This Says It ALL

ATLANTA: SPLC AndTruth Wins Out To Protest "Ex-Gay" Conference

From joemygod.com

The Southern Poverty Law Center and Truth Wins Out are in Atlanta today to protest the Exodus International convention. Via SPLC press release:

Conversion therapy — sometimes known as reparative or “sexual reorientation” therapy — is a dangerous practice based on the premise that people can change their sexual orientation, literally “converting” from gay to straight. It has been discredited or highly criticized by virtually all major American medical, psychiatric, psychological and professional counseling organizations. In addition to the press conference, the groups will host a community meeting for survivors of conversion therapy and individuals contemplating the therapy. The meeting will also be attended by individuals planning to participate in a protest of Exodus International’s Ex-Gay conference outside of Atlanta Saturday.

Homophobes On Parade

Joe Jervis, owner the the award winning gay political blog joemygod.com, has reported on many closet homophobes over the years. I visit his site daily for news and updates and often pass along his work.
Thank you Joe.

Here is his report on the latest closet case and how it has developed so far. After reading and watching the video, be sure to click on the link that takes you to another very cool site that has been keeping track of the closet homophobes for years.

The sad thing about these guys is that they have been or are in positions of power and have used it AGAINST the LGBT population. This is a direct result of all the hate and lies about our people. When a person discovers they are LGBT, it is hard to come to terms with it when all around are people saying how bad/nasty/evil they are. It is very easy to hate yourself and do and say hateful things to make the rest of us look bad. Makes one wonder about those that yell damnation the loudest like
Bryan Fischer, Peter Sprigg, Matt Barber, Brian Brown, and Pete LaBarbera. All speakers for Hate Groups.

Conservative Houston radio host Michael Berry has been identified on the security videos of a local drag bar shortly before he fled a hit-and-run incident in the club's parking lot. As I reported yesterday, Berry is known for fiery condemnations of minorities, with "crackheads and welfare queens" his most commonly-used expression to describe Houston's poor. Berry claims that his employers won't let him discuss the incident. Some say he fled the scene in order to avoid a DUI arrest, others say he left because he'd been in a gay nightclub.

On his radio broadcast Thursday, which was posted online as a podcast, Berry alluded to the controversy. "I've always said when you do what I do, the way I do it, you make enemies. When you poke your finger in as many people's eye as I do every day, you make enemies," said Berry. He said that his detractors "will accuse you of most anything" and he added, "You have to trust that in the end, the system works itself out, that there are checks and balances, there are people who will verify. But you also recognize that there are some people who want you to be crushed. There's some people who hate you. There are some people who privately would benefit from you not being on the air." He said he does not respond to reporters who question him "on their turf" because it is subject to editing. However, at no point in his broadcast did he deny being behind the wheel and at no point did he address his presence in the club. "You simply cannot go out there and chase down every nasty thing that is said about you. Just because someone says something nasty about you doesn't make it true," he said.

Local prosecutors have demanded that the Houston police charge Berry after public outcry that his fame had allowed him to evade investigation.

Click here for the Video

Click here for the cool Homophobe Tracking Site

Brian Brown *CONDEMNS* NJ, continuing state's recent trend of broadcasting phony drama

by Jeremy Hooper at goodasyou.org

Move over, Snooki and Teresa Guidice: You've got a theatrical rival hoping to usurp your thrones:

"Democrats in the New Jersey Assembly today walked off a cliff when they decided to redefine marriage to accommodate the political demands of same-sex couples," said Brian Brown, NOM's president. "They have ensured themselves of the united opposition of people of faith when they next face voters. We are grateful to have a principled Governor in Chris Christie who has pledged to veto this legislation."
...
"Redefining marriage is not going to happen in New Jersey," Brown said. "NOM will join with the community of faith and all conservatives to ensure that every legislator who voted to kick God's definition of marriage to the curb pays the ultimate political price when they face voters. We will not forget this betrayal of marriage."
National Organization for Marriage Condemns Legislative Passage of Same-Sex Marriage In New Jersey [NOM]

Personally, I wouldn't have used a suicide metaphor when talking about gay rights in New Jersey. But then again, I also wouldn't make a living standing in the way of people's deserved rights. So all bets = off, I guess.

Michelle Obama and Dog Greet Visitors

I want to hug Michelle Obama. I have seen her hug lots of people and they always look so friendly and warm.

Maryland to Vote on Equal Marriage Today

Maryland was going to vote on equal marriage yesterday but ran out of time.
Unlike Gov. Christy of NJ who will veto the bill, Gov. O'Malley of Maryland is ready to sign this bill into law.
You can watch and listen to the vote live here.

Pot Luck Again!

Wow! I know my creative juices are flowing and so are a few others. Check out these sites.

Thousands Of Flowers Planted In Abandoned Mental Asylum

The Art Of A 4-Year, 7-Year-Old & An Adult

Futuristic Animal Sculptures Made Out Of Broken CDs

Amazing Sound Paintings

Sean E Avery

Sexy One-Man Flash Mob Takes Over Australian Beach

New Jeresy Assembly Vote

We needed 41 votes to win, 54 to override the veto.

The vote was 41 to 33. The bill passed!

Gov. Christy will veto the bill. There was not enough to override the veto.

It is still a victory!

Pot Luck

Here are a few odd things I found surfing. Enjoy!

Amazing Photos of Shattering Figurines Caught Mid-Explosion
Very cool.

Buzzfeed does love their cats and dogs. They found a few who love each other. Nice warm fuzzy.
20 Cats And Dogs Hugging It Out

This is odd. I am not sure how I feel about it. It really does not hurt the cat. My dog is tattooed by the SPCA and has a chip. The tattoo is not bad. The photos are good with a few real good ones. The guy loves his cat.
Russian Artist Gives His Cat A Chest Tattoo

Maryland's Governor explains his evolution on same-sex marriage

From AmericaBlogGay comes this news from Maryland

The Governor of Maryland, who like Governors Gregoire and Cuomo is Catholic, expounded upon his evolution on the marriage issue publicly last night. The Baltimore Sun called it "his most detailed explanation to date for the evolution of his stance on gay marriage":

During the hour-long conversation in front of roughly 120 people, the governor said that his long-held private belief in civil marriage for same-sex couples was sacrificed for political goals. When running for governor in 2006, he said, he decided to publicly support civil unions because at the time most Marylanders supported a distinct form of union for gay couples.

"I was mayor of the city of Baltimore then and my political advisers and friends went absolutely nuts and said 'There is no such term as "civil marriage" … if you use the term "civil marriage" you are going to jeopardize whatever hope we have to defeat the current officeholder and make the sort of strides, in any number of areas, that [then-Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. is] opposed to on these things," O'Malley said.

In July, O'Malley announced that he would throw his support behind a bill to legalize marriage for same-sex couples in Maryland. When asked at the announcement why he changed his position on the issue, O'Malley declined to elaborate, except to say that growing up in the Catholic Church influenced his early thinking on the topic.

Wednesday night, he said, "So I stuck pretty much to civil unions, believing honestly that that was the place where a public consensus could be forged that could move us forward. ... I have since seen that this debate is moving much more quickly."

The debate has moved much more quickly. Even President Obama, who has yet to evolve, said on October 27, 2010, "The one thing I will say today is I think it’s pretty clear where the trendlines are going."

Let's not forget, it's a smart political move. O'Malley is often mentioned as a possible 2016 presidential candidate. Andrew Cuomo, who is also on that list, set a pretty high bar on marriage equality. In 2016, it will be politically untenable for any Democrat running for President to be on the wrong side of marriage. Given the polling and the momentum, that should be the case with our nominee in 2012, too. (Just #evolvealready, it is the right thing to do morally and politically.)

Help Me Answer This Question - IRS Are We Married or Not?

When 2 people fall in love and decide to marry they should be aware of each others debt. When 2 people get married they responsible for each others debt. We are fine with that. But.....

As 2 lesbians we do not receive the same benefits, 1300 of them, for being married. We are legal strangers to the federal government. So...

If the federal government does NOT recognize my marriage, how can they take my wifes tax refund to pay my debt?

I have sent this question to several Orgs. including the ACLU and have not received an answer.

It is not about the money. It is the principle. We are married or not.
Not viewed as married for taxes and not married for all the benefits.

They can't have their cake and eat it too.

FRC pushes 'freedom from sexual addiction and homosexuality'; still gets to play mere conservative pundit role on cable news

From goodasyou.com



Ask yourself: What other kind of conservative voice gets to so blatantly deny credible science for the purposes of condemning a minority population and still retain regular "Morning Joe" bookings? Then, upon realizing the answer, ask yourself what you're going to do to demand better.

Our efforts to expose the religious right lies needs a lot of work

From Holy bullies and headless monsters comes this call to arms.

From Faith in Public Life:

On Feb. 14th in New York, Faithful America members and faith leaders including Bishop Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire, gathered at MSNBC studios to deliver 20,000 signatures calling on the network to stop inviting hate group leader Tony Perkins onto their news programming.

MSNBC sent down representatives to accept the petitions but remained non-committal about their willingness to change their policy.

The above video is of their delivery combined with footage of Perkins on MSNBC.

I like what these folks did and I salute their efforts.

But I'm also going to be honest.

I feel a little reticent about news networks banning Tony Perkins on their shows. I hate for him to play the martyr. "Oh they are banning me because they don't want any discussion on homosexuality," Perkins would say. "Oh those intolerant homosexuals."

It is a sad truth that the news media treats Perkins like a legitimate source, regardless of the myriad of things his organization, the Family Research Council, has done to denigrate the lgbtq community. FRC has relied on junk science, cherry-picked studies, or out-and-out lies to demonize us. It is also a sad truth that very few in the media have questioned him on these things

When they do address it, they ask him general questions and allow him to go on a monologue about his supposed Christian values.

What we need is a 60 Minutes type investigation or a huge magazine expose on the Family Research Council and other groups like it. There needs to be a huge amount of detail as to how these groups pick their so-called experts, how they cherry-pick studies, and their tendency to rely on junk science. There also needs to be some exposure as to how deeply affiliated some members of Congress are to these groups.

And I have said this more than once - I can't believe that the lgbtq community have several magazines and our own network, but none of these entities, at least to my knowledge, have decided to undertake this initiative.

No matter how many petitions we hand in or how loud we gripe, FRC and groups like it will continue to get away with their phony veneer or respectability until WE rip it away.

And frankly we have not begun to do it yet.

 

I am going to send a copy of this out to several networks and see if anyone nibbles.

The Anti-Gay Not-Scouts _ Shame on Them

Because of the recent furor over the Girl Scouts' inclusive membership policy, an anti-gay alternative called the American Heritage Girls is seeing an explosion in membership.

The group started with 100 girls in Ohio, and in recent weeks has surpassed 18,000 members in 45 states and six countries. Nine groups with a total of 357 girls meet in the St. Louis area; there were five local groups at this time last year. They are based at private schools and churches in Jefferson, St. Charles and St. Louis counties. Founder Patti Garibay, who had been a longtime Girl Scout leader for her daughters, wanted a choice. "We are faith-based, and they are secular, and that's a change," she said. "We're not for everybody, but we're obviously for a lot of people." Garibay estimates that 90 percent of Heritage members have left the Girl Scouts. Shanna Stewart, who home-schools her two daughters in Wentzville, found American Heritage Girls after becoming concerned when she learned the Girl Scouts had invited a lesbian to speak at the national level. "They were encouraging girls to embrace whoever they were; it didn't matter what choices they made, as long as they were true to themselves. That was a concern."

Like the Boy Scouts, the American Heritage Girls ban atheists and gays from becoming members or leaders.

Having been both a Girl Scout and a Boy Scout leader as well as born and raised in Ohio, I have had my share of conflicting emotions.

I loved being a Girl Scout. It was also when I became aware I was different from my friends. It is very nice to know that the Girl Scouts will accept all girls, LGB and T.

I loved being a Boy Scout leader. Knowing my son would benefit from scouting and could give him a foot in the door as an Eagle Scout was reason enough to hide my orientation. It just so happened that the troop leader was a lesbian too so we paired up and had a great time. We won awards for more food collected 3 years in a row. We expanded our meetings to 1.5 hours because we were having so much fun and 3 of our boys went on to become Eagle Scouts, my son did not. That's OK.

When our boys went up to the next level of scouting, I dropped out. It was about the same time it became public that the Boy Scouts did not want LGBT kids or leaders. I was sad and angry that the government supports that BS.

Since when does "...encouraging girls to embrace whoever they were; it didn't matter what choices they made, as long as they were true to themselves." become a bad thing?

It is a shame that some kids can't be scouts because of who they are. It is shameful that some kids are being taught that being LGBT or not being Christian is so bad that they can't join.

The Miniature Architecture Of Takanori Aiba - Awesome!

From Buzzfeed.com

Takanori Aiba creates these complex miniature buildings. So fascinating, cute and and technically brilliant. (via laboiteverte.fr).    

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