Bully for you, Mitten Ticklebritches!

“I like being able to fire people who provide services to me.” – Mitten Ticklebritches

Once a bully, always a bully? Take Governor Ticklebritches' attitudes and policies toward gays, immigrants, the poor, the unemployed, college students, people without health care insurance, and anyone else who can’t write him a six-digit check or help him land the job he covets.

And if you get in his way, get ready for a swift kick -- or perhaps a haircut. 

Today we’re expected to believe Mitt Romney's claim that he cannot recall a vicious attack he led against a high school classmate. It’s bad enough if the jokester is lying about his memory, but even worse if bullying comes so natural to him that the incident was easily forgotten.

But not to worry. If anybody was hurt by “a lot of high jinks and pranks during high school, obviously I apologize for that,” Romney chortled.

Obviously. He's "running for office, for Pete's sake!"

He does not apologize, however, for manipulating his memories. While he can't remember this incident, he can recall saving the U. S. auto industry. Really? Wanna bet? Ten thousand dollars?

Like his principles, Mitt's memories are free-floating: “I certainly don’t believe that I thought the fellow was homosexual.”

And he finds that explanation perfectly fine, no doubt even marvelous, or just the right height -- or at least good for a chuckle. Haha!

Here's Mitt being Mitt. Witness the mind of a bully.

Romney Apologizes After Reports of Bullying Emerge

Do the Rights Thing, Florida

You Tube: Florida Red & Blue

The Bilerico Project

People of faith oppose Florida Amendment 2

A Statement of Opposition to Amendment 2

As clergy members from a broad spectrum of religious traditions we hold diverse views regarding marriage. However, we are united in our opposition to amending the Florida Constitution to define marriage.

We share a serious concern that proposed Amendment 2, which will appear on the November 4 ballot would infringe on religious liberty. We believe that marriage decisions should be left to couples, their clergy, and their religious beliefs — not the State of Florida.

[ . . . . ]

Amendment 2 would undermine religious liberty. Florida’s religious communities do not support this amendment. As leaders of these communities, we pledge to vote no on Amendment 2 and urge you to join us.

More . . .

Florida Clergy for Fairness

SayNo2.com

Vote No on 2

Say No to Florida's Amendment 2

Florida becomes 36th state to pass anti-bullying law

Passage was eight years in the making

(Tallahassee) After 8 years of effort on the part of hundreds of students, parents, educators and civil rights groups, The Florida Safe Schools Coalition celebrates the passage today of a statewide anti-bullying bill.

During today's unanimous vote, Senators zeroed in on the issue of whether the broad prohibition on bullying requires schools to address specific forms of harassment, including anti-gay bullying.

Senator Nan Rich asked, "Does the bill prohibit harassment based on a student's actual or perceived disability, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender identity, physical appearance, sexual orientation or other distinguishing personal characteristic in the exactly the same way that it prohibits sexual, racial or religious harassment, which are specified in the bill?"

"Yes it does," said Senator Baker, the bills sponsor.

In so doing, sponsors in the House and Senate made clear the legislative intent requires schools to ensure those protections at the local level.

"Today's passage of the anti-bullying law represents the culmination of an eight-year effort by a strong coalition of over 100 organizations dedicated to the safety of Florida's students," said Nadine Smith, Executive Director for Equality Florida. "The legislature has made clear that any school that fails to prevent and respond to anti-gay bullying and to protect every student will be in violation of this law and will face the consequences. We will hold them accountable."

More . . . Anti-bullying bill passes House and Senate

Meanwhile, on the religious front . . . .

Methodists hold line on homosexuality
FORT WORTH, Texas | Representatives of the United Methodist Church turned back attempts to liberalize its policy on homosexuality Wednesday. Almost 1,000 delegates to the church's General Conference rejected a committee proposal, leaving in place the position that the practice of homosexuality is "incompatible with Christian teaching."

Hate still flourishes in 'the sunshine state'

Kicking off his church's campaign to make gay marriage unconstitutional in Florida, Pastor Hayes Wicker, senior pastor at Naples' First Baptist Church proclaimed:

“This is a tremendous social crisis, greater even than the issue of slavery.”

Without such an amendment or a law, Wicker said, it could lead to legal marriages in Florida between “man and dog” and “father and child.” - Naples Daily News

A greater crisis than slavery? Marriages between man and dog, father and child?

Kenneth Quinnell, founder of the Florida Progressive Coalition, posted a quick comparison of the history of slavery and the history of no gay marriages in Florida. He concluded:

Hatred of other citizens based on their innate characteristics, particularly when those characteristics harm no one, is as close to evil as one can get without raping, molesting or killing someone.

Read Ken's essay here: It's not called the hate amendment for nothing

Also, see Who signed the petition for Amendment 2?

A moral call to arms: Defeat the 'Hate Amendment'

Proposed Florida Amendment 2: "Inasmuch as marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife, no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized."

Yesterday, Kenneth Quinnell, of the Florida Progressive Coalition, listed 15 arguments against the Amendment . . .

• Recap: The wildcard

Today, Mustang Bobby, of Bark Bark Woof Woof, responded with a follow-on . . .

• What did we do?

I recommend both essays to anyone who cares about human rights at their most basic level.

Rainbows prohibited over 'fountain of youth'

PONCE DE LEON, FL (AP) -- The American Civil Liberties Union claims that Ponce de Leon High School in Holmes County kept students from having rainbow stickers on their notebooks, suppressing their right to free speech.

The lawsuit against the Holmes County School Board and Ponce de Leon High School was filed Thursday in federal court in Panama City.

The ACLU says the school told them any form of expression in support for gay rights would "likely be disruptive." It also claims the school board's attorney said a rainbow sticker could mean students are members of an "illegal organization."

More . . .

• Florida teen sues school over gay rights

WHAAM! Hatemongering kicks into overdrive

The Wingnut Hatemongering Anti-America Machine (WHAAM!) is sick but very much alive.

WHAAM!-o #1, from Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee

BeliefNet Question: "Is it your goal to bring the Constitution into strict conformity with the Bible? Some people would consider that a kind of dangerous undertaking, particularly given the variety of biblical interpretations."

Rev. Huckabee: "Well, I don't think that's a radical view to say we're going to affirm marriage. I think the radical view is to say that we're going to change the definition of marriage so that it can mean two men, two women, a man and three women, a man and a child, a man and animal." - 'The Lord truly gave me wisdom'

WHAAM!-o #2, from Faux Noose's John Gibson

Opening his radio show with funeral music yesterday, Fox News host John Gibson callously mocked the death of actor Heath Ledger, calling him a "weirdo" with a "serious drug problem."

Playing an audio clip of the iconic quote, "I wish I knew how to quit you" from Ledger's gay romance movie Brokeback Mountain, Gibson disdainfully quipped, "Well, he found out how to quit you."

Laughing, Gibson then played another clip from Brokeback Mountain in which Ledger said, "We're dead," followed by his own, mocking "We're dead" before playing the clip again.

And it goes downhill from there: John Gibson mocks 'weirdo' Heath Ledger's death

WHAAM!-o #3, from Westboro Baptist Church

"WBC will picket this pervert's funeral, in religious protest.

"God hates the sordid, tacky bucket of slime seasoned with vomit known as Brokeback Mountain - and He hates all persons having anything to whatsoever to do with it.

"Heath Ledger is now in Hell, and has begun serving his eternal sentence there." - Hate group to picket Ledger's funeral

Goodbye, Larry, we hardly knew you (thankfully)

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US Republican Senator Larry Craig announced his [intended] resignation Saturday after being caught in an undercover sting allegedly soliciting sex with a man in an airport bathroom.

"It is with sadness and deep regret that I announce that it is my intent to resign from the Senate effective September 30," Craig said at a news conference in Boise, Idaho, the state he represents.

Try as I may, I find little compassion in my heart for a man who did everything within his power to destroy better men and women than himself. Hating oneself is one thing: transferring that hatred to others, whose only fault is living their lives as genuine human beings, is another.

When Larry Craig was not busy hanging out in restroom stalls, he was projecting a wide stance against gays and lesbians, their families and the people they love. His espoused policies perpetuated civil discrimination and a repressive atmosphere in which a group of men and women are denied basic human rights, some young people are driven to suicide, and still others are beaten to a pulp.

Craig adopted a strong anti-gay agenda as a cover for his innermost secrets, prowling for sexual kicks in such a sleazy fashion that the discretion of his restroom Romeos was practically guaranteed. Who would tell?

A liar, a coward, a hypocrite without a soul, Larry Craig covered his reprehensible activities by an even greater sin - bashing others.

He is caught. Time to pay the piper.

College course in gay lit gets 'dishonorable mention'

BOULDER, Colo. -- A self-proclaimed conservative group targeting college liberalism is assailing a University of Colorado course that examines gay and lesbian literature.

The CU course on the Foundation's hit list includes poetry by Walt Whitman, who some say was gay, as well as works of novelist Virginia Woolf, who had an affair with a woman. The syllabus also includes films such as the gay cowboy tale "Brokeback Mountain."

There is a waiting list of students eager to take the course. [....]

The Young America's Foundation, based outside Washington, DC, gives the CU course "Introduction to Lesbian, Bisexual and Gay Literature," a "dishonorable mention" in a study titled "The Dirty Dozen: America's Most Bizarre and Politically Correct College Courses."

On its Web site, the Foundation says, "The nation's campuses continue to be staffed and controlled by leftist radicals who seek a monopoly on what is said and thought."

Foundation spokesman Jason Mattera said the courses edge out traditional scholarship and waste money and time. A recent poll, he said, finds Americans are more likely to identify the characters on the television cartoon The Simpsons than rights included in the First Amendment.

"There are a lot of soft courses," Mattera said. "Classes in American history go by the wayside."

• CU course gets 'dishonorable' title

Apparently Mr. Mattera himself missed a few history lessons along the way. It took a lot of ignorance for him to reference the First Amendment as justification for trying to limit "what is said and thought" to his own point of view -- but then it took a lot of arrogance to call his group "Young America's Foundation," when it's anything but.

To follow Mattera's logic, perhaps we should make college electives an historical anachronism by limiting courses to those already taken and approved by YAF members. All we need are their college transcripts so we'll know, from a higher authority, which studies are appropriate and which are inappropriate for every student in every institution of higher learning across the nation (and to check YAF members' grades in American government - if they ever studied it).

Or, we could ignore American history and the First Amendment by adopting a national standard -- say, Liberty University's course catalog and list of majors. If it's good enough for Jason Mattera and Jerry Falwell, it must be good enough for the rest of us - maybe too good for some of us, huh.

Under our new guidelines, professors who strayed from YAF-sanctioned course content could either be fired or forced to accept counseling from a newly-minted Genesis International, an "ex-liberal ministry" for the New Enlightenment - something along the lines of Exodus International for "ex-gays."

Students who questioned their college's policies could be channeled into Healing and Restoration 101, a three-year, distance-learning program by James Dobson and Ted Haggard (send that love offering today, hon).

Does that sound like the American history you studied?

Happy Bill of Rights Day!

The United States Bill of Rights became law December 15, 1791:

The Bill of Rights includes rights such as freedom of speech, press, religion, and assembly. It also includes a clause assuring the American people that the bill of rights should not be interpreted as a comprehensive list of all rights belonging to Americans, but rather a list of the most important rights.

After the Constitution was ratified, the first Congress met in Federal Hall in New York City. Most of the delegates agreed that a Bill of Rights was needed and most of them believed that the same rights should be enumerated.

The task of drafting the Bill of Rights fell to James Madison, who based his work on George Mason's earlier work, Virginia Declaration of Rights. It had been decided earlier that the Bill of Rights would be added to the Constitution as amendments (the list of rights was not included in the text of the Constitution because it was feared that changing the document's text would necessitate the rather painful process of re-ratifying the Constitution).

On November 20, 1789, New Jersey became the first state in the newly-formed Union to ratify these amendments. Other states followed, and the ten amendments that were made law on December 15, 1791 soon became known as the Bill of Rights.

• United States Bill of Rights, 1789

Its value, in Madison's view, was in part educational, in part as a vehicle that might be used to rally people against a future oppressive government, and finally -- in an argument borrowed from Thomas Jefferson -- Madison argued that a declaration of rights would help install the judiciary as "guardians" of individual rights against the other branches.

• James Madison proposes rights, 1788

Exactly 217 years after becoming the first state to ratify the Bill of Rights, New Jersey took another small but important step toward guaranteeing full citizenship to all its citizens:

New Jersey became the third state to bless civil unions as an alternative to marriage for same-sex couples, choosing a middle ground that establishes a type of relationship that didn’t exist before Vermont created it in 2000.

The authors of the New Jersey measure said they intend for civil unions to be identical to marriage in all but name. The legislation spells out specific benefits to be extended, such as full adoption rights and the right to change surnames without a court petition. It also updates state marriage statutes by painstakingly adding the phrase "or civil union" after every mention of "marriage" in more than 80 pages of rules governing nuptials.

Currently, partnership rights for same-sex couples differ widely in the seven states that recognize some form of gay unions. Besides marriage licenses in Massachusetts and civil unions in Connecticut, New Jersey and Vermont, domestic partnership registries have been created in three states: California, Hawaii and Maine.

Domestic partnerships differ from civil unions in that they confer a specific list of benefits to registered couples who may be of the same-sex or opposite sex. For example, Maine and Hawaii list specific legal rights for domestic partners such as inheritance and hospital visitations. California's domestic partnership law is similar to civil unions in that it extends all state-level rights and responsibilities to registered domestic partners.

• New Jersey gay couples get civil unions, 2006

"The Declaration of rights is like all other human blessings alloyed with some inconveniences... But the good in this instance vastly outweighs the evil."

"If we cannot secure all our rights, let us secure what we can."

--Letter from Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, dated March 15, 1789


"The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people."

--Amendment IX

Another pastor resigns over homosexuality

DENVER - In a tearful videotaped message Sunday to his congregation, the senior pastor of a thriving evangelical megachurch in south metro Denver confessed to sexual relations with other men and announced he had voluntarily resigned his pulpit.

A month ago, the Rev. Paul Barnes of Grace Chapel in Douglas County preached to his 2,100-member congregation about integrity and grace in the aftermath of the Ted Haggard drugs-and-gay-sex scandal.

Now, the 54-year-old Barnes joins Haggard as a fallen evangelical minister who preached that homosexuality was a sin but grappled with a hidden life.

• Denver Post report
• Dec. 18 update: Another New Life leader resigns over 'sexual immorality'
• Home values of evangelical leaders of Colorado Springs
• Letter to a fallen man

For a different perspective on Christian ministry, see . . .

• Jay Bakker: 'One Punk Under God'
• What the hell happened to Christianity?
• One Punk Updates: WOW Report

Mexico City approves gay civil unions

MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Mexico City's assembly on Thursday passed legislation to legally recognize gay civil unions in the capital....

"This law ... does not require anyone else to change their thinking, nor does it hurt the concept of the nuclear family," said one legislator.

If the law is enacted, Mexico City will join the ranks of the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires, and the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, which already have approved civil unions.

At the national level, lawmakers in Costa Rica and Colombia have debated, but not passed, similar measures.

Elsewhere on Thursday, a parliamentary committee approved proposals for same-sex marriages in South Africa, clearing the way for the passage of legislation there.

The Netherlands, Canada, Belgium and Spain have legalized same-sex marriage, while several other European countries have laws giving same-sex couples the right to form legally binding civil partnerships.

Meanwhile, back in the US . . .

... Only the state of Massachusetts allows gay marriage, while Vermont and Connecticut permit civil unions.

Seven states approved gay-marriage bans in elections Tuesday, joining 20 that had done so in previous elections.

In Arizona, the defeat of the ban stemmed in part from its scope. It not only would have reinforced an existing state law against same-sex marriage, but also would have barred any government entities from recognizing civil unions or domestic partnerships in providing benefits to employees.

• AP reports here and here.
• Update, Nov. 15--South Africa approves gay-marriage bill, 230-41 vote in National Assembly.

Letter to a fallen man

Deep tissue and Swedish style massage:

$70.00 per hour

Massage with the pleasure of the man in mind:

$200.00-up per session

Exposing a big ole flaming hypocrite:

Priceless

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Members of the New Life Church were stunned and brought to tears by the Rev. Ted Haggard’s confessions of “sexual immorality,” then accepted his plea for forgiveness with open arms.

Haggard, who had been a leading evangelist and vocal opponent of gay marriage, apologized Sunday in a letter read from the pulpit of the 14,000-member church he founded.

“The fact is I am guilty of sexual immorality. And I take responsibility for the entire problem,” Haggard wrote. “I am a deceiver and a liar. There’s a part of my life that is so repulsive and dark that I have been warring against it for all of my adult life.” - Rev. Haggard says: ‘I am a deceiver and a liar’

More . . .

• Confessions of an angry hustler
• Evangelist's gay escort signs for explicit tell-all
• Scripture little help for Haggard's sex addiction
• Ted Haggard's crystal cathedral: Gayest place on earth
• Another pastor resigns over homosexuality
• Dec. 18 update: New Life minister resigns over 'sexual immorality'
• Home values of evangelical leaders of Colorado Springs

Update - Feb. 20, 2007: Haggard had other 'improper relationships'

Open letter to Rev. Ted Haggard


Dear Ted,

If you were my friend, this is what I would say to you:

Should you ever choose a time to be honest with yourself, now is that time. Do not minimize the damage you have done both to yourself and to others. Your behavior has brought tragedy into your life and the lives of your loved ones. The greater tragedy, however, did not begin with your outing, and it may or may not end with your penitence.

As you confessed in the letter to your church, you are "a deceiver and a liar." Yes, there has been a hidden part to your life, but the "repulsive and dark" side to which you admitted was not your attraction to men: It was the breaking of your marital vows, the denial of your sexuality, and your ongoing efforts to dash the hopes and dreams of people you will never know.

That is the picture of a tragic life. Your "warring" was not only against your inner being, it was a battle turned on men and women whose lives are more authentic than your own.

Asking God, your family, and your church for forgiveness was the easy first step, since being exposed as a hypocrite left you little choice. But asking forgiveness from those you reviled will be the real test of your sincerity and humility, your humanity and spirituality.

Gays and lesbians and their families have done nothing to hurt you and your family. Until you acknowledge the pain that you personally and willfully inflicted upon them, how can you forgive yourself? How can anyone, including your wife and children, trust and respect you again?

Leaders and members of your church supposedly accepted your plea for forgiveness. That may be, but you and I know they will return you to the fold on their terms only -- that you yield to their demands and live the lie that failed you before. In contrast, many of the group you have targeted for discrimination would, given the opportunity, offer more spontaneous forgiveness than you will find within the walls of the church you have built.

My friend, life is too short for you to continue the destructive, and losing, battle against yourself -- the internal battle that occurs when one attempts to "choose" a sexual orientation forced upon him by religious or social pressures.

As you already must know better than anyone else, you cannot change your innate sexual orientation, and God has not and will not change it because he does not condemn it. What he does condemn is the unnecessary pain you have inflicted upon others, and your hypocrisy in doing so. In the words of Jesus:

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." - Matthew 25:40, KJV

Rather than looking to others for your soul salvation, why not find peace within yourself and with your creator? Heed the words of Paul the Apostle:

“Wherefore, my beloved, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” - Philippians 2:12-13, KJV

No doubt you have led a life of fear and trembling, whether of God or of being caught in your deceptions. My sincere hope is that you are, at your core, a man who wants to do -- and will find the courage to do -- the right thing.

Will you submit to the judgment of those who have no understanding of your inner struggle and spiritual journey, or will you trust your heart and the lessons you have learned? Will you condemn a group that is denied the acceptance and opportunities you take for granted, or will you extend a genuine apology and a loving hand to your brothers and sisters?

"Jesus said ... , Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." - Matthew 22:37-40, KJV

Finally, my friend, I say to you because I love you: Grow up already! Your children need a father who is a real man. If you're gay, act like it. If you're not, stop playing. Either way, end the bashing. You're better than that.

Bush administration relies on fear and lies

STATESBORO, Ga. -- The gay-marriage theme became a staple in Bush's political remarks last Thursday, the day after the New Jersey ruling on a touchstone issue for religious conservatives who are crucial to Republican electoral calculations.

White House deputy press secretary Dana Perino said it was added merely to respond to the ruling - not because his other messages were failing to connect. - Bush Hits Hard at Gay Marriage

Which do you fear most?

a) The next-door lesbian couple with the dream of protecting their family with a legal document?

b) George Bush and Dick Cheney with the dream of ruling the world?

c) The Republican Congress with the dream of continuing their loyal support of a failed presidency?

d) A federal judiciary envisioned by James Dobson and Jerry Falwell?

Update, Nov. 7 -- Voters reject Republican fear tactics


Meet Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defense and Supreme Minister for War Propaganda

WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon is beefing up its public relations staff and starting an operation akin to a political campaign's war room as Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld faces intensifying criticism over the Iraq war and the public is increasingly disenchanted with the conflict.

In a memo obtained by the Associated Press, Dorrance Smith, assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, said new teams of people will "develop messages" for the 24-hour news cycle and "correct the record." - Pentagon to wage public relations war

Republicans have controlled the White House and both houses of Congress for several years. The Bush administration wields power over the FCC, public broadcasting and, through their corporate sponsors, much of the national media.

They also have a history of using taxpayer money to elicit political support from religious groups, to reward dishonest and unethical journalists in the US, and to buy "good news" from fake reporters in Iraq.

Despite their massive public relations machine, they have been unable to fool all the people all the time. Now they are adding one last weapon to their propaganda arsenal -- the complete politicisation of the military.

New Jersey court: Apply equal rights to same-sex couples

"Saying times have changed, New Jersey's highest court on Wednesday guaranteed gay couples the same rights as married heterosexuals but left it to state lawmakers to decide if such unions can be called marriage."

"The ruling leaves state lawmakers with two options -- allow gays to marry in the same way as others, or develop a parallel system of unions for same-sex couples. That second option would leave New Jersey with civil unions akin to those in Vermont." - Reuters

The court held: "Denying committed same-sex couples the financial and social benefits and privileges given to their married heterosexual counterparts bears no substantial relationship to a legitimate governmental purpose. The Court holds that under the equal protection guarantee of Article I, Paragraph 1 of the New Jersey Constitution, committed same-sex couples must be afforded on equal terms the same rights and benefits enjoyed by opposite-sex couples under the civil marriage statutes." - Think Progress

George Bush, October 26, 2004: "I don't think we should deny people rights to a civil union, a legal arrangement, if that's what a state chooses to do so." - AmericaBlog

• My comments on marriage equality here.

Know thy neighbors, thy friends and thy family

"... and the truth shall make you free." John 8:32

Florida law prohibits same-sex unions and criminalizes adoption of children by gays and lesbians. Yet many politicians, religious leaders and voters are convinced that additional discriminatory language must be added to the state constitution to protect heterosexual marriage.

The proposed Florida Marriage Protection Amendment reads:

"Inasmuch as marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife, no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized."

"If Florida voters pass this constitutional amendment, not only will hundreds of thousands of tax-paying gay and lesbian couples forever be denied equal access to civil marriage, but all other forms of legal recognition, including domestic partnerships and civil unions, may no longer be valid or recognized." (Know Thy Neighbor)


Leading foes of equal rights identified by name

This week the Christ Church of Peace, a nondenominational church in Jacksonville, launched a campaign to identify the sponsors, endorsers, and 400,000 Florida petitioners who support the amendment. The campaign was quickly denounced by groups that support the initiative.

"It's a gross invasion of people's privacy," said John Stemberger, president and general counsel of the Florida Family Policy Council, an offshoot of James Dobson's national Christian conservative group Focus on the Family. (Miami Herald)

To santimonious gay bashers, the dissemination of public records -- by a church, no less -- is simply more evidence of the persecution of true Christians. Their reaction to losing the flimsy cloak of anonymity reveals the typical, unsurprising hypocrisy that marks all their self-righteous crusades of prejudice, intolerance and hate.

In perusing the list of amendment petitioners, I found not only many of my own neighbors (one next door, in fact), but family members (near and far), friends (straight and gay), and past business and professional associates; names of women who have married and divorced numerous times; names of married men who have conducted sexual affairs with married women (and with other men); names of convicted felons and their parents; names of people who never question the financial subsidies (medical, Social Security, retirement and other benefits) they and their families derive from gays and lesbians whose families are excluded from equal benefits and legal security; names of parents guilty of abusing and neglecting their own children; names of those who support state laws that deny countless foster children a permanent, loving family.

Read, and weep.

• Know Thy Neighbor
• A church names names of gay marriage foes

Gay-bashing unabated nationwide

From 365gay.com today:

12:00 pm ET (Washington)

As students across the country button their lips today marking the 10th annual National Day of Silence to draw awareness to homophobia in classrooms a new study shows that gay-bashing remains a major problem in the nation's schools.

Three-quarters of students surveyed across America said that over the past year they heard derogatory remarks such as "faggot" or "dyke" frequently or often at school, and nearly nine out of ten reported hearing "that's so gay" or "you're so gay" - meaning stupid or worthless - frequently or often.

Over a third of students said they experienced physical harassment at school on the basis of sexual orientation and more than a quarter on the basis of their gender expression.

Nearly one-in-five students reported they had been physically assaulted because of their sexual orientation and over a tenth because of their gender expression.

The National School Climate Survey was released in Washington by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network.

More . . .

• Gay-bashing unabated
• GLSEN's National School Climate Survey

_____

Update from Equality Florida and The Miami Herald:

In the Florida House of Representatives today, A controversial anti-bullying bill has been changed to appease opponents who want school districts to include protections for gay students. [....]

Gottlieb has tried for years to pass an anti-bullying bill that banned harassment based on sexual orientation, religion, race, ethnicity and other factors frequently targeted by bullies. His efforts were struck down by lawmakers hesitant to pass a bill with gay-rights protections.

Bogdanoff's amended bill does not suggest which categories to list, but it allows districts to include categories if they want. [....]

_____

So... at least the Republican legislature MAY BE heading in the direction of ALLOWING districts to include gays and lesbians as human beings with a right to life, liberty, and safety. They just aren't ready to embrace the concept of full equality themselves.

The bill is called the Jeffrey Johnston Stand Up for All Students Act, named after a Cape Coral teen who hanged himself last June after enduring years of bullying.

Support marriage equality for all

From coast to coast, we are coming closer to achieving true marriage equality for GLBT Americans. But we need your help to fight efforts to deny marriage rights to same-sex couples, including any Constitutional amendment.

Please, sign the Million For Marriage petition below, and be a part of this historic civil rights battle. Gay, straight, married, single...we need everyone who believes in marriage equality to stand up NOW.

Full Petition Text:

I do support the right of every American to marry, including gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender couples. I believe that marriage and other civil rights protections are essential to making all families safer and more secure.

By signing this petition, I agree to support efforts to make marriage equality a reality in our country, and to oppose any attempts to discriminate against GLBT couples and individuals.


To sign the petition, please click:

[Your name and email address]

(Hat tip to Gary at American Agenda)