of our friends, family and neighbors.”

"My partner and I have been together 22 years, and our family is very similar to those of my friends and colleagues," said Jennifer Cast, a longtime Washington resident who wishes to marry. "We work hard to create a productive and happy life for ourselves and our family. We cherish the good times and console each other during hard times. We share each other's challenges, sorrows, triumphs, and joys, just like any other couple. We want our love and commitment to be valued and recognized equally in our state."

“When I tell people that Rudy and I have a domestic partnership, they really don’t understand what that means,” said John McCluskey, a longtime resident of Tacoma. “We’ve been together for 53 years and I couldn’t imagine spending my life with anyone else. The thought that people don’t understand that our family faces the same struggles and the same triumphs as any other family in our state is heartbreaking.”

Washington's Legislature first passed a law in 2006 prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment, housing, lending and insurance. The rights of same-sex couples have been expanded in a series of subsequent laws, culminating in 2009's "everything but marriage law," which was upheld by a public vote on Referendum 71 that fall.

Brody's Scribbles... The Endangered Middle Class is on Life Support.. and the Republicans are poised to pull the plug!

2012-01-03T19:35:00.000-05:00

By Terry Angel Mason | LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA -- Don't Blame the President! Don't Blame the Congress! Blame yourselves! It is January 2012 and the insanity of the 2012 Presidential Election has begun. I believe the word "insanity" is appropriate and succinct because of the axiom which states that "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."This adage takes on an even more prophetic and nostradamean meaning when you consider that this fall, once again, the American people are going to the polls and insanely attempting to select a President to lead them out of the morass, muck and mire that has afflicted our country and symbolized its politics! I contend that "insanely" is the correct word because unless we do something different, we will not effect any meaningful change, no matter who wins the White House this fall. Moreover, that different thing that we MUST DO is pause for a moment and reflect upon our choices and the actions that WE MUST TAKE in order to save our country which is dangerously teetering on the edge of the abyss.

Firstly, we must vote according to our own self-interests. This is usually what most voters do, but in this Presidential election we must intelligently re-define what our BEST self-interest is, and because I am advocating for the endangered Middle class, I assert that the most important and critical self-interest we have is SURVIVAL! The Republican party is hell bent upon destroying us, the Endangered Middle Class. Why else would Congressional and Senatorial Republicans try to eliminate Social Security and Medicare through the Ryan Plan, in addition to killing almost every job bill that the White House has proposed. Job bills which could have added thousands if not tens of thousands of high paying jobs to a crippled economy. The Democratic Party has been feverishly attempting to resuscitate a grievously ailing national economy and the Republican Party is withholding the critical assistance needed to heal the patient. Why is this? You need only to look back upon Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's vow in 2008 when he said,

"The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president."

The Elected Republican Party officials do not care about the economy because THEY HAVE MORPHED INTO THE PARTY OF THE RICH! This is why they do not worry about the Endangered Middle Class because they cannot relate to us. They don't know how hard it is to balance a shrinking paycheck against rising expenses. They don't know the pain of losing long held treasured jobs because of greedy avaricious bank initiated financial recessions. They don't lose sleep at night worrying about staving off foreclosure on their homes, despite the fact that MANY ALREADY HAVE LOST their homes! So why should The Republican Party care about us the Endangered Middle Class? The answer is THEY DON'T AND THEY WILL NEVER CARE! Why not? Because it is not in their best self-interest to do so. Period! This brings me to the crux of my argument which is this important and irrefutable fact that it is not enough to re-elect President Obama, We must elect Democratic Congressional Representatives and Democratic Senators to aid Obama in implementing his policies. It is not enough to just vote for the man with the vision, but we must also put in place people who support that vision and the visionary! I President Obama should not have to do all the heavy lifting! It is our responsibility to give him some help! It isimperative that we elect enough Democrats to regain control of the House of Representatives and MAINTAIN control of the Senate. Hello Endangered Middle Class America, ARE YOU LISTENING?!! It is only by the regaining and maintaining control of Congress and The White House can we thwart and undo the grievous damage inflicted upon our beloved nation.

The Republicans are masters of distraction! Their current strategy is to portray Obama as a promise breaker and that he has not kept his campaign promises. But what they don't tell you is that every promise he has attempted to keep, promises ranging from from rescuing the economy to delivering jobs, the Republican Party has thwarted, obstructed, if not down right killed! Divided government does not work if one faction of that government are zealous extremists who would destroy our beloved country to win an ideological point. Remember the Debt Ceiling Crisis and how perilously close the Republican Tea Party Congressional officials brought us to defaulting on our national debt which would have destroyed our economy and plunged the world into a global depression. This unnecessary political posturing resulted in the downgrading of America's credit rating. Moreover, the Republican Party has the audacity and malevolent cunning to blatantly lie and falsely attribute this debacle to Obama. An anonymous writer who wrote under the pseudonym General R. Never said, " People deserve the government they permit!" Furthermore, if we do not WAKE UP and vote in our own best interests by voting for OBAMA and other Democrats then we, the Endangered Middle Class, deserve the inevitable pain, misery, heartache and death that will surely come as the Republican Party pulls the plug on us. I don't know about you, but I don't plan on "going gently into that good night." I'm going to vote for every good democrat I can find!

Brody's Notes... Civil Unions and Beyond in 2012

2012-01-02T15:22:00.000-05:00

By Matt Baume | WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA -- Welcome to 2012! We got a lot of work to do this year, so let's roll up our sleeves and get to work. The new year marks new civil union laws in Delaware, Hawaii, and California. Psychologists in North Carolina lash out at anti-gay prejudice, LGBTs can marry in Cancun -- probably -- and something fishy's going on with civil unions in the European Union.

In Brief

2012-01-02T10:39:00.002-05:00

Staff Reports

First Hawaiian Same Sex Couples Exchange Vows In The New Year

HONOLULU, HAWAII -- For Donna Gedge and Monica Montgomery, the path to becoming a legally recognised lesbian couple took 33 years. One hour after midnight Hawaiian time in the New Year, their dream became a reality as they and another couple became the first same-sex couples to enter into civil unions in Hawaii under a new law that took effect with the New Year. The dual ceremonies were held in a private residence on the island of Oahu with around 90 people in attendance.

The gathering waited for the civil union applications to become available on the Internet after midnight. When they finally came on-line, it took each couple about ten minutes to complete the forms. Then, it took another five minutes for each of the three civil union officiants to apply for their licenses to perform the ceremony. And then there was a short delay because of an in-house computer glitch.
But the couples were ready when, one hour after midnight, the ceremony began, led by Rev. Kyle Lovett of the Church of the Crossroads, Rev. Jonipher Kwong of the First Unitarian Church of Honolulu, and Rev. Pam Vessels. The couples exchanged vows and rings.
Then, the three officiants said, in unison, "We now pronounce that you are legally joined as partners in life." The celebrants cheered as the couples kissed. ~ KGMB NBC9 News, Honolulu

"You can talk to some folks that are at this event tonight and they can tell you from '91 and from even before then, Hawaii really has been pivotal in the country, not even just in the state but in the country for supporting equality throughout the decades, so it's just really exciting to be a space in celebration finally again," said Tara O'Neill of Pride Alliance Hawaii. which was part of the Civil Unions in Hawaii 2012 Committee.
"A lot of organizing. Of course a lot of lobbying meeting with legislators. A lot of media. All leading up to this day," said Tambry Young of Citizens for Equal Rights, which also was a committee member.
"It represents the culmination of almost 20 years of an effort to achieve equality in Hawaii," said guest Valerie Smith, co-chair of Equality Hawaii. "It's one step close to full marriage equality."

The other same-sex couple who participated in the celebration of the rites, Gary Bradley and Paul Perry have been together for three and-a-half years. Speaking to KGMB reporter Ben Gutierrez, they told him that they took part to make a statement. "It's not just about us, but the other couples as well," said Bradley. "That's why we are doing it as a group and it's what we wanted to do, to let everyone know that we are making a step forward as a group." "Absolutely awesome," Bradley added. "This isn't just about us, but it is for the state of Hawaii and the people of Hawaii and its about equality, and its just one step closer to, which is what we all want, and that's full marriage equality."

Under Hawaii's new law, not only are the four same-sex couples legally recognized in the state, any same-sex couple legally married or in a civil union in any other state or country now also have those relationships legally recognised as well.

U. S. Champion Olympic Figure Skater Johnny Weir Marries

NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- Olympic Figure Skating Star Johnny Weir, 27, tied the knot with boyfriend Victor Voronov, a Russian lawyer, New Year's Eve Saturday and then tweeted the news to his nearly 103,000 Twitter followers.

In an interview with journalist Lynn Rutherford last Thursday Weir said,

“I'm getting married on New Year's Eve. His name is Victor, he's kind of everything that I've ever looked for and aspired to be in a relationship with. We've known each other for a long time and we reconnected over the summer, and it's just been a whirlwind. I'm very happy with my personal life and also my professional life, and I thank God I can be exactly where I'm at."

Weir added, “He's wonderful. He's totally not in my field at all. He didn't even know I was a figure skater when we first met or even when we reconnected. He is Russian. He worked in [New York City] for a long time, and then he went back to Atlanta to do work for his family, and in a couple of weeks he's moving back up to New York. He's a lawyer. He's in the legal field, completely separate from all of my razzle dazzle.”

Weir, who has been famous for remaining silent about his private life came out as a gay man only a year ago despite the neverending swirl of rumors about his sexuality over the course of his professional career as a figure skater. "I'm married!" he tweeted, later clarifying that the actual wedding will take place in the summer, though "all the official stuff is done now! No more livin' in sin!"

Voronov retweeted his husband's sentiments, adding that he was "ringing in the New Year with my new hubby @JohnnyGWeir! #ELATED."

Des DownUnder On Sundays

2012-01-01T10:59:00.000-05:00

New Year's Greetings from Australia. Des is on holiday and will return next Sunday but BN&S' intrepid Dutch-Canadian columnist and editor from British Columbia steps in with this wonderful bit of satire and parody for your enjoyment.

The Triplets

By Bart Vogelzang | VANCOUVER ISLAND, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA -- It had been years since the triplets had been born, and they were now changing dramatically as they aged. Like most newborns, they had had many of the same initial characteristics, needing food, drink, and above all, attention. However, as time went on, they developed their own personalities, with particular likes, needs, and idiosyncrasies. Larry, Moe, and Curly were totally devoted to thoughts of their father, and in his absence they never seemed to think about anything else.

They had heard many stories about him, and they had even found some written stuff, although that had obviously been written some time after the stories were supposed to have taken place. They were told he’d left them some rules to follow as they grew up, but were a bit flummoxed by the ambiguities they presented, as none were all that clear in meaning. Each of them decided exactly which of the stories and rules he preferred to take to heart, and couldn’t help disparage the others by repeatedly poking them in the eye, bashing them over the head, and of course make snide remarks about the others’ sanity.

Based on his own best interest, each was learning not only to defend his ideas about their father’s rules, but discovering that attacking the others’ ideas was a good tactic. Soon each was recruiting a friend, or even more than one, to his own way of thought, and their disagreements became ever more intense. As the numbers of their friends grew, their arguments became ferocious conflicts, with injuries and even deaths.

Eventually they each became convinced that their interpretation of the rules was better than that of the others, and they felt infinitely superiority to those who didn’t see a need to acknowledge the rules at all.

With his absence, they couldn’t even get their father to support them in their extreme enthusiasm, even though they continually tried to call him to do so. Their buddies convinced them that each was the only one who followed the rules correctly, and in the absence of any correction from their dad, they felt increasingly that they were right in their interpretations; those thoughts being supported by the ever larger amounts of money they were getting from their supporters.

One day though, their father, who had been monitoring them for some time, wondering and hoping that they’d get their acts together without correction, had had enough of their pettiness, their sanctimony, and their self-serving ways, and decided to smite them where it would hurt them the most; their egos.

He chose to give them homosexual sons and daughters, so that over time they would cease to reproduce, and their camps would each diminish. Sadly, their own egos were so twisted with their self-importance that they chose to persecute their own children; actual Children of, and ‘in the image’, of the Father. He forever caused Larry, Moe, and Curly, and each of their followers, to be banned from His Heaven, banished them all to an Everlasting Hell of poking each other in the eyes.

In Brief

2011-12-30T23:47:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

Christian Cartoonist's 2012 Calender Deemed Homophobic Removed From Online Sales By Amazon and Barnes & Noble

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON -- American Christian cartoonist Joe King’s calendar, I’m Not Gay, I’m Just a Sissy," which drew a firestorm of criticism after the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) along with a significant number of bloggers publicly denounced the calender and its sale through internet retail giants Amazon and Barnes & Noble-- both of whom have since pulled the calender from their sales offerings. The controversy began earlier this week when prominent New York based gay blogger Andy Towle published an article detailing the contents of King's calender which includes jokes about AIDS and gay lifestyles in a negative stereotyping of gay men.

Herndon Graddick, Senior Director of Programs and Communications for GLAAD, in an e-mail said; "This calendar has no business being sold and supported by reputable retailers. King has a right to his opinions, however anti-gay or anti-transgender they may be, but retailers also have the right to decide that they don’t want to support hateful and dehumanizing content like this.”

Barnes and Noble has since yanked the calendar for sale on its website, and a spokesperson for the company told GLAAD it has never been made available in stores. Amazon has also removed the item.

The calendar which is dedicated to the memory of the US revolutionary hero and to gay rights opponent Anita Bryant and which promises "12 months of sexual confusion" has drawn staunch criticism for what many some deemed homophobic humor and imagery, including one illustration which appears to poke fun at the HIV/AIDS crisis. Another cartoon is a parody of Paul Revere, showing the Revolutionary War hero on horseback shouting, "The sodomites are coming! The sodomites are coming!"

Few in the LGBT community are laughing about the calendar and as the fury built, its author hit back at critics.

King, a member of the Christian Comic Art Society, took to his Facebook page writing in defense of his work. "I feel like David vs. the gay Goliath," King writes in one post. In another, he adds, "All the hysteria is coming from those nice folks who haven't bothered to actually purchase and read my collection. Stranger still -- these are REPRINTS of nationally distributed work several years old. No outcry then."

Towle along with other bloggers were quick to point out this post in which King writes: The "truth" is that AIDS is an "elective" disease. It STOPS the day guys quit sticking it to each other. And for the tragedy of women and children infected... THAT stops the day their gay husbands and fathers stop cheating on them. Anyone need MORE education, science or funding to understand THAT?

The cartoonist,responding angrily to complaints raised by blogger Andy Towle commented saying: “Hoo-we! Hell hath no fury like a he/she scorned… The telephone tree of tantrums is lit up like a Las Vegas marquee for “Boy-Lesque” today with hate mail, threats of boycott and even the risk of Jesus spitting on me for my “Sissy” calendar.”

Thursday morning, King told his Facebook followers: “Aint the first time I’ve been banned – won’t be the last. I was born with a loud mouth and an itchy shirt, bury me next to the Baptist. [sic]“

Brody's Notes... NY TIMES: Politics & Gays, President Obama lets senior staff take lead

2011-12-30T23:09:00.000-05:00

President Obama addresses the 2011 annual HRC dinner.
Photo by Michael Key, The Washington Blade

By Brody Levesque | HONOLULU, HAWAII -- New York Times Senior White House Correspondent, Mark Landler, writing in the paper's Politics section Friday says: "President Obama has long relied on his oratorical gifts to ease him through tricky political situations. But on the emotionally charged issue of gay rights, Mr. Obama has been content recently to let his lieutenants do the talking. And they have said some striking things."

This follows an established pattern for the Obama administration dealing with a wide variety of issues, most notably the repeal of "Don't Ask-Don't Tell," which was led by former Secretary of Defence Robert Gates along with the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen as well as the findings by the Attorney General of The United States, Eric Holder, that one section of the 'Defence of Marriage Act' was unconstitutional and therefore should not be enforced by the Justice Department in several pending Federal Appellate Court cases.

LGBTQ equality rights activists along with senior staff contend that the President is committed for enactment of equality legislation as evidenced by several executive orders that the administration has issued over the past three years, most recently the memorandum issued earlier this month which directed that the federal government and all agencies engaged abroad to ensure that U.S. diplomacy and foreign assistance promote and protect the human rights of LGBT persons globally. The President wrote, “The struggle to end discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons is a global challenge, and one that is central to the United States commitment to promoting human rights.” There remains conflicts though as Landler pointed out writing:

Mr. Obama's strategy, administration officials and gay-rights advocates said, reflects two conflicting forces. He recognizes that support for gay rights and same-sex marriage is growing, particularly among young voters.
But he is reluctant in an election year to be drawn into a culture-war issue one that reliably helps Republicans turn out evangelical voters in their favor and that also strikes a particular nerve with religious black voters, a bedrock Obama constituency in battleground states like North Carolina and Florida.
There is little indication that Mr. Obama plans to endorse same-sex marriage before the presidential election in November, despite recent statements that tiptoe right up to that position. Speaking to a gay-rights group in October, he said, "Every single American gay, straight, lesbian, bisexual, transgender every single American deserves to be treated equally before the law."

Landler interviewed Richard Socarides, the former head of Equality Matters, a Washington based LGBTQ Advocacy organisation and a Democratic political strategist who advised former President Bill Clinton on gay-rights issues. Socarides told Landler;

"It works for the White House on several levels, particularly in an election year, gay voters will be more enthusiastic for him than we would have been a year ago."

Mr. Socarides is among several gay-rights advocates who say they believe that Mr. Obama will declare his support for same-sex marriage before the election both because polling data shows a sharp increase in voter support for it among crucial groups, and because two pending court rulings on marriage rights will make it harder to justify the president's position that his views are still evolving.

According to Landler in an interview with David B. Mixner, a longtime gay-rights advocate who has raised money for LGBTQ friendly candidates, Mixner said; “We can keep pushing for marriage without stopping our work for him,” he said, “because we can just look at the cast of characters waiting in the wings.”

Landler also noted that the President's record on LGBTQ rights outside of same-sex marriage is impressive, pointing out that the repeal of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that prohibited gay men and lesbians from serving openly in the military fulfilled a campaign promise that many supporters did not believe Mr. Obama would be able to keep. In an interview with Melody Barnes, the chief White House domestic policy adviser, he quotes her as saying

"One issue after another he's taken them on and he's knocked them down in a very methodical way, but consistent with his views about justice and fairness in the United States."

Read Landler's entire article at The New York Times here.

Brody's Scribbles... It’s Easy To Be Wrong

2011-12-29T20:45:00.000-05:00

By Bart Vogelzang | VANCOUVER ISLAND, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA -- Amazingly, we sometimes get things right immediately, but more often than not we get things wrong. Frankly, it’s easy to be wrong, and we start off doing things that way, right from birth. We quickly realize that we were wrong, and manage to create the process we call learning; from our mistakes, from being wrong.

One thing we get from immediately being right is a frozen attitude. Just like when you stop searching for something once you find it, you stop searching for other options once you’ve found one that seems to work. If it works for you, there is no point in seeking further. The only really meaningful learning occurs from dealing with being wrong. It requires you to think about the situation, make guesses about other possible approaches and try again. If you are lucky, even if you don’t think so at the time, you’ll have a series of failures, being wrong often. Being able to see and admit to yourself that you are wrong actually makes you a much stronger, better person.

Attempting different approaches to things opens up pathways in your brain that simply cannot be opened by being right. Interconnections form, particularly if you have had partial success and partial failure; attaching your correct decisions to other correct ones, and marking wrong decisions for extra consideration in future. The results of being wrong aren’t wasted, as you are able to catalogue them into a sort of reservoir of future options, for different situations.

Besides acquiring the learning process, your ability to deal with disappointment and loss is also improved. You develop a ‘thick skin’ for your own errors, and also learn to understand and accept imperfection in others. They too are making mistakes, being wrong much of the time, and learning, just as you are.

At some point, you will realize that those who believe they are right, whether they are or not, are mostly pompous asses with little thinking behind them, and even less compassion. The biggest egos seem to be embedded in those who have no right to one at all, having not made any progress at learning anything. Of course we have to remember that there is one other group of people with this challenge, those who cannot see that they are wrong. They can be 100% wrong, and yet refuse to accept this, and will continue with their lives as if they are actually right. I’m speaking here about the devoutly religious, who will take anything that goes wrong as not being of their own creation, but that of some outside evil force of darkness, the Devil, or even the Will of God. Since they don’t accept their own failings into the equation, there is no room for learning.

"The pomposity of the ‘always right’ is repugnant at best, and downright dangerous at worst."

Like the arrogance of aristocracy, and the conceit of the inherited rich, the pomposity of the ‘always right’ is repugnant at best, and downright dangerous at worst. People with those traits have a very unfortunate tendency to not only run their lives based on those repulsive characteristics, but they try to force their myopic, stagnant, and even ruinous views on the rest of us, despite not being superior or effective at all; having no real abilities at dealing with challenges…never having needed to learn those. They come up with inane ‘solutions’, banal rules and regulations, and even repressive laws that simply will not do what they profess to want. These usually fly directly into the faces of those who have actually lived life, and discovered wrongness, thereby learning how to cope with failure. The inane ideas attack those who have learned from making mistakes, who have become compassionate towards their fellow human beings; their poisonous diatribes serve only one purpose, and that is to protect them from the horror, as they see it, of being wrong. They seek to remain ‘right’ at all costs, but their worst cost, unrealized by them, is the loss of their own humanity.

It’s easy to be wrong, and one should pity those who never are, or maybe more correctly, those who fear to be.

In Brief

2011-12-28T21:12:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

Hawai'i Set To Recognise Its First Same-Sex Unions On January 1st

HONOLULU, HAWAI'I -- In a private ceremony set for after midnight this coming Sunday,January 1, 2012, four same sex couples will enter into civil unions as the state's new civil unions law takes effect.

Hawaiian Democratic Governor Neil Abercrombie had signed the civil unions’ bill into law last February 23, making the state the fifth in the nation to recognise same-sex civil unions. While civil unions are not considered marriage, the legally binding agreement provides many of the same legal rights and benefits of marriage.

For the past ten months the State Health Department has been drawing up plans for an online application process for same sex couples who want to take advantage of Hawaii’s new law. Other state agencies have also been updating their rules and regulations in order to make certain that civil union couples have the same rights as heterosexual married couples.

Local Honolulu Station KHON reported that one of the four couples taking part in the New Year’s Eve event has been together for the past thirty-three years.

Tambry Young and Suzanne King, two women who were married in Massachusetts in 2009, are helping the couples coordinate the event as members of the CU in Hawaii 2012 Planning Committee.
“They've seen some of their friends pass away before this actually could be enacted, so it's an important step for them,” said Young. "The Department of Health did a tremendous job in getting this system up and running,” said Young. “So basically what happens is twelve midnight the system goes live.”
“We can help them kind of walk through that to make sure that they have everything up and running,” said Young. “I think everybody's realizing that this is the next step in our evolution to get full equality and I think everyone's taking it serious,” said Young.
For both Young and King, January 1 will also mark a turning point in their thirty year relationship. Their marriage in Massachusetts will also be recognized as a civil union here in Hawaii.
“Part of the process is me changing my name to Suzanne Young, which will be effective January 1,” said King. “That's pretty awesome.”
Young and King were forced to terminate their reciprocal benefits agreement in Hawaii before the state could recognize their partnership as a civil union. ~ via KHON Channel 2

Same-Sex Couples Lose Serious Benefits On Taxes

Ken Weissenberg, (left) and his spouse Brian Sheerin
Photo Via CNNMoney

NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- CNN Financial Editor and Reporter Blake Ellis reports that same-sex spouses are paying as much as $6,000 a year in extra taxes because the federal government doesn't recognize gay marriage.

In the article published in CNNMoney online Monday, Blake writes that according to an analysis conducted for CNNMoney by tax specialists, same-sex families don't enjoy the same perks as many heterosexual couples, because they are not allowed to file their federal returns jointly.

The imbalance persists despite increasing acceptance of gay marriage as a legal right. More than 12 states now grant full or partial marriage rights to same-sex couples, and a recent Gallup poll showed -- for the first time -- that a majority of Americans favor gay marriage.
But not the federal government, which is constrained by the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act. Even as more same-sex couples are able to file jointly at the state level, they are still forced to file as single when submitting federal returns to the IRS.
This means they can't combine their income and deductions to take advantage of lower tax rates. It's also harder for them to qualify for certain tax breaks because the credits phase out sooner for single filers.
"It's costing these families thousands of dollars a year, as well as the emotional pain and suffering," said Ken Weissenberg, a partner at accounting firm EisnerAmper who is in a same-sex marriage himself. "But it shouldn't stop anyone from getting married," said Weissenberg, who says he pays an extra $5,000 in taxes per year simply because he is in a same-sex marriage. "If I had to pay twice as much in taxes to be married to my husband, I would." ~ CNNMoney

Brody's Scribbles.... Life Defining Moments

2011-12-27T16:55:00.000-05:00

By Bart Vogelzang | VANCOUVER ISLAND, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA -- Late December is that time of year that one gets inundated by something other than Season’s Greetings and wishes for a Happy New Year. It’s that time of year in which many of the media types just have to review the last year, ad nauseum, and make predictions for the next one, which will undoubtedly be just as incorrect as the ones made at the end of last year. However, there is something to be said for reviewing life; your own life.

I’m not talking about reviewing the last year of it, but the whole thing, from your earliest memories until now. There may be people who have never had a life defining moment (and I’m not talking about life affirming moments) but I’m pretty sure you cannot grow up without having at least one or two along the journey. It may be thrust upon you by outside sources, when someone points out some serious flaw, or a wonderful aspect, in you, but it may also be a near epiphanic moment as you come to a realization all by yourself, about yourself.

It would be easy to just list some of my own moments, but what is more important is the journey, indeed, the effort, to reach such discoveries. That some of them have happened in the distant past is sad, in a way, since it means I’m getting on in years, but conversely it also means I’ve been able to incorporate the effects over a longer period of my life, based on what I saw within me. Without an understanding of what is within, it is nigh impossible to change things for the better. Even when someone else throws an example of a ‘less than desirable trait’ at you, you still need to examine it, accept the reality into a wholesale awareness of what it means, and make any changes that can improve life for you, and those around you.

People can be manipulative and arbitrary. If you want to avoid consequences from that, you need to do it as soon as the evidence shows up, not waiting hopefully for improvements to take place all on their own. The details of my moment are not important to anyone else. Allowing myself to be forced into making a decision on something is a serious error in behavior, not the actual decision made. I learned to refuse to make decisions under duress, and it has stood me well.

Embarrassment is of your own making. Whatever happens, whether accidental or deliberate, if you feel embarrassed by it, you do that to yourself. People will often appreciate your carefree handling of a potentially embarrassing moment to the point of admiration, and conversely, ridicule you if you handle it badly. The best approach is to not allow yourself to be embarrassed, as that will almost invariably give you a better interaction with others, and absolutely a better result within yourself. Admittedly, unexpected circumstances might make this difficult to achieve.

Anger is both dangerous and counter-productive. Not only is there a lack of emotional control when you are angry, but the surge in adrenaline may well cause you to lose physical control over yourself and the situation. Walking away before you even get to a state of anger will allow you to address the problem rationally, having avoided investing too much emotion into things. Observing, then recognizing the first stages of anger is crucial, as is a plan for how to defuse such situations.

Truth is perception, and vice versa? People can only see, and therefore acknowledge, truths that are visible to them. However, seeing is more than just visual, auditory, or sensory reception, but requires the brain to process the information received, placing it into compartments, ‘folders’ if you will, which have been established over time, with past observations, experiences, and learning. Truth, by definition, is absolute, but for people, the leftover result from running the evidence through the mind’s filter, having eliminated all the preconceptions, is the truth. If the compartments aren’t there, new information will be placed, if at all, in locations that may not match the actual reality. Anything not finding a matching ‘folder’ is often rejected as evidence, or misconstrued and taken as proof of a different ‘reality’. The discovery that people ‘see’ what they want to see, or what they are able to see, is vital in knowing how to address the world around you. From clothing to hygiene, makeup to body modification, body language to the way you speak, each bit of ‘evidence’ creates an image of you in the minds of other people, and if you hope to communicate your message, whatever that may be, you must meet the requirements of visibility in the other person’s filter system or your message will be lost to them.

It is a life defining moment to discover that we are all loving sexual beings, some more so than others, but all of us in some way; but not everyone in the same way, nor at the same intensity. Upon realizing that we all feel it, there forms a sense of camaraderie, a sense of shared knowledge, which transcends both gender and orientation. We realize our humanity and feel much more inclined to be helpful to others, as being part of our human family. Those who don’t feel that togetherness have not yet realized true love, most likely having missed it in the fog of religious notions, or maelstrom of childhood abuses, or both.

Des DownUnder On Sundays

2011-12-25T02:42:00.001-05:00

A Christmas For Carol

By Desmond Rutherford

{ Part Two } {Part One Here}

“Marty? Is that you?”

“Come inside,” he commanded, as he turned and held the door open for her.

Carol entered the shop and was amazed to see it was empty, with rows of cages along each wall.

“It is you, isn’t it, Marty?”

“Yes Carol, it is. I have wanted to talk to you for ever so long, but they wouldn’t let me.”

“They?” she questioned, “Who are “they”, and what happened to you? You disappeared without warning me.”

“I know I should have; I would have let you know, but I only was offered this position recently and thought, no, hoped, I would run into you. I couldn’t visit you or go looking for you since I cannot go further than the awning over the door.”

“Oh, you’re not making sense, Marty, but then you never were much good at making sense. All you ever wanted was to…”

“…to make money and look after you and the baby. I could never have made sense or anything worthwhile, not that I did; my greed was my undoing.”

“What on Earth are you talking about, Marty, and what about this pet store with all its empty cages? You must be doing quite well if you’ve sold all your stock of cats and dogs. Do you have birds too?”

“No, birds aren’t meant to be in cages, Carol. Cats and dogs get set free in their new homes but birds are usually kept in cages. But these cages are not empty due to the sale of what was in them. Each of those cages represents one Christmas.”

“You are mad,” said Carol.

“Yes, I was, but I see things differently now. Look upon those cages over there,” Marty said, as he pointed to one wall of cages with locks on them. “Each of them is a Christmas passed; ones I missed having with you and Bobby.”

Carol was becoming a little afraid. She began to think that Marty might have escaped from a mental institution, but she couldn’t work out how he could then have a shop.

“What about those cages over there? They have locks on them too, are they also yours?” she asked.

“No, those are the cages of your Christmases; all the ones you missed sharing with others. And before you ask about these unlocked cages along the other wall, they are the cages of your Christmases yet to come.”

Carol was now really becoming frightened by Marty, and his words. Edging her way towards the door she tried to distract Marty with, “And what about the kitten in the window?”

“The kitten is waiting to see if it has a home this Christmas, or not.”

“Marty, can I call someone for you. I think you need help,” said Carol.

“Carol, I am not the one who needs help. I am beyond help. This is the only thing I have ever done to help you, or anyone other than myself. I am trying to show you that your life is going to be an empty cage unless you open up your heart to those who love you. I didn’t, and it has left me terribly alone.”

Carol swayed a little from the intensity of Marty’s message. She could hardly believe any of this was real, let alone aimed at her. Marty could see she did not believe him. With his hands, he gestured towards the door.

“Carol, if you do not want to save yourself then look at how your miserable life will affect others.”

The door to the pet shop flew open and a small figure of a young man staggered in. He fell to the floor, shaking and shuddering, blood stains around his mouth, his eyes vacant, glazed and turning lifeless. His skin was becoming as grey as it was pale.

Carol looked away. Marty grabbed her by the arm. “Look Carol. Do you know who this is?”

“No,” she quavered, “I’ve never seen him before.”

“Look again,” insisted Marty.

“No, I don’t I know him.”

“Carol, please,” pleaded Marty. “Please, for our son’s sake, come closer, and look deliberately upon the face of this boy.”

Hesitatingly, Carol approached the figure lying on the floor boards of the shop. The wind whistled through the spaces between the floor boards, and a freezing wind gusted through the door, dropping icy crystals on the boy’s threadbare clothing. She leaned down and almost fearfully touched his hand, shivering from the reality.

“It’s Robert’s friend, Jim. But Marty, what is he doing here?”

“He is going to die, Carol. He will die because you will drive him away by ignoring our son’s love for Jim.”

“I wouldn’t do that, I have never stopped Robert from being with him.”

“But you never make him welcome either. You have barely accepted our son, and never his friend; you just ignore him in the hope that he will go away, leaving you to your greed. This boy is who Bobby loves,” said Marty as he pointed to the frozen figure on the floor. “This boy loves our son and if you drive him away he will die. He will fall ill and die from a broken heart. Need I tell you what that will do to Bobby?”

Marty raised his hands again towards the door.

“Stop!” cried Carol. “Don’t show me, just tell me what I have to do.”

“I cannot tell you Carol, you must work out what is right and do it. Look to see me no more,” intoned Marty as the body of the youth grew paler and faded away; Marty himself faded as a white mist filled the room.

Carol heard the kitten mewling and rushed to pick it up.

The sunlight streamed through Carol’s bedroom window, but it was the sound of a kitten meowing that had awoken her. Quickly she rushed to the window and opened it. She saw the next door neighbour’s boy riding a new bicycle that he must have gotten for Christmas.

“You there, boy,” she called out.

“Me ma’am?” he called back.

“Yes, you. What day is it?”

“Today?”

“Yes, today. What is it?”

“Why…it’s Christmas day of course.”

“Thank you,” she said, “and boy? Merry Christmas to you.”

She looked at the clock, it was nine a.m. She’d have to hurry. Quickly she rang Robert on his mobile phone.

*************************************************

“What did she want? I suppose you have to rush home or to her shop,” said Jim.

“No,” said Bobby, “She wants us to meet her out front as soon as we can. She wants to take us to lunch for Christmas.”

“Us?” asked Jim.

“Yes, both of us, and…”

“and?”

“…and she called me Bobby.”

Happily Jim did not fall ill and he and Bobby are still together. The kitten adopted them, and has grown into a beautiful cat that sleeps with them both on the foot of their bed in Carol’s house.

Carol eventually found Marty’s grave where she placed a floral tribute. She still doesn’t understand all that happened that night in the Shoppe of Christmas Pets. She makes sure to celebrate the spirit of Christmas every day and will always remember Marty when he spoke to her on that Christmas Eve.

On Christmas Day, Carol embraced Jim’s and Bobby’s love for each other, and when Jim looked into Bobby’s eyes he wished out loud, “May our love be accepted by everyone.”

The cat purred contentedly on top of the bed, not a cage to be seen.

Happy Holidays

2011-12-23T22:17:00.002-05:00

Brody's Notes & Scribbles is on holiday break and will return Tuesday, December 27, 2011. Our staff and contributors wish all of you a safe and happy holiday period.
Note: The second part of Des DownUnder's 'A Christmas For Carol' will appear this Sunday.

For all the latest in LGBTQ News & Commentary please visit LGBTQNation.com

Brody's Notes... Minnesota LGBTQ Community Apologises To Disgraced Adulteress GOP Senator

2011-12-22T20:57:00.000-05:00

Amy Koch

By Brody Levesque | MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA -- As far right-wing so-called 'family values' christian groups continue to insist that same-sex marriage is a force that is destroying marriage by seeking access to the institution, one Minnesota resident “apologised” on behalf of the state's LGBTQ community for causing anti-gay Republican state senator Amy Koch to have an extramarital affair.

Koch resigned her leadership post amid allegations of an “inappropriate relationship” with a state Senate staffer. Koch, who is is married with one child, has been one of the leading proponents of Minnesota’s 2012 ballot initiative aimed at amending the state constitution to ban same-sex marriage.

Koch has neither admitted nor denied the allegations — she has said she will not seek re-election in 2012, but has not indicated if she will resign from the Senate prior to her term ending.

John Medeiros of Minneapolis in an open letter published in the Twin Cities Alternative paper, City Pages, renders an apology to Koch “on behalf of all gays and lesbians living in Minnesota ... for our community’s successful efforts to threaten your traditional marriage. We are ashamed of ourselves for causing you to have what the media refers to as an ‘illicit affair’ with your staffer, and we also extend our deepest apologies to him and to his wife. These recent events have made it quite clear that our gay and lesbian tactics have gone too far, affecting even the most respectful of our society.”

The letter comes a day after Koch issued her own apology released yesterday, in which the Senator her "deep regret" for "engaging in a relationship with a Senate staffer." According to City Pages political columnist Kevin Hoffman, although Koch's letter did not specify the identity of the other participant in the "inappropriate relationship," Hoffman writes "it is widely rumored to be former communications chief Michael Brodkorb, who lost several positions with the GOP in the wake of the scandal."

Text Of John Medeiros' Letter To Koch:

An Open Apology to Amy Koch on Behalf of All Gay and Lesbian Minnesotans
Dear Ms. Koch,
On behalf of all gays and lesbians living in Minnesota, I would like to wholeheartedly apologize for our community's successful efforts to threaten your traditional marriage. We are ashamed of ourselves for causing you to have what the media refers to as an "illicit affair" with your staffer, and we also extend our deepest apologies to him and to his wife. These recent events have made it quite clear that our gay and lesbian tactics have gone too far, affecting even the most respectful of our society.
We apologize that our selfish requests to marry those we love has cheapened and degraded traditional marriage so much that we caused you to stray from your own holy union for something more cheap and tawdry. And we are doubly remorseful in knowing that many will see this as a form of sexual harassment of a subordinate.
It is now clear to us that if we were not so self-focused and myopic, we would have been able to see that the time you wasted diligently writing legislation that would forever seal the definition of marriage as being between one man and one woman, could have been more usefully spent reshaping the legal definition of "adultery."
Forgive us. As you know, we are not church-going people, so we are unable to fully appreciate that "gay marriage" is incompatible with Christian values, despite the fact that those values carry a biblical tradition of adultery such as yours. We applaud you for keeping that tradition going.
And finally, shame on us for thinking that marriage is a private affair, and that our marriage would have little impact on anyone's family. We now see that marriage is more than that. It is an agreement with society. We should listen to the Minnesota Family Council when it tells us that marriage is about being public, which explains why marriages are public ceremonies. Never did we realize that it is exactly because of this societal agreement that the entire world is looking at you in shame and disappointment instead of minding its own business.
From the bottom of our hearts, we ask that you please accept our apology.
Thank you.
John Medeiros
Minneapolis MN

In Brief

2011-12-22T20:30:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

Michigan Governor Snyder signs bill to ban partner health care coverage

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder (R)

LANSING, MICHIGAN -- Michigan Governor Rick Snyder today signed House Bill 4770 following months of heated debate and advocacy. The bill attracted sharp criticism from the media, university leaders, business leaders, and progressive organizations throughout the state.

The bill will eliminate health care coverage for domestic partners of public employees. HB 4770 prohibits any government entity in the state from providing such coverage. HB 4771, which the Governor vetoed, prohibits unions from including coverage in collective bargaining agreements. Both bills passed the legislature on December 13. Lawsuits on behalf of affected families will likely be filed soon.

Anti-gay Republicans Representative Dave Agema (sponsor or the bills) and Attorney General Bill Schuette have been trying to strip away health care coverage for gay and lesbian families since February.

“Governor Snyder’s support for this bill is appalling. Today, the Governor told unmarried public employees that they can no longer care for their partners or children. He has put hardworking gay and lesbian couples and their children into harm’s way by eliminating important health care coverage. He has spent the last two years talking about creating a welcoming state with a attractive business climate, and this bill flies in the face of those goals.”
“All families in our state, including gay and lesbian families, should have fair access to health care coverage. Governor Snyder caved to the radical social agenda coming from the legislature. He has rejected our shared commitment to economic growth. In order to compete in today’s global business environment, we must build a culture that prioritizes fundamental fairness. This law will only serve to hurt Michigan." ~ Emily Dievendorf Director of Policy, Equality Michigan

Many public entities provide coverage for domestic partners of employees, including:

• University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Wayne State University and 11 of the 12 other public universities

• State of Michigan (33,000 eligible employees under contracts that went into effect in 2011)

• At least eight cities, counties and school districts, including Ann Arbor and Kalamazoo

In Brief

2011-12-21T22:54:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

Hospital That Denied Visitation Rights To Lesbian Partner Rescinds Decision And Apologises

Rolling Hills Hospital in Franklin Tennessee

FRANKLIN, TENNESSEE -- A Tennessee woman who was denied visitation rights with her partner at the Rolling Hills Psychiatric Hospital in Franklin has been allowed a special visit and will commence regular visits during hospital's normal visitor's day Sundays.

Val Burke, a former staff writer for the Nashville LGBTQ community's Out & About Newspaper, told another writer for the paper Rolling Hills Hospital staff had denied multiple requests by her to visit her partner, who is currently a patient in the hospital's residential facility. Burke said that staff members excluded her from the room since she was not a legal spouse nor a family member.

"I went to visit her at the appropriate visiting time and was turned away," she says. "We have been living together for three years now, but that didn't matter to them either. The rest of her family is out of town, so she didn't have any one visit her."

Burke said she had previously been allowed visitation rights, but only with her partner's mother in attendance.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in September issued the rules for equal visitation and representation rights for LGBTQ persons. The regulations require all hospitals participating in Medicaid and Medicare programs – virtually every hospital in the country – to permit patients to designate visitors of their choosing and prohibit discrimination in visitation based on a number of factors, including sexual orientation and gender identity.

Hospitals are also required to put their visitation policies in writing, including any "clinically necessary or reasonable restrictions" to visitation that may be appropriate.

Richard “Rick” Bangert, chief executive officer of Rolling Hills told reporters inquiring about Burke's situation; “It was human error, they made a mistake. When I learned of it, I immediately met with my staff on Monday. We immediately made the change in terms of making sure that our policy was very clear.”

The Human Rights Campaign and the Tennessee Equality Project called on all hospitals to review their policies and practices related to hospital visitation after the Rolling Hills incident was made public. While noting that the incident at Rolling Hills Hospital has been resolved, both advocacy groups said that it serves as a reminder of the importance of hospital visitation rights for LGBT Americans. “Rolling Hills Hospital fixed the problem immediately, but this serves as a reminder discrimination still exists in the health-care arena and we need to tackle it,” said Paul Guequierre, HRC spokesman.

HRC President Joe Solmonese said, “Discrimination in a personal medical setting may be one of the worst forms of discrimination LGBT people face. Federal regulations were put in place for precisely this reason, to stamp discrimination out of the healthcare process and allow all people to be by their loved ones during their most vulnerable moments.”

“Denying a loving partner the right to be with his or her sick loved one shows the very personal side of anti-LGBT discrimination,” said TEP Nashville Chairman Chris Sanders. “We hope hospitals across Tennessee and the country learn from this sad incident and ensure this never happens again."

Bangert said he plans to meet with Burke saying, “I will apologize and work with her directly,” he said. “I take it very personally. This is not representative of the hospital.”

The Human Rights Campaign is asking hospitals to participate in its Healthcare Equality Index, an annual survey about policies and procedures related to LGBT people and their families.

The organization also has issued a field guide with information on how same-sex couples can prepare for a medical emergency. The HRC recommends that same-sex partners have health-care directives and visitation authorization forms prepared in advance of any medical crisis. Copies of those documents should be carried in a wallet. Details are at http://www.hrc.org/resources/entry/protecting-your-visitation-decision-making-rights.

In Brief

2011-12-20T13:51:00.003-05:00

Staff Reports

Utahns favor legal protection statewide for LGBTQ individuals when it comes to employment and housing

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH -- A recent poll commissioned by Equality Utah — a Salt Lake-based civil rights organization focusing on equal rights and protections for LGBT Utahns and their families — found that a majority of those polled favored a statewide nondiscrimination law that would make it illegal for someone to be fired from a job solely because they are LGBT. Additionally, Those same persons polled also favored a Utah-wide law that would make it illegal for someone to be evicted from housing solely because they are LGBT.

There was a caveat as those polled also indicated that they did not support same-sex marriage equality nor did they approve of adoption rights for same-sex couples.

The poll was conducted by the Salt Lake City based public opinion and market research firm Dan Jones and Associates. The survey polled 801 households across the state and contained a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent. According to the firm, the poll found that nearly 80 percent of respondents believed such statewide nondiscrimination laws already existed in Utah.

Trent Kaufman, researcher and executive vice president of the Cicero Group, parent company of Dan Jones and Associates said, "Utahns showed some interest in antidiscrimination laws in some areas and not in other areas. The data suggests the marriage or adoption issues relate to the family, while the other (data) aren't as related to family," he said. "These findings held true all across the state with respondents representing every county."

The poll also revealed that 54 percent of respondents believe that being gay is probably or definitely a choice.

"Utahns at their core are non-discriminatory people," said Brandie Balken, executive director of Equality Utah. "We don't believe that discrimination is OK regardless of the reason that it's being practiced. As understanding about the broad support of these protections and also understanding about the implications of discrimination on our communities continues to grow, it enhances our opportunity to achieve statewide passage for these important protections," Balken said.
"Making inroads toward equality will require more time and continued education, she said, so that "people are able to see people who are gay or transgendered at their full human selves, not as a category or preference. When we can speak about the values that we share, and what we see as a state as fair-minded, common sense protections based on our shared values, then we have the opportunity to make really good policy," she said. "Today in the state of Utah, I can say to you, 'I'm firing you because you're straight. I don't think you represent my company well,' or 'I'm evicting you because you're not transgender.' That's not a value set that Utahns hold."

Gay rights in Utah Poll results

Of those polled:

73% somewhat or strongly favor a statewide nondiscrimination law in employment
73% somewhat or strongly favor a statewide nondiscrimination law in housing

[ More than 80% of respondents believed such laws already existed in Utah. ]

55% somewhat or strongly oppose gay or transgender couples becoming foster parents
52% oppose gay or transgender couples adopting children to whom they have no relationship
64% somewhat or strongly favor allowing legally recognized forms of partnerships, short of marriage
5% somewhat or strongly oppose allowing gay and transgender couples to marry in Utah
57% somewhat or strongly oppose Utah recognizing marriages of gay and transgender couples who move here
54% believe that being gay is probably or definitely a choice

Information: Equality Utah

Duluth, Minnesota Passes Resolution Against State Constitutional Amendment That Would Ban Same-Sex Marriage

DULUTH, MINNESOTA -- In passing a resolution Monday, Duluth became the first city in Minnesota to take a stand against the proposed state constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage, which is slated to appear on the ballot for a statewide referendum vote in November 2012.

The Duluth City Council passed the resolution Monday in a 6-2 vote, with one city council member absent, having left prior to the vote's roll call. According to the local paper, the Duluth News Tribune, several city councilors earlier were critical of the council taking up the matter, suggesting it was not the proper venue, but they remained silent at Monday’s meeting.

“Equality concerns me. It will always concern me,” said Councilor Jeff Anderson, who co-sponsored the resolution. “This directly affects and impacts people in the city of Duluth.”

“This is about maintaining inclusive communities that will help us grow and thrive,” he said, suggesting that Duluth’s future will be brighter if people view it as a welcoming city.

After the meeting, Councilor Jim Stauber explained his opposition to the resolution.
“The good citizens of the state of Minnesota will all get a chance to vote on this. It’s a pretty simple issue, and people should be allowed to vote. I don’t think city council is the place to convince people whether to support this amendment or not. We’re here to conduct city business.”
On a personal level, Stauber indicated he is supportive of the amendment.
“I, for one, will not support any definition of marriage other than as a union between a man and woman,” he said.
But he said he will leave individuals to decide the issue for themselves.
“People shouldn’t be badgered by this council to vote one way or another,” Stauber said.
But speakers at the meeting all voiced support for the council taking a position on the issue.
Lana Youngblom said her son is gay and in a committed relationship. She urged the council to support the resolution, saying: “It shows Duluth is a welcoming, inclusive community.”
Youngblom said the state is home to more than 100,000 lesbian, gay and bisexual people. “What better way is there to let them know they are welcome here and supported,” she said.
Gary Boelhower said the city has an important role to play with an important symbolic action.
“The very foundation of our society is at stake,” he said. “This amendment would put discrimination into the constitution of our state.”
Council President Sharla Gardner, who co-sponsored the resolution, contended that the city shouldn’t remain silent on important issues.
“I believe the role of city government is to be the front line of democracy,” she said. ~ The Duluth News Tribune

In Brief

2011-12-19T20:35:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

Appeals Court Rejects Anti-Gay Graduate Student’s Bid for Reversal of Her Expulsion

ATLANTA, GEORGIA -- The U. S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a decision by a U.S. district judge who ruled Augusta State University may expel a graduate student who refused to comply with graduate degree programme requirements citing her Christian beliefs that homosexuality is immoral.

Jennifer Keeton, 24, who was pursuing a master’s degree in counseling, said she was ordered to undergo a re-education plan that requires her to attend “diversity sensitivity training” when the school told her that her anti-gay beliefs are incompatible with the standards of her desired profession. She sued the university in July 2010, claiming that faculty and university staff had violated her rights to free speech and the free exercise of her Christian faith when it told her that, in order to stay in the program, she would have to change her beliefs about homosexuality which Keeton cited as: ..."that it is immoral, unnatural, and a “lifestyle choice” that can be reversed through “conversion therapy.”

According to the lawsuit filed in July 2010, faculty members allegedly assailed Keeton’s beliefs as “inconsistent with the counseling profession” and “expressed suspicion over ‘Jen’s ability to be a multi-culturally competent counselor, particularly with regard to working with gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (GLBTQ) populations.’”

In supporting Augusta State in its actions, the U. S. District Court judge wrote, “The record suggests, and the testimony at the hearing bolsters, the Plan was imposed because Plaintiff exhibited an inability to counsel in a professionally ethical manner — that is, an inability to resist imposing her moral viewpoint on counselees – in violation of the ACA Code of Ethics.”

In its ruling on Friday, a unanimous three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit agreed with the district court judge, ruling that because Ms. Keeton was unlikely to prevail in her lawsuit, a court order for her preventing expulsion was unwarranted.

The court noted that the requirements of the counseling program—needed for its continued accreditation and compliance with the American Counseling Association’s Code of Ethics—are similar to the rules for judges, who must apply laws even if they consider them erroneous.

“In seeking to evade the curricular requirement that she not impose her moral values on clients,” the appellate court wrote, “Keeton is looking for preferential, not equal, treatment.”

Augusta State University spokeswoman Kathy Schofe told LGBTQ Nation last month that the university had tried to work with Keeton, suggesting she take diversity sensitivity workshops and attend the local Augusta LGBTQ Pride parade, but Keeton refused and declined to participate claiming the university’s “demands” violated her First Amendment rights.

Brandon McInerney Sentenced To Twenty-One Years In Prison; Lawrence King's Family Tells Court They Cannot Forgive McInerney

Brandon McInerney

VENTURA, CALIFORNIA -- Brandon McInerney, 17, was sentenced on Monday to 21 years in state prison for shooting an openly gay student in the back of the head during a computer lab class three years ago. McInerney did not speak at the hearing but his attorney Scott Wippert said his client was sorry for killing 15-year-old Larry King. "He feels deeply remorseful and stated repeatedly if he could go back and take back what he did he would do it in a heartbeat, Wippert said.

The family of Larry King said in court during they could not forgive their son's killer.

"You took upon yourself to be a bully and to hate a smaller kid, wanting to be the big man on campus,'" King's father, Greg King, said on behalf of his wife. "'You have left a big hole in my heart where Larry was and it can never be filled.'"

In a deal reached with Ventura County prosecutors last month, McInerney agreed to avoid a retrial and to plead guilty to second-degree murder, as well as one count each of voluntary manslaughter and use of a firearm. A mistrial was declared in September when jurors couldn't reach a unanimous decision on the degree of guilt. Several jurors in interviews with the media after McInerney's trial said that he shouldn't have been tried as an adult.

Teachers and students saw a dispute growing between King and McInerney leading up to the February 2008 killing, which culminated in McInerney shooting King twice in the head in a computer lab at E.O Green Junior High School. McInerney, then 14, had reached an emotional breaking point after King made repeated, unwanted sexual advances toward him and other boys, defense lawyers claimed.

The case drew widespread attention and raised questions about how schools should deal with students and sexual identity issues. Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, who is openly lesbian, weighed in on her television show shortly after the shooting telling her audience that LGBTQ persons shouldn't be treated as second-class citizens. Because of pre-trial publicity, the trial was moved from Ventura County to Chatsworth in the San Fernando Valley section of Los Angeles.

Ventura County Prosecutors said the shooting was first-degree murder and that McInerney should be punished as an adult. They argued the shooting was a hate crime, an aspect jurors rejected, after authorities found white supremacist materials in his home. Defense attorneys, who unsuccessfully argued to keep the case in juvenile court, said it was voluntary manslaughter because McInerney lost control of his emotions. They said the teen was beaten by his father and was described as a bright student who lost his motivation.

King's father also blamed the school district for not doing more to address the brewing feud between the two teens and their son's flamboyant behaviour. "Instead of protecting him from himself and his poor impulse control, they enabled and encouraged him to become more and more provocative," Greg King said.

During the sentencing hearing, King's family and Ventura County Deputy District Attorney Maeve Fox wore buttons with the teen's face on it, while some of McInerney's supporters wore powder blue wristbands that read "Save Brandon." After serving nearly four years since the murder and with the additional 21 years handed down Monday, McInerney will be released just before his 39th birthday. His murder conviction was stayed, and the plea deal agreed to after the mistrial called for him to be given the maximum sentence under California law for voluntary manslaughter — 11 years — and use of a firearm — 10 years, Fox said.

Brody's Notes... Marriage Equality Makes You 13% Healthier

2011-12-19T08:54:00.000-05:00

By Matt Baume | WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA -- George Clooney takes a stand for marriage equality with his latest role. A new study connects anti-gay marriage laws to cardiovascular disease. Republican voters increasingly favor marriage equality, but this week several presidential frontrunners had some particularly unpleasant things to say about LGBTs. And after a year of monetary and staffing battles, there's fresh conflict in Maryland.

Des DownUnder On Sundays

2011-12-18T19:43:00.000-05:00

Presented in two parts, Appearing Today & Next Sunday, Christmas Day:

A Christmas For Carol

By Desmond Rutherford

She was so awake. ‘Twas the day before Christmas and she had a thousand things to do. Why had she left everything to the last minute? Every Christmas it was the same. Carol Cage worked long hours, right up to Christmas Eve and then finally had to rush around to get everything done.

She got out of bed and went to her en suite bathroom. She changed her mind and went to her bedroom door and opened it. She had made a habit of closing it to avoid overhearing her son and his friend in bed again. She had heard them that first night some three months ago, when they came home late from the movies. Her son, her illegitimate son, was in a relationship with another boy.

She told herself it didn’t matter. She was almost not surprised. After all she had been through, what else could go wrong for her?

It was eighteen years ago that her boyfriend had gotten her pregnant and then left her; left her alone to fend for herself. She never heard from him again, leaving her holding a baby boy that she never wanted. Despite that, she had worked hard and succeeded in building up a business that provided a nice income for her and ‘the kid’, as she thought of him. Of course she never wasted money on him, only buying the essentials he needed for school. She was hardly the best mother in the world, but she fed and clothed him, giving him everything except the one thing he needed.

“Robert!” she yelled, from her now open bedroom door. She never acknowledged her son’s friend. It was like he wasn’t there. “Robert it’s time to get up.”

*************************************************

Robert and his friend, Jim, were jarred awake.

“Does she have to yell like that? What time is it Bobby?” Robert insisted on being called Bobby. He hated being called Robert, but he couldn’t stop his mother from using the name she had assigned to him.

“It’s seven a.m., I have to get up. Sorry Jim, but you know I have to do whatever she wants. It’s the only way I can get to go to college.” He leaned over his boyfriend and kissed him on the lips, and he asked him, “What are you doing today?”

“Waiting for her to finish with you, of course. Have you spoken to her about tomorrow yet?”

“No, not yet.” Bobby looked guilty as he made his confession. Jim wanted him to spend Christmas day with him. He had his own apartment a few streets away and longed to spend an entire day with Bobby. The two boys had never been able to manage an entire day alone. Bobby’s Mother had always seen to that, even though she never said anything to him.

“Robert!” yelled his mother, yet again.

“Robert,” mimicked Jim, “Mother calls. Why does she call you Robert? Everyone calls you Bobby.”

“That’s why; she knows I prefer Bobby, so she calls me Robert. Now, let’s get out of bed before she starts pounding on the damned door.”

The boys quickly showered together and dressed. Jim left forlornly, knowing he wouldn’t be fed, and Bobby went into the kitchen. His breakfast was waiting for him on the bar where they had all their meals. His mother’s perfectly good dining room was never used.

“Hurry up and eat Robert, I need to be out of here in ten minutes,” she said.

“Yes, Carol,” he said. He was not being disrespectful calling his mother by her first name. She insisted on it. She did not want to think of herself as a mother, at all.

Fifteen minutes later they were at her shop. Carol’s Flower Shoppe.

“Now Robert, I want you to sweep the floor again, and then tidy the store room. You know I must be able to see the stock. After that you will need to enter the deliveries into the computer. They should arrive by eleven.”

They worked hard all day serving many last minute customers and often Bobby had to make deliveries.

‘Twas the end of the day before he grasped his courage, “Carol?”

‘What?” She snapped at him.

“I was wondering, if I, err…”

“What is it? We don’t have all day. I have to get home to do the accounts.”

“Well, tomorrow is Christmas, and I wondering if I could, I could…”

“Spend it with ‘what’s his name’, I suppose. Is that what you’re trying to ask?”

“Please. It’s only one day,” he said.

“And what about the shop? Who’s going to take care of the plants?”

“Please, Mom, it’s Christmas.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Sorry…Carol.”

She looked at him and for a moment felt a twinge of motherhood rearing its ugly head and for some unknown reason she relented as she looked into his eyes. “Oh all right, I’ll see to them, but be sure to mop the work room before you leave tonight, do you hear me?”

“Yes, I will.”

“All right, then you can go,” she said, with a slight hesitation that did not go unnoticed by Bobby.

“But will you be okay?” he asked his mother suddenly feeling some concern at the thought of her being alone on Christmas Day.

“Don’t worry about me. It is just another day as far as I am concerned except for fewer customers. But you have a good day with your friend, and mind you’re early the day after.”

“I will, and Carol?” He paused until she turned and looked at him...

“Merry Christmas, Mom. Ho, Ho, Ho!”

Bobby quickly turned and ran into the work room. His mother grimaced and sighed as she left the shop, muttering to herself, “Merry Christmas, stuff and nonsense…Ho, Ho, Hokum.”

Carol’s grimace changed into what might pass as a smile in a different time, as she walked home. She could have asked Bobby to drive her, but she didn’t want to waste the extra fuel. As she walked along the street she noticed a kitten in a window of a pet shop she had not seen before. She stopped to look at the playful kitten, wondering what its fate would be when it was no longer cute. She looked up the sign over the door, “Shoppe of Christmas Pets.” “How peculiar,” she thought, “that anyone would open a pet shop just for Christmas Eve.”

Unexpectedly, a man carrying a thin grey complexion appeared at the door. Carol felt his presence and turned her head to gaze upon him. She thought he seemed familiar, and it made her vaguely uncomfortable, but she dismissed it, until he spoke.

“Hello Carol,” he said.

~ To be continued

In Brief

2011-12-16T22:10:00.003-05:00

Staff Reports

Connecticut Governor Names Openly Gay Man As Chief Of Staff

HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT -- Mark Ojakian, Deputy Budget Director for the state of Connecticut has been named to succeed Tim Bannon as Governor Dannel P. Malloy's new chief of staff. Speaking to reporters in a press conference Thursday making the announcement, the Democratic Governor said; "He knows that I have a reputation for working people pretty hard. He's been living it for a year now, and still, he took the job, which I think speaks volumes about his commitment to the people of Connecticut. I have no doubt that he is the right person for this job.''

When asked if he was wearing people out, Malloy who has a reputation for working non-stop long hours seven days a week, rarely taking time off, quipped; "I hope so. That's the plan. I don't ask anyone to work any harder than I do. … I would be disappointed if there is anyone around me who is not working hard.''

Stepping to the microphone, Ojakian said, "While it has been an incredibly challenging year — and it has been, I didn't think my hair could get any grayer, but it has over the last year — it has been an honor'' to serve in the administration.
He added, "We still face many challenges in the weeks, months, and years ahead'' on a wide variety of issues.
Known as "OJ'' inside the state Capitol, Ojakian has worked with all of the key players in the administration. Besides thanking members of Malloy's inner circle, Ojakian, 58, also thanked his husband, Jason Veretto of West Hartford, whom he introduced at the press conference.
Before Malloy took office, Ojakian served as deputy comptroller for 16 years under Nancy Wyman, who is now lieutenant governor.
"I probably would not be standing here today had it not been for her friendship and her ability to mentor me over 16 years,'' Ojakian said.
"You would have had more hair, too,'' Wyman responded.
"I would have a lot more hair,'' Ojakian quipped.
The pick by Malloy was viewed as a solid move to choose a loyal, longtime, trusted state employee. ~ The Hartford Courant

Minnesota State Senate Majority Leader Who Led Push For Constitutional Ban On Same-Sex Marriage On 2012 Ballot forced to resign after allegations of extra-martial affair are raised

Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA-- Minnesota State Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch,(R) has resigned her post after Minnesota Senate staff recently brought up allegations of an “inappropriate relationship between Majority Leader Koch and a Senate staffer. Senator Koch, who is is married with one child, was one of the proponents of Minnesota's 2012 anti-gay marriage constitutional amendment ballot initiative.

During a news conference Friday in the State Capitol, Senator Geoff Michel,(R-Edina) told reporters that multiple staffers had reported to Senate leaders allegations of an “inappropriate relationship between Majority Leader Koch and a Senate staffer."We sit here with a lot of humility, sadness, and shock,” he said. Michel acknowledged that he had no personal knowledge of how long the relationship was ongoing for and that because of legal restrictions he would not discuss the name of the Senate staffer involved with the majority leader.

Michel told the gathered press corps that he would only specify that the alleged relationship was “inappropriate” a “conflict of interest” and created an “unstable work environment for staff.” On whether or not the relationship was sexual, Michel said "I think there's only two people who could fully characterize that,” however he indicated that Senate leadership never heard the word “sexual” used by the staffers when the allegations surfaced.

The night before Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch resigned her leadership post, she was confronted by her peers about allegations of an inappropriate relationship.
GOP senators met with Koch, R-Buffalo, Wednesday evening and confronted her, the senators said Friday. The allegations accuse her of an inappropriate relationship with a Senate staffer.
There were "multiple reports from staff" about the relationship, said Sen. Geoff Michel, R-Edina, in a press conference Friday afternoon called shortly after news of the relationship broke.
He didn't characterize the relationship, but it reportedly interfered with the Senate's work environment. He also did not name the staffer involved.
Michel has been named Interim Senate Majority Leader until a replacement an be elected.
When confronted, Koch neither admitted nor denied the allegations but mentioned resigning, Michel said.
Michel said nothing had been resolved before Koch's sudden resignation Thursday.Koch also has said she will not seek re-election in 2012. ~ The St. Paul Pioneer Press

Brody's Notes... Newt Gingrich Attacks LGBTQ Community In Multi-prong Campaign Blitzkrieg

2011-12-15T21:52:00.002-05:00

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich

By Brody Levesque | DES MOINES, IOWA -- In a question and answer session today with the editorial board of The Des Moines Register newspaper, GOP presidential hopeful and front runner, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, attacked the LGBTQ community, first on the subject of same-sex marriage, and then on the topics of sexual orientation as well as the repeal of the Defence Department policy known as "Don't Ask-Don't Tell." Earlier this week, Gingrich lent his support to the Iowa far-right group Family Leader’s marriage vow. In a letter to the anti-gay organization, Gingrich vowed to support DOMA and a federal marriage amendment. That marriage vow calls homosexuality a choice and a threat to public health.

Gingrich also today signed the National Organization for Marriage’s (NOM) anti-gay “Marriage Pledge” earlier today. The pledge calls on candidates to vigorously support the Defense of Marriage Act, push for a federal marriage amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman, repeal marriage equality in the nation’s capital, appoint anti-equality judges, and form a McCarthy-like commission to look into alleged incidents of harassment against NOM supporters.

Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese reacted to Gingrich’s signing the NOM pledge saying;

"Newt Gingrich’s signature to the NOM Marriage Pledge is just the latest indicator of how beholden the GOP presidential candidates are to anti-gay groups. The tenets of the NOM pledge are rooted in hatred against LGBT Americans – by signing it, Gingrich and his fellow candidates are distancing themselves from mainstream opinion and taking an astonishingly extremist stance.

We know that more than 50 percent of Americans support marriage equality, 77 percent of voters favor anti-discrimination laws, and a resounding number of people of faith believe their religion calls on them to support LGBT equality. His support for the NOM Marriage Pledge firmly puts Newt Gingrich on the wrong side of history.”

In the session this morning with the Des Moines Register’s editorial board, Gingrich noted that LGBTQ people have a “significant range of choice within a genetic pattern” and can choose to be straight just like someone can “choose to be celibate.” He also stated that there is a “big difference between saying that you’re to have an acceptance of people’s lifestyles and saying that you’re now going to normalize that as a standard for the whole country”:

Question: Do you believe that people choose to be gay?
GINGRICH: I believe it’s a combination of genetics and environment. I think both are involved. I think people have many ranges of choices. Part of the question is, do you want a society which has a bias in one direction or another?
Question: So people can then choose one way or another?
GINGRICH: I think people have a significant range of choice within a genetic pattern. I don’t believe in genetic determinism and I don’t think there is any great evidence of genetic determinism. There are propensities. Are you more likely to do this or more likely to do that? But that doesn’t mean it’s definitional.
Question: So a person can then choose to be straight?
GINGRICH: Look, people choose to be celibate. People choose many things in life. You know, there is a bias in favor of non-celibacy. It’s part of how the species recreates. And yet there is a substantial amount of people who choose celibacy as a religious vocation or for other reasons.

The following is a transcript of the rest of the Gingrich interview:

Question: With your view of history do you see comparisons between the civil rights era and the push these days for gay rights? There were lots of people in the South in the '60s who would have never had consented to blacks and whites marrying, and that's become the law of the land. There are lots of gay folks who see themselves in the same predicament. Talk about that.
GINGRICH: I think there is an enormous difference between an inescapable fact of race — and you have to decide whether or not you are in fact going to tolerate discrimination based on race — and a question about culture, a question about what are your values. I think marriage is between a man and a woman. That's a value proposition.
I think it is very important for society to try and emphasize that relationship. I think people growing up in a structure in which children have parents that they look up to and parents that they relate to is a very important thing.
I think there is a big difference between saying that you are going to have an acceptance of people's lifestyle and saying you now are going to normalize that as the standard for the whole country. The fact is I am a traditional classic conservative. And I am defending a value system which has a several-thousand-year history behind it, which is pretty clear. And I think that almost nobody who studies that value system has any doubts about that clarity.
Question: A lot of people from the South in the '50s and '60s would have said mixed-race marriage was a cultural thing that they couldn't accept at the time.
GINGRICH: Look, you can always make parallels if you want to. I don't accept that parallel. I think that it is fairly ludicrous. Nobody is suggesting that we have legal segregation of gays, nobody is suggesting they not be allowed to use the bathroom, they not be allowed to drink at the water fountain. I mean, segregation was a horrible thing. And I grew up, I was born in Pennsylvania, I grew up in an integrated U.S. Army. I arrived at Fort Benning when I was a junior in high school. Segregation was still legal, it was a totally different thing. And I think that it is frankly offensive to have this whole effort to draw the contrast and to say that if you feel strongly about marriage being between a man and a woman, gee, is that parallel to being a racist? The answer is no. I am defending a 3,000-year tradition. It's very deep in our culture for very profound reasons.
Question: But marriage is about to be a minority status in this country, marriage between a man and a woman.
GINGRICH: And that's a problem.
Question: Is there something as president you would see that you could do to turn that tide if that's what your value is?
GINGRICH: I think part of it is to shift the benefit patterns economically so there is a greater benefit to being married. Look at the impact. You go back and look at [then–Assistant Secretary of Labor Daniel Patrick] Moynihan's original warnings on this topic 40 years ago. And by every criteria, the breakdown of the family has gotten worse, the number of children who are growing up rootless and without any kind of adult supervision has gotten worse. And yet Moynihan was roundly attacked for having said things that are now patently true, very clearly obvious. I think [Rick] Santorum is actually on to something important, that finding a way to create a positive environment to maximize the desirability of marriage being the central building block and family being the central building block of society is a very important step we ought to take.
Question: So apart from marriage you say you support equal treatment of gay Americans?
GINGRICH: I'm against discrimination against people based on their private behavior.

Question: So what is your position on the "don't ask, don't tell" policy?
GINGRICH: That would be my policy — don't ask, don't tell.
Question: So in the military, you would have separate standards?
GINGRICH: I don't think in the military, that you particularly want sexual behavior to be an overt issue.
Question: So you would not have wanted that repealed?
GINGRICH: I would not have wanted it repealed.
Question: Would you try and reinstate it?
GINGRICH: I would sign a reinstatement.
Question: Would you actively work to get it reinstated?
GINGRICH: Well, I would encourage the Congress to pass reinstatement, and I suspect the next Congress will pass reinstatement.
And by the way, when the president moved in the opposite direction, the two major ground combat forces — the Army and the Marine Corps — were both deeply opposed.
Question: They aren't now, though.
GINGRICH: They aren't now because they respond to the commander in chief.
Question: They aren't telling the truth, they aren't telling their true feelings?
GINGRICH: I think fairly often when you are in the chain of command, there is a way to ask the question just right. But the truth is I think it would be a career-ending conversation.

In Brief

2011-12-14T22:54:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

Catholic Archbishop In Columbia Claims Gay Adoptive Dad Will Want Sex With His Kids

The Burr family (Chandler, Joe and Brian)
Family Photo

BOGOTA, COLUMBIA -- In an interview Tuesday with El Tiempo newspaper, Colombian Catholic Church Archbishop, Juan Vicente Cordoba, strongly criticised a family court judge's decision to allow Chandler Burr- a former contributing editor to U.S. News and World Report and a columnist for The New York Times who is gay- to adopt two Colombian boys, suggesting he may become sexually attracted to them.

The Archbishop told El Tiempo that Burr suffers from a "disorder of sexual identity" which will affect his relationship with his children and suitability as a father.

Cordoba said, "I do not know him and I am not accusing him of anything, but one thing is clear and that is that he has homosexual tendencies and he is going to receive a boy of 10-years-old and an adolescent of 13, and between them there won't be a father-son relationship." He continued, "He will receive two children at an age when they may be attractive to him, which could be a temptation."

The Archbishop, who holds a post-graduate degree as a psychologist, claimed that homosexuality was universally considered by mental health professionals to be a "disorder of sexual identity." In fact homosexuality was removed as a disorder from the DSM -- the Diagnostic and Statisical Manuel, considered the psychiatric world's 'bible' -- in 1994.

When asked whether the children were at risk, Cordoba suggested that it was not advisable to have allowed a homosexual man to adopt male children, given his tendencies, and that female children may have been safer in Mr Burr's care.

Alejandro Ordoñez, Colombia's Inspector General and known for his conservative Catholic views, supported the bishop's opposition to the adoption, given that "there are apparent contradictions regarding the validity of his intimate relationships with same sex individuals".

Burr had traveled to Colombia in March 2011 to adopt the two boys. While he was finalising the adoption paperwork and visas he casually disclosed the fact that he is gay. Authorities from the Colombian Family Welfare Institute took the boys and after a round of publicity in the U. S. and local media, the ICBF's Director Diego Molano said that at the request of the ICBF Burr and the children underwent psychological tests.

During the subsequent interview and background investigation, the two children indicated that they had no objection to their adoptive father’s sexual orientation and both stated that they wanted to be with him.

The family court judge in charge of the case took into account the opinion of the children, as well as a newly passed anti-discrimination law in Columbia that deals with gay men and adoptions ruling in favor of Burr. The judge ordered Colombia’s family welfare institute (ICBF) to return the two boys to the custody of their adoptive father. Upon hearing of the judge's decision Burr said that he is happy and feels that with his case "it [the country] has advanced."

The Burr family (Chandler, Joe and Brian) are now back together, and preparing to spend the Christmas holidays together as a family in New York City, where Burr resides.

Brody's Scribbles... Disciplinary Action: Blindness & Ignorance

2011-12-14T19:52:00.000-05:00

By Bart Vogelzang | VANCOUVER ISLAND, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA -- What exactly is discipline? The dictionary gives us a clue, but by no means does it provide clarity. Amongst various answers, we have two that stand out:

Training expected to produce a specific character or pattern of behaviour, especially training that produces moral or mental improvement.
Punishment intended to correct or train.

It is clear that the object is to improve moral or mental capabilities, and that punishment is the method used. Of course punishment can run from a ‘nasty’ look to death, with the latter obviously going too far to produce the improved mental state, except maybe in those who fear it.

What is forgotten, or conveniently ignored, is that some people are not capable of being induced to improvement by this punishment mode. Of course, I’m talking about those of us who have conditions which preclude training or learning by standard means, those with mental differences, whether they be the so-called ‘mentally handicapped’, or autistics, or dyslexics, or others with similar challenges.

These are not people who find it impossible to learn, or train (or be trained) to behave in societal accepted ways; they just can’t do it by the traditional methods. They require specialized procedures, usually not even that involved, but definitely needing a different perspective and understanding of how they see and experience the world.

If one looks at how they experience the world, then develop a strategy to show how that world can be modified to improve their place in it, and end up starting appropriate training, things will improve for everyone involved. However, if the wrong perspective prevails the training method will be imperfect at best and disastrous at worst, and things will simply get much worse for everyone.

I will try to explain by using a physical example, rather than a mental one; mental examples don’t work for the very reason that nobody can actually see them. If you were dealing with a boy who cannot walk, nor even stand up, due to paralysis and atrophied muscles in his legs, you may be able to help tremendously by selecting an appropriate training to strengthen his arms for using a wheelchair, or even some kind of prosthetic legs. However, bullying him, beating him, applying ‘corporal punishment’ and berating him for his inability to walk normally is not going to help him. It will likely end up causing untold harm, as you would effectively be punishing him despite his efforts to do what is demanded. He’d only learn that efforts result in punishment, thereby mentally crippling him as well.

Demanding that someone see well when they have a vision problem, or that a deaf person must ‘listen better’ when they are incapable of hearing in the first place, and then punishing them for failure to comply with the unreasoning and unreasonable demands will result with the same end; a bitter, crushed, perplexed, or hostile victim of bullying.

Now, after some ‘physical’ examples, you may understand that the same issues apply to those with mental differences. If someone cannot ‘see’ body language, and cannot ‘feel’ emotions, or cannot untangle a jumble of letters on a page, beating them, whether you call it corporal punishment or something else, will never produce a positive result. The discipline is completely wrong, as it is not actually training anything. It takes more than compliance or willing effort by anyone to produce a result; it takes the ability as well. With the ability not there, even whipping unto death will not produce compliance.

Sadly, some people cannot see beyond their own blindness and ignorance, which is sad enough, but when these people are our so-called “leaders” as elected members, we have a severe problem.

“Wyoming state Rep. Bob Nicholas explained his behavior by saying his son, who has a condition similar to autism, was being combative during lunch, and that he needed “corporal punishment.” He has no intentions of resigning. “I don’t think I committed a crime, so why would I?” he said.”

So here we see an elected individual literally beating his own son for behaving in the only way he can. Rather than providing caring guidance, he violently assaults his own offspring, and doesn’t even have the smarts to realize he has broken the law, and worse, he has broken what should be his vow to love, protect and teach his child. It is the ultimate betrayal in that he condemns his son, attacks him, and offers only pain to someone who needs help, not brutality. Rep. Bob Nicholas has no intention of resigning? Pity, because ‘fathers’ acting like that really can’t be much of a leader.

Brody's Notes... "...One of our big jobs is to promote LGBT acceptance." Tyler Clementi's Parents Speak to NBC's Today

2011-12-14T09:18:00.000-05:00

Jane & Joe Clementi speak with NBC's Ann Curry on TODAY

By Brody Levesque | NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- In their first television interview, Tyler Clementi's parents Jane and Joe Clementi talked with NBC correspondent Kerry Sanders Monday telling Sanders that the loss they still feel is "almost like a physical pain."

"It's like a tightening of the chest. It's aching of the muscles and tightening of your face and your jaw and you're clenching, and it just physically hurts," said Jane Clementi.

Last year their son Tyler, an 18-year-old freshman at Rutgers University in New Jersey jumped off New York City's George Washington Bridge days after he had experienced a romantic encounter with another man that was secretly livestreamed over the internet by his Rutgers roommate, 19-year-old Dharun Ravi, who faces multiple felonies as a result.

Ravi, faces 15 criminal counts, including invasion of privacy and bias intimidation, which could result in a 10-year prison sentence. Ravi rejected a plea deal on Friday.

Their son's suicide hit the family only a few weeks after he revealed to his parents he was gay, having doubts about the existence of a God, and that he felt friendless, according to the Clementis'. Tyler's mother added, "I wish he would have come to us, but he didn't," she said. "I wish the RA would have encouraged him to come to us."

Appearing live on NBC's The Today Show, both Jane and Joe Clementi told anchor Ann Curry they are finally seeing some good come from the media attention Tyler's death has received. The family has previously made only limited statements to the press, mostly issued through their attorney, but told Curry that now, 15 months after their son's death, they have decided to grant interviews in an effort to promote the foundation they're launching in their son's honor. Tyler's parents said they hope their foundation will increase acceptance of gay young people, prevent suicide and stop online bullying.

Joe Clementi told Curry he has a message for gay youth who, like his son, may find themselves in a difficult place in life. "If you feel alone, find somebody, reach out to parents, friends. get help," he said. "Suicide is never the right answer - it's always wrong."

WATCH:

Brody's Notes... Senate GOP Blocks Appointment Of LGBTQ Ally As U. S. Ambassador To El Salvador

2011-12-13T15:53:00.002-05:00

Ambassador Mari Aponte via U. S. Embassy San Salvador

By Brody Levesque | WASHINGTON -- Senate Republicans Monday blocked efforts to have Mari Carmen Aponte, a Washington D. C. based attorney, who has served as a ‘recess’ appointed temporary ambassador to El Salvador confirmed as the permanent ambassador to that central american nation in a 49-37 vote.

Reaction from the White House was swift with presidential press secretary Jay Carney saying in a prepared statement released Monday evening: “Today’s filibuster is one more example of the type of political posturing and partisanship the American people are tired of seeing in Washington. Whether it’s allowing up or down votes on our representatives to the Western Hemisphere, allowing consumers to have someone looking out for their interests, or extending and expanding the payroll tax cut for the middle class, Republicans in Congress need to stop thinking about the next election and start putting the best interests of the American people first,” Carney said.

Aponte, who has is currently serving as U. S. ambassador in San Salvador since September 2010 after the president, facing GOP opposition to her nomination, made her a recess appointee. Her temporary tenure is slated to expire at the end of this year.

According to a source on Capitol Hill, speaking to LGBTQNation on the condition of remaining anonymous, the principal reason Senate republicans led by tea-party favorite, conservative Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina- blocked Ambassador Aponte's nomination was due to her pro-LGBTQ advocacy, citing an opinion editorial she wrote last June in the Salvadoran newspaper, 'La Prensa Grafica.' She had authored the column- “For the Elimination of Prejudices Wherever They Exist-” in response to a memorandum distributed in May at the direction of U. S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton that urged ambassadors and U. S. foreign service diplomatic personnel to support LGBT pride month.

In her editorial, the ambassador highlighted the fact that both the United States and El Salvador were among more than 80 sovereign states whom had signed a United Nations declaration calling for the elimination of violence against LGBTQ people. Aponte also pointed out that El Salvador President Mauricio Funes had signed a decree the previous year in May 2010 prohibiting discrimination by the Salvadoran government based on sexual orientation.

“No one should be subjected to aggression because of who he is or who he loves. Homophobia and brutal hostility are often based on lack of understanding about what it truly means to be gay or transgender. To avoid negative perceptions, we must work together with education and support for those facing those who promote hatred,” she said.

Statistical data shows that 57 percent of El Salvador’s population is Roman Catholic, and after the ambassador's column was published, a few prominent Salvadoran family and Catholic organisations groups wrote to American lawmakers criticizing Aponte for “abusing her diplomatic status," arguing that Aponte displayed a clear disdain for their "cultural values and identity.”

The Hill source told LGBTQNation that American 'family values' organisations, in particular the Washington based Family Research Council, also played a significant role in lobbying against the ambassador urging lawmakers to oppose her confirmation and suggested she be removed as U. S. Ambassador.

Conservative anger towards her is also based on unfounded rumours that an ex-boyfriend was a Cuban spy, allegations that were cleared by the FBI as untrue.

The Associated Press reported via the Washington Post:

Thirteen years ago, when [President] Clinton nominated Aponte, reports surfaced that a former live-in boyfriend, Roberto Tamayo, had ties to Cuban intelligence in Fidel Castro’s regime and that Cuban intelligence agents had tried to recruit her. The head of the Foreign Relations Committee at the time, Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., signaled he would question Aponte about the allegations at her confirmation hearing; she withdrew her nomination.
In the end, the FBI cleared her. On two occasions, Aponte has received top-secret security clearances.
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said a review of her file showed “nothing to corroborate the vicious allegations on her past.” The Cuban-American senator argued that if there were anything in her past that showed ties to Fidel Castro’s former regime, he would oppose her nomination.

In a piece he penned last month in the publication Human Events, Senator DeMint argued

“Our relationship with the Salvadoran people has been one of trust and friendship for decades,” DeMint said. “We should not risk that by appointing an ambassador who shows such a blatant disregard for their culture and refuses to clear unsettled doubts about her previous relationships. It’s time to bring Ms. Aponte home.”

Senate majority leader, Nevada Democratic Senator Harry Reid issued the following statement last night and also left open the possibility of revisiting the ambassador's confirmation proceedings:

“Senate Republicans once again put politics above policy by blocking the confirmation of a dedicated public servant. In the fifteen months Mari Carmen Aponte has served as our ambassador to El Salvador, she finalized an important international, anti-crime agreement and forged a strong partnership between our nations. The Puerto Rican community and all Americans are right to be proud of Ms. Aponte’s accomplishments as a diplomat representing our nation, as I am.
I am disappointed Republicans continued a long-running trend of obstructing qualified nominees just to score political points. Unfortunately, defeating President Obama is more important to Senate Republicans than confirming qualified nominees to represent our country in Latin America.”

In Brief

2011-12-13T11:59:00.001-05:00

Staff Reports

Minnesota School Board Labels Classroom Conversations About LGBTQ Students 'Controversial'

Audience member at Anoka-Hennepin School Board meeting.

COON RAPIDS, MINNESOTA -- During its meeting before a packed room with a standing room only crowd Monday, the Anoka-Hennepin Minnesota School District's board proposed a new "Controversial Topics Curriculum Policy" to replace the current "neutral policy" that prohibits the district's teachers from talking about homosexuality in the classroom.

Advocates and allies of LGBTQ students objected saying that the policy does not specify what those 'controversial topics' are. Tammy Aaberg, whose son Justin was one of nearly a dozen Anoka-Hennepin students who committed suicide after anti-gay bullying since the 2009 school year, wasn't happy about calling the policy 'controversial.' In a statement she read before the board, Aaberg told officials "I read the policy and my heart started breaking all over again. Because now we're going from neutral on sexual orientation to labeling LBGT kids as controversial."

Others seemed confused about what can or cannot be discussed in the classroom, which is why they urged the board to clarify the proposed policy before voting on it next month.

Opponents of any changes to the current policy also voiced their concerns, one woman telling the board, "We were a model for the nation at protecting kids from homosexual propaganda. The sexual orientation curriculum policy is an excellent policy."

The board seemed cautiously optimistic that it was taking a proper course of action. Board member Scott Wenzel told those in attendance, "Am I totally happy with it, absolutely not but I think we're moving forward to satisfy and clear up some misunderstandings in our school district and create a safer school for our students."

The board read through the policy Monday night, and will read through it one more time before they make a final decision in January.

Brody's Notes... AFA's Bryan Fischer: Homosexual bigots attacking Rick Perry ad

2011-12-12T22:27:00.000-05:00

Brody's Notes... Mitt Romney At Odds With Gay Vietnam Vet Over Same-Sex Marriage

2011-12-12T21:53:00.002-05:00

Bob Garon (Left) spars with Mitt Romney over gay marriage

By Brody Levesque | MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE -- During a campaign meet and greet at a local diner Monday morning, GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney found himself in an awkward position defending his stance on same-sex marriage. Romney was working the breakfast crowd at Chez Vachon diner drumming up support for his campaign when he slid into a booth occupied by a gentleman wearing a Vietnam Veteran baseball cap. After a round of small talk, Romney found himself being asked whether he favoured repeal of New Hampshire's Same-Sex marriage law.

“I support the repeal, I support the repeal of the New Hampshire law. I believe a marriage is between a man and a woman,” Romney replied in response.

The vet, 63-year-old Bob Garon from the town of Epsom- located northeast of Manchester- then challenged the former Massachusetts governor saying, “If two men get married, apparently a veteran’s spouse would not be entitled to any burial benefits or medical benefits or anything that the serviceman has devoted his time and effort to his country, and you just don’t support equality in terms of same-sex marriage?”

Romney reiterated his support for the Defense of Marriage Act, and added, “And we apparently disagree.”

“It’s good to know how you feel,” Garon said. “That you do not believe that everyone is entitled to their constitutional rights.”

“No, actually, I think at the time the Constitution was written it was pretty clear that marriage is between a man and a woman,” Romney replied. “And I don’t believe the Supreme Court has changed that.”

With that, a Romney aide interrupted, saying, “Governor, we’ve got to get on with Fox News right now.”

“Oh,” said Garon. “I guess the question was too hot.”

“No, I gave you the answer,” Romney said.

“You did,” Garon said. “And I appreciate your answer. And you know, I also learned something and New Hampshire is right. You have to look a man in the eye to get a good answer, and you know what, Governor, good luck.”

“Thank you, appreciate it,” Romney said. “Have a good day to you, sir.”

“You’re going to need it,” Garon replied.

“You are right about that,” Romney said as he left the table.

Reporters then clustered round Garon who disclosed that he was in fact gay and that the other gentleman sitting at the table across from the seat that the governor had just vacated was his husband- Bob Lemire- whom he had married last June. Garon told the assembled press corps:

“I’m totally convinced today that he’s not going to be my president at least in my book,” Garon said. “At least Obama will entertain the idea. This man is ‘No way, Jose.’ Well, take that, ‘No way, Jose’ back to Massachusetts.” Adding “I went and fought for my country and I think my spouse should be entitled to the same [benefits as they would] if I were married to a woman,” he said. “What the hell is the difference?”

Brody's Scribbles... What's Next for Prop 8?

2011-12-12T07:15:00.000-05:00

By Matt Baume | WEST HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA -- Prop 8's finished -- or at least, oral arguments in the appeals court are all over. Now a ruling on California's marriage ban could come at any minute. A couple in Hawaii sues for marriage; Scotland may reform its marriage laws; and Australian legislators are moving towards equality but the battle's still far from over.

Des Downunder On Sundays

2011-12-11T18:54:00.000-05:00

By Desmond Rutherford | ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA -- Rewards of Despair

The circumstances of one's life are often overlooked as being a significant contributing factor for creative work, and yet adverse conditions might be used to dismiss the opportunity to create. Trying to write, compose, or even live, whilst constrained by one catastrophe after another is, obviously, challenging. The uncertainty of not knowing if the bed you got out of this morning will still be yours tonight is not something that provides the most stable environment conducive to creativity. It seems that we can recognise the emptiness of our own personal apocalypse, simply through our life's circumstances.

Sometimes it seems that no matter what we do, life goes from bad to worse, to virtually impossible. Anxiety, fear, and terror may be the consequence of real dangers or they may be anticipations, the sequels of irrational conjecture, but the effect is the same. Sadly, they give rise to anxiety that we know will lead too many people into seeking a solution that is tragic for all of us. But there is also a less desolate aspect to threatening situations, that can permit us to learn from the experience, even though it nearly incapacitates us. Suffering does give us an insight into the human condition, with all its foibles and its hopes. And it does take courage and bravery to live through anxieties, and we are brave and courageous if we dare to look horror in the eye and scream, "I want to live," as loudly as we can. Just screaming that you aren't going to take it anymore, is not enough; you must demand to live. I know it can seem impossible...I've felt despair too. I've seen the horrors in the faces of others, reflected in and lurking behind their eyes, in the dungeons of their minds. And I am humbled when I have little, and they have nothing...but their determination to go on living.

Despair can lead to depression, and depression is restrictive, immobilising to paralysis, and yet courage can be born of desperation, inspiring us to find its truth, reality, depth and recognise that horror does not last forever, even though we may be affected for the rest of our lives, from having experienced the despair and depression. If we have ever asked why life is so full of such experiences, then we are on the brink of realising that life is those experiences, and it is our place to observe them, embrace them, use them, and make an art form of them, one that is as unique as we are; each of us.

Gertrude Stein

To live through horror, persecution and deprivation is not unknown to many peoples; indeed, LGBTQ people seem to be rather adept at learning how to survive in a hostile world. And it's not merely a matter of what we survive making us stronger, it's a matter of daring to live and love in the face of adversity; daring to shout, “Yes!” to life and living it. And then, with that innate human desire to express ourselves artistically, we feel impelled to take our discoveries, our thoughts and stories, and scratch them into the face of the Earth, so others may see them, share them, feel comforted, informed, inspired, entertained, or just so someone else knows that wonder exists, and that we can tell each other about it.

Compassion comes in many guises, but it must be true at its core, real truth without superstitions, and the truth of reality is not always easy to handle, but is its own reward, because it demands we live life fully, in the here and now, searching for the only sane and satisfactory reason for existence...Love.

"The job of the artist is not to succumb to despair but to find an antidote for the emptiness of existence.” - Gertrude Stein as quoted in the 2011 movie, Midnight in Paris.

Brody's Journal... For Jonah Mowry. Whats going on?

2011-12-09T22:30:00.002-05:00

Johnny Robinson, a gay teenager who was elected his high school's homecoming king, has recorded a video message for bullying victim Jonah Mowry.

Emulating Mowry's YouTube video, Robinson holds up handwritten notecards that explain he went through a period of being bullied and taunted with homophobic slurs before he found the courage to stand up for himself. He says after he became proud of who he is, he was elected homecoming king at his high school and even fell in love.

"Whether or not Jonahs Video was real or fake, mine is 100% real, and i still hope my message will help others with the serious issue of bullying that takes place in schools and homes everyday all over the World. I had only good intentions for this video and i hope that my story can at least help others struggling with this problem!"

In Brief

2011-12-09T22:12:00.000-05:00

Staff Reports

Legal protections against LGBT discrimination in Anchorage may be placed on April 2012 ballot initiatives

Anchorage, Alaska via State Of Alaska Visitor's Bureau

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA -- The Anchorage Daily News is reporting that the sponsor group of an initiative to extend legal protections against discrimination to LGBTQ people in this city Anchorage collected 13,515 signatures of Anchorage registered voters in support of the initiative which was turned in Thursday turned to the city clerk's office.

Anchorage city clerk Barbara Gruenstein said to get the measure on the ballot for the April 2012 city election ballot, supporters only needed 5,871 valid signatures. She added that it will take until sometime next week for her office to review the signatures.

Trevor Storrs, spokesman for One Anchorage- the group behind the initiative- said One Anchorage volunteers collected signatures from all around town where people gather, from house parties to public areas close to shopping centers. He also indicated that the group had raised about $90,000 so far for its ballot initiative campaign.

A conservative Christian group, Alaska Family Council, is already planning to campaign against the measure. The initiative is similar to a city ordinance that was passed by the Anchorage Assembly in 2009 after weeks of public hearings and debate, but then was vetoed by Mayor Dan Sullivan. The fight before the Assembly was long and loud, with hundreds of people, both proponents and opponents, speaking out.
When he vetoed the gay rights ordinance in 2009, Sullivan famously said he was not convinced there is discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation here. On Thursday, Sarah Erkmann, the mayor's spokeswoman, said this was his reaction to the initiative: "Mayor Sullivan believes a ballot initiative is appropriate in that it allows all citizens to weigh in on this subject."
Existing city law makes it illegal to discriminate in hiring, housing and other opportunities on the basis of race, gender, age, religion, marital status or physical or mental disability. The initiative, if it gets to voters and is passed, will add "sexual orientation, or transgender identity" to the list.
Alaska Family Council president Jim Minnery said the council and its legislative arm, Alaska Family Action, will be in the fore of a battle against the initiative.

"I wish we lived in a world where everyone was automatically treated the same regardless of whether we agreed or disagreed with who they are as people," Storrs said at a press conference in the City Hall lobby. "The reality is a person who works hard and does a good job can be fired simply because they are gay."

"It's not clear that there is any widespread discrimination against the gay community," Minnery said. "What is clearer is that this is a true threat to religious liberties." ~ The Anchorage Daily News

Brody's Notes... Rick Perry's Anti-Gay Ad Creates Problems For Advisers & GOP Party Activists

2011-12-08T22:24:00.001-05:00

By Brody Levesque | WASHINGTON -- The controversial anti-gay television ad that began airing yesterday in Iowa from the campaign of Texas Governor Rick Perry- in which Perry takes direct aim criticising the Obama administration's repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell- has sharply divided his advisers and caused in fighting between conservative gay GOP political groups.

The ad began airing a day after the Texas governor attacked the administration over the president's directive to ensure LGBTQ equality rights globally by using foreign aid as an incentive. In the ad, Perry questions why gay and lesbian servicemembers can now openly serve in the armed forces while American children "can't openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school."

"You don't need to be in the pew every Sunday to know that there's something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military but our kids can't openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school."

One GOP political operative acknowledged that the ad was meant to serve as a rallying point for influential evangelical voters.

GOP operative and political strategist Nelson Warfield, who was responsible for the ad's creation, told The Huffington Post Thursday that Perry's Chief pollster, Tony Fabrizio, called it "nuts." Warfield also told the HuffPo that the ad was created over Fabrizio's objections.

The controversy didn't stop there as today saw a confrontational series of tweets from GOP gay group GOProud's board chairman Christopher Barron and co-founder and executive director Jimmy LaSalvia blasting Fabrizio- utilising a gay slur in a demeaning way in another tweet- which also effectively outed Fabrizio as a gay man.

Washington political journalist and pundit Chris Geidner asked Barron about the tweets, and he responded,

"Perry's pollster and strategist Tony Fabrizio has lined his pockets with gay money (from folks like [The] Gill [Foundation]) for years and now he sits back and watches as Perry unfolds a designed strategy to demonize gay people to score political points."
Barron added, "Totally disgusting and an example of Washington political whores at their worst."
Asked about questions of whether LaSalvia's tweets were outing Fabrizio, he replied, "We didn't think that there was any question about Tony Fabrizio's sexual orientation. Obviously there are questions, so those questions should be directed to Tony."

The conservative Log Cabin Republicans group, while expressing dismay at Perry's ad and the Texas Governor's stance- telling reporters, "It seems Governor Perry wants to be theocrat in chief, not commander in chief," said R. Clarke Cooper, executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans- were also less than thrilled with GOProud's actions.

Local Washington Chapter head Robert Turner, upset by GOProud's attack tweets said:

"GOProud has used Twitter to out someone with whom they disagree. Log Cabin Republicans also disagreed with the Perry ad, but the national office had the backbone to issue an honest press release and list what they disagreed with. GOProud, by contrast, dribbled out a person's private life through tweets. Worse, given that we don't know the internal workings of the Perry campaign." He added "It is possible to disagree vigorously but respectfully with other people," said DC Log Cabin President Robert Turner. "GOProud has disgraced itself in attacking Mr. Fabrizio. Log Cabin Republicans are against outing, especially for staffers, who have limited if any control over the politicians they work for."

For his part LaSalvia argued; "Perry said in the ad that the service of tens of thousands of patriotic gay Americans is what's wrong in this country. That is an outrageous and un-American statement. If he [Fabrizio] thought that the ad was repugnant and it aired over his objections, he should have quit the campaign in protest."

Ray Sullivan, spokesman for the Texas Governor's campaign, called the internal dissension and the external criticism over the ad "irrelevant."

"This ad is about the governor's faith, the governor's belief and his campaign, not about any one else," Sullivan said. "And the ad talks about what Perry views as this administration pushing a liberal agenda in places like the military, while at the same time praying at football games, moments of silence at school and celebrating Christmas in the public arena is frequently verboten and certainly not defended by this administration. The bottom line is that the ad is about Governor Perry's faith and his belief."

Brody's Scribbles... The Partisans: Rick Perry - Weak, man.

2011-12-08T10:49:00.000-05:00

Andy Cobb

By Andy Cobb | CHICAGO, ILLINOIS -- In response, of course, to this Rick Perry Video. It's hard to tell exactly what he was on about in much of this.

Honestly, if kids "observed' Christmas any harder in schools than they already do, they would be elves. And liberals don't hate religion, we're too busy drum circling, same sex marrying, and not owning guns to bother.

So what was he talking about? He was talking about trying to break double digits in Iowa. And since he's sitting on a big pile of money from people who once thought he was going to be president, it'll be fun to see him thrash about as his campaign gasps for air.

But Rick Perry and all other heathen-haters take note: atheists and agnostics are 20 percent of the population and growing--more than African-Americans or Latinos. Add in gays, lesbians, bi and transgender folks, and you not only have a substantial voting block, you have a fucking awesome party. Lezzdoit.

In Brief

2011-12-07T21:12:00.000-05:00

Staff Reports

ICE Drops Deportation Bid Against Lesbian Couple

Cristina Ojeda and wife Monica Alcota

NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- Los Angeles based immigration attorney, Lavi Soloway, was notified Monday that U. S. Immigration Judge Terry Bain signed an order November 30 dismissing the case against an Argentine woman who had married a U. S. citizen and was facing deportation. Monica Alcota, was due to appear in U.S. Immigration Court in Manhattan Tuesday, but Judge Bain's order dismissed the case based on what the Judge termed a situation where "good cause has been established." Alcota's lawyer points out that the decision to drop the case marks a vast improvement in the treatment of federal immigration cases of same-sex couples involving a legal alien and a U.S. citizen.

According to the Associated Press, Soloway based the request to dismiss the case on Alcota's marriage to her U.S. citizen spouse, Cristina Ojeda, her deep ties to her community, the absence of any adverse factors and her activism against the Defense of Marriage Act, signed into law in 1996.

Since the law specified marriage as being between a man and a woman, U.S. immigration authorities routinely denied green cards for same sex couples, advocates for the couples have said, citing the dilemma that the government's position left for an estimated 26,000 bi-national same sex couples in the United States where one partner is a U.S. citizen. The government's position softened earlier this year when Attorney General Eric Holder said the executive branch would no longer defend the Act as constitutional, Soloway said. In 2010, a federal judge in Boston struck down the law, saying it forces the state to discriminate against its own citizens to qualify for federal funding and violates the Constitution's equal protection clause. The couples were helped more on November 17 when an inter-agency prosecutorial discretion working group began working with a goal of finding and closing all "low-priority" deportation cases, the lawyer said. Soloway said he was pleased with the actions by Bain and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which is responsible for pursuing deportations. "After a courageous battle, Monica and Cristina have arrived at the end of a long journey that began when Monica was pulled off a Greyhound bus in July 2009 and held in an ICE detention facility for three months while we fought for her release," Soloway said. "That nightmare ends today. Monica and Cristina can now turn to the business of building a future together without living in constant fear of deportation." Alcota was taken into custody after a random inspection by a border agent of the bus as the couple finished moving some items from Buffalo to New York City after Ojeda finished school, Soloway said. Dismissal of the case marked the first time a case involving a lesbian married couple had been dismissed since the federal government relaxed its pursuit of the cases, Soloway said. He added that gay couples in Newark, New Jersey, and San Francisco had previously obtained dismissals. ~ The Associated Press

Brody's Journal... Last chances to vote! Help the Matthew Shepard Foundation win a $1M grant

2011-12-07T20:42:00.002-05:00

This is it! Tomorrow, Thursday, December 8th is the last day to vote for the Foundation in the American Giving Awards Presented by Chase. The Foundation is one of five charities nationwide who are finalists in the American Giving Awards, a contest that will provide a $1 million grant to the winner. If we are chosen, we will create a new interactive online learning program to help LGBT and Allied youth cope with and avoid bullying.

We have been so fortunate to have the support of Ellen & Betty DeGeneres, Cyndi Lauper, Andy Cohen, Chelsea Handler, Ben Cohen, Reichen Lehmkuhl, Rib Hillis, the Human Rights Campaign, the Give a Damn Campaign, GLAAD, the StandUp Foundation, the American Foundation for Equal Rights, NOH8, Equality PA and many others, in promoting the Foundation during the competition. Will you help us?

If you are a Facebook user, you can still vote once today and once tomorrow before 11:59 p.m. EST for our proposal. The more votes we get, the better our chance of delivering a top-notch, diverse and useful program for as many youth as possible, as soon as possible. We strongly believe this will be a wonderful legacy for Matt and a way to keep LGBT youth safe for years to come.

You can find the page where you can cast your vote atwww.VoteMatthewShepard.org --- and if you are a Chase Bank online customer, you can vote one more time at Chase.com from your account. Unfortunately, mobile voting is not an option. Please vote from a computer.

Voting is free, only takes a moment, and every vote will help us “Replace Hate with Understanding, Compassion and Acceptance.”

Be sure to tune into the NBC Primetime Special on Saturday, December 10th at 8 p.m. Eastern & Pacific, 7 p.m. Central & Mountain, to see who takes home the $1 million grant.

Thank you from all of us at the Foundation for your love, support and votes!

Brody's Notes... Troy Michigan Mayor Confronted By Angry Citizens Over Use Of Gay Slur

2011-12-06T21:02:00.000-05:00

Janice Daniels

By Brody Levesque | TROY, MICHIGAN -- In a meeting Monday stretching five hours until nearly 1 AM Tuesday, Troy, Michigan residents and city council-members took turns confronting city Mayor Janice Daniels in anger and disgust over comments she had made about gay marriage on her Facebook page last June. The overflow crowd packed both council chambers and the adjacent meeting room with dozens of citizens lined up for public comment. Speaker after speaker taking Daniels to task in what 26-year old resident Jeff Williams stated by questioning: "How can any citizen of Troy ever look at this mayor the same way?” Williams went on to address the mayor directly telling her “You don’t represent my values. I’m ashamed to have you represent the city.”

Earlier, as Daniels entered the Troy municipal building, a crowd of about 40 persons chanted for her removal. The mayor paused and lectured the crowd on the meaning of forgiveness by saying, "True forgiveness means that you wipe the slate clean and allow the person to improve themselves from that point forward, so this is a very good lesson for all of us!"

After numerous persons pointed out that her demeanor appeared to indicate she wasn't truly sorry for her actions, the mayor responded with, "I'm a good person, I really am. I said one word that you don't like. One word."

The blog “Keep Troy Strong” had unearthed the June 25 Facebook comment by Daniels, in which she wrote, “I think I am going to throw away my ‘I Love New York’ carrying bag now that queers can get married there.”

After that entry went public,the mayor told MLive.com:

“I may have said something like that,” she said. “I probably shouldn’t have used that kind of language, but I do believe marriage should be between one man and one woman.”
Daniels added that while she’s opposed to gay marriage, and has moral issues with homosexuality, she doesn’t hate gay people.
“I love all people. I am human. That was probably a poor choice of words.”

Before the public comment session began, Daniels reiterated her apology terming the incident- "as a poor choice of words." But several residents told her that apology was insufficient and insincere.

One of the mayor's colleagues, City Councilman Dane Slater, referring to the mayor's half-hearted apology said;

"I'm gonna be the first to let you know that you are not the victim here. You sent me a memo apologizing but it gave me the sense that you think you're the victim here, and you are not the victim. The city is the victim," he said.

Denise Brogan-Kator, the executive director of Equality Michigan, said in an open letter published in Troy Patch.com prior to the city council meeting:

When I saw that Troy Mayor Janice Daniels had posted on her Facebook page this summer that she was going to throw away her I Love NY bag “now that queers can get married there,” I was shocked and offended. Her choice of the slur “queers” was evidence that a person who is now an elected official harbors deep animosity toward the gay community, and had no qualms posting about it. She may not have been mayor at the time, but I doubt that winning the election has done anything other than reinforce her obvious belief that she is better than the people she serves.
Now, having heard her excuse, I am even more deeply concerned, because it is a familiar and dangerous one. Ms. Daniels claims she was “expressing her personal belief that marriage is between one man and one woman.” Meaning, it is okay to degrade and dehumanize people if you are doing it based on a sincerely held moral conviction.
Does that sound familiar to you, too? Just a month ago, our state senate tried to protect school bullies based on the same justification. They passed a bill that exempted not just students, but also school employees and others, from any responsibility for bullying if it was based on a “sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction.” It was, in essence, a license to bully. It was a national embarrassment and a shameful day for our state. And now Ms. Daniels has shamed the City of Troy by attempting to hide behind the same excuse.

Michael Gregor, Director of Communications for Equality Michigan told LGBTQNation in a phone interview late Tuesday, "This is an example of people holding their elected officals accountable and also making a statement that homophobia, particlarly by those same officials is completely unacceptable."

Gregor said that the organisation is frustrated with the mayor's lukewarm apology and seemingly insincere efforts and hopes that maybe she will take a lead in passage of an anti-discrimination bill to help protect Troy's LGBTQ citzens as a means to affirm her support for equality for all of Troy's citizens.

In Brief

2011-12-06T17:16:00.003-05:00

Staff Reports

Right Wing Law Firm Calls Transgender Rights "Theatre Of The Absurd"

Mathew Staver

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS -- The termination of a Macy's employee who refused to uphold company policy in regards to LGBTQ rights has so-called family value christian groups angered. Natalie Johnson was sacked from the Macy's River Centre store in San Antonio after she told a supervisor that she was unwilling to honour Macy's LGBT policies because she felt by doing so would violate her religious beliefs.

Johnson told the American Family Association's blogsite- OneNewsNow - she observed a young man wearing women's clothes and make-up exiting a women's dressing room and politely told him he could not re-enter because it was for the exclusive use of women. She said he angrily responded that he was a "female."

The cross-dresser was accompanied by five other individuals. The group argued with expletives that Macy’s is LGBT-friendly, to which Johnson replied that Macy’s is also non-discriminatory toward religion, and that it would go against her religious beliefs to lie to say that the young man was a woman or for her to compromise with homosexuality. The group then demanded to speak with a manager. ~ OneNewsNow Blog

After being advised by a Macy's supervisor that company policy allows transgendered to utilise any dressing room they may prefer, Johnson pointed out that the same policy also protects against religious discrimination and, in this case, it protects her right to her beliefs that were being violated. The supervisor then asked if Johnson intended to comply with Macy's established policies which she refused and was later terminated.

Mathew Staver, Founder and Chairman of the conservative right wing anti-gay Liberty Counsel, told OneNewsNow's blog:

“Macy’s policy which allows men to use the women’s dressing room is fraught with problems. This policy will cause significant problems and will alienate the majority of Macy’s customers. Macy’s has essentially opened women’s dressing rooms to every man. The LGBT agenda has become the theater of the absurd.”

Mother Of 14-Year-Old Says Openly Gay Son “Uplifted” By Support But Family “Sickened” By Posts Suggesting His YouTube Video Is A “Lie”

Jonah Mowry (Facebook)

LAKE FOREST, CALIFORNIA -- The mother of Jonah Mowry, the gay 14-year-old who has garnered national attention this past week over his YouTube videos that went viral talking about his anguish over being bullied, said her son has been "uplifted" by support online.

In an interview Tuesday with ABCNews, Peggy Sue Mowry said "I'm thankful. There are a lot of people that are giving their warm wishes and uplifting Jonah, and I think that's good." But Mowry also told ABC that the family was disheartened by other vile comments that had been posted recently online. "He is sick over all the horrible posts and so are we ... it is very overwhelming," said his mother, a 52-year-old hairdresser from Lake Forest, California.

Jonah's parents had helped him craft a response to deal with rumours that he was a fake. His father is Kevin Mowry, a music instructor technician at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, California. The teen explained that he had made the dark video at 4:00 am just before starting school in the fall.

"I was dreading going back to school and I had not come out to my family yet," he said. "Only my closest friends knew. I didn't know how to say what I needed to say. All I could think about were all the bad things that had been happening at school last year, every year for that matter."

He said his friends were supportive and he thought the video would help others. "It had to be done," his mother told ABC. "So after school we had him sit down and compose it." Jonah's YouTube video went viral this week and some online accused the teen of being a "fraud," and looking for publicity.

"I'm disappointed that somebody could look at the first video and then look at the second and think it's a lie," said his mother. "He's a child. He's a 14-year-old boy. He's very young,” adding, "First and foremost, I am proud of the responses we've gotten from people. I'm disappointed that people would question whether it's "true."

Jonah had posted two YouTube videos about bullying. One, which was posted last August, was a wrenching account of his cutting injuries as a victim of school bullies.

Brody's Notes... British Coroner Rules Anti-Bullying Advocate's Death Result Of Suicide

2011-12-06T16:11:00.002-05:00

Roger Crouch with his son Dominic (Family Photo)

By Brody Levesque | GLOUCESTERSHIRE, ENGLAND -- The Deputy Coroner for Gloucestershire, David Dooley, in a coroner's inquest held Monday determined that Roger Crouch, a former director of children's services and anti-bullying advocate for youth died last week as the result of suicide.

Crouch was the father of 15-year-old Dominic, who had killed himself in May 2010 after apparently suffering from anti-gay bullying. Following his son’s death, Crouch, a former Director of Children Services in Manchester, worked to ensure that schools must do more to look out for signs of bullying and be aware of students who appear distracted or distressed.

He lobbied schools to ensure anti-bullying policies are used and young people should be taught coping strategies, and called on the UK government to adopt a “victim-centred” definition of bullying.

In a ceremony held in London last month by the LGBT Equality Rights charity Stonewall UK, Crouch was presented with Stonewall’s Hero of the Year award. Crouch advocated for substantial changes so that British schools must treat rumors and teasing as bullying, rather than ‘banter’.

Crouch, who was currently employed as a town council clerk of Stow-on-the-Wold near Winchcombe, UK, was declared dead found hanging in his garage last Monday. In testimony offered by the medical examiner, coroner's officer Paul Boak during the proceedings, Boak told the inquest he had been able to identify the victim's remains based on his investigation into the death of Crouch's son last year, testifying that he had met Mr. Crouch as a result of the investigation into that tragedy and knew him personally.

After the hearing, the coroner released Crouch's remains for a scheduled funeral Thursday at St Peter's Church, located in Winchcombe.

Roger Crouch's widow said that her husband died of a "broken heart", having never recovered from the death of their son Dominic, 15, who jumped from a six-storey building near his school in May last year.

"I think the sadness overwhelmed Roger," she said. "He couldn't bear to live without Domi. But it was a deep sadness and depression. The seed had been sown when his mother died when he was 11. Roger's sister died, which knocked him really badly, then months later Domi died, which absolutely floored him. His nephew then died in Afghanistan."

A saddened local LGBT Equality Rights activist, speaking to LGBTQNation on the condition of remaining anonymous remarked:

"This what people don't get-bullying affects more than the victims. There becomes a parade of parties affected and in some cases- this case- die as a result. Words can and do kill, it was all so bloody unnecessary."

Brody's Notes... President Sets New Course For LGBT Rights In U. S. Foreign Policy

2011-12-06T15:10:00.001-05:00

By Brody Levesque | WASHINGTON -- In a memorandum sent out Tuesday to all federal agencies and executive department heads, President Barack Obama directed that the federal government and all agencies engaged abroad ensure that U.S. diplomacy and foreign assistance promote and protect the human rights of LGBT persons globally. In his written directive, the president states:

"The struggle to end discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons is a global challenge, and one that is central to the United States commitment to promoting human rights. I am deeply concerned by the violence and discrimination targeting LGBT persons around the world -- whether it is passing laws that criminalize LGBT status, beating citizens simply for joining peaceful LGBT pride celebrations, or killing men, women, and children for their perceived sexual orientation.
[...]
"no country should deny people their rights because of who they love, which is why we must stand up for the rights of gays and lesbians everywhere."

The president's memo details six major points in the administration's new comprehensive strategy to combat LGBT human rights abuses abroad:

Combating Criminalisation of LGBT Status or Conduct Abroad.

Agencies engaged abroad are directed to strengthen existing efforts to effectively combat the criminalization by foreign governments of LGBT status or conduct and to expand efforts to combat discrimination, homophobia, and intolerance on the basis of LGBT status or conduct.

Protecting Vulnerable LGBT Refugees and Asylum Seekers.

Those LGBT persons who seek refuge from violence and persecution face daunting challenges. In order to improve protection for LGBT refugees and asylum seekers at all stages of displacement, the Departments of State and Homeland Security shall enhance their ongoing efforts to ensure that LGBT refugees and asylum seekers have equal access to protection and assistance, particularly in countries of first asylum. In addition, the Departments of State, Justice, and Homeland Security shall ensure appropriate training is in place so that relevant Federal Government personnel and key partners can effectively address the protection of LGBT refugees and asylum seekers, including by providing to them adequate assistance and ensuring that the Federal Government has the ability to identify and expedite resettlement of highly vulnerable persons with urgent protection needs.

Foreign Assistance to Protect Human Rights and Advance Nondiscrimination.

Agencies involved with foreign aid, assistance, and development shall enhance their ongoing efforts to ensure regular Federal Government engagement with governments, citizens, civil society, and the private sector in order to build respect for the human rights of LGBT persons.

Swift and Meaningful U.S. Responses to Human Rights Abuses of LGBT Persons Abroad.

The Department of State shall lead a standing group, with appropriate inter-agency representation, to help ensure the Federal Government's swift and meaningful response to serious incidents that threaten the human rights of LGBT persons abroad.

Engaging International Organizations in the Fight Against LGBT Discrimination.

Multilateral fora and international organizations are key vehicles to promote respect for the human rights of LGBT persons and to bring global attention to LGBT issues. Building on the State Department's leadership in this area, agencies engaged abroad should strengthen the work they have begun and initiate additional efforts in these multilateral fora and organizations to counter discrimination on the basis of LGBT status; broaden the number of countries willing to support and defend LGBT issues in the multilateral arena; strengthen the role of civil society advocates on behalf of LGBT issues within and through multilateral fora; and strengthen the policies and programming of multilateral institutions on LGBT issues.

Reporting on Progress.

All agencies engaged abroad shall prepare a report within 180 days of the date of this memorandum, and annually thereafter, on their progress toward advancing these initiatives. All such agencies shall submit their reports to the Department of State, which will compile a report on the Federal Government's progress in advancing these initiatives for transmittal to the President.

In a related major policy speech delivered Tuesday marking the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on Dec. 10, 1948 by the U.N. General Assembly, U. S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton echoed the president's directive:

“Today, I want to talk about the work we have left to do to protect one group of people who’s human rights are still denied in too many parts of the world today,” Clinton said. “In many ways, they are an invisible minority. They are arrested, beaten, terrorized, even executed. Many are treated with contempt and violence by their fellow citizens while authorities empowered to protect them look the other way — or too often, even join in the abuse. They are denied opportunities to work and learn, driven from their homes and countries and forced to suppress or deny who they are to protect themselves from harm. I am talking about gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people: human beings born free and given, bestowed equality and dignity who have a right to claim that, which is now one of the remaining human rights challenges of our time.”

The Secretary of State's speech was in recognition of Human Rights Day, delivered to members of the U. S. mission to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland.