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| Ellen and Portia Wearing Matching Wedding Rings |
| 02.01.05 (12:28 am) [edit] |
 Sources report that Portia de Rossi has given Ellen DeGeneres a wedding ring and bought herself one to match. Here honey, here's your ring. And I have one just like it. Now, I just have to get that other girl's initials off my ring finger.I'm tellin' ya, there's something oddly reminiscent of Anne Heche here. Maybe I'm just saying that because I don't much care for Portia. She's trouble and you heard it here first. Ok, and maybe it's because I have a slight crush on Ellen.  Anyway, I'm still waiting for Portia's ex to give me a call. Yep. . . still waiting. Another thing that probably irritates me is that Portia and Ellen look like the poster couple for lesbians; they're both white, blonde, and rich. If I hear "they're so cute together" one more time. Ick! WHAT makes them so cute together exactly? The fact that they both walked out on long-term partners for each other, moved in together within 2 weeks, and are now . . . wearing matching wedding rings? Ummm, yeah! That's cute. See how cute it is when you're the ditched ex.
Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture |
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| Texas Abstinence Program Increases Sexual Activity in Teens |
| 01.31.05 (9:25 pm) [edit] |
Anyone who has children can answer this question: what's the first thing a child does when you tell her not to do something?Raises my hand. Oh! Oh! I know. They do it anyway! I know I did when I was a child. My children do. It's not until I perfected the art of scaring the shit out of them that they've become a little less inclined to ignore my wishes. So, it doesn't surprise me at all to learn that Texas teens increased their sexual activity after receiveing GW's "just say no to sex" abstinence education. The study showed about 23 per cent of ninth-grade girls, typically 13 to 14 years old, had sex before receiving abstinence education. After taking the course, 29 per cent of the girls in the same group said they had had sex.
Boys in the tenth grade, about 14 to 15 years old, showed a more marked increase, from 24 per cent to 39 per cent, after receiving abstinence education.
Abstinence-only programmes, which have sprouted up in schools across the nation, cannot offer information about birth control and must promote the social and health benefits of abstaining from sex. My younger sister has children approximately the same age as mine, except both her children are girls. When speaking with her a couple of weeks back, she mentioned her 13 year old showed signs that she was sexually active. Now, my sister and I both were sexually active at age 13 and 14, so the last people who would preach abstinence are the two of us. The do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do-t hing has never played a role in my parenting style. My sister, N, said she asked her daughter "are you havin' sex?" To this her daughter replied "no." But N wasn't convinced, so she sat the child down in front of the TV and popped in a video about HIV. The video spoke of HIV, its affects on your health, and the ultimate end result. It also showed how many Black girls and women were delivering HIV positive babies on a monthly basis. N said, when the video was over, she asked her daughter, "are you having unprotected sex?" We can certainly hope that N's approach was effective. I sure pray it was. She never told the girl not to have sex because she knows that's counterproductive; instead, she's working on learning how to scare the shit out of her. It's always been my belief that when we tell children and teenagers not to do something, it makes that something even more inviting. That was certainly the case with me as a teenager. The only thing that kept me from doing half the things I wanted to do was the knowledge that my Mama was the meanest woman in Georgia. When temptation started boiling up inside me, a voice would start screamin' and hollerin' "Girl, yo' mama will kick yo' ass! Is it worth it?" I heard that voice even after I had long left home because my Mama was just that effective. I wonder if that's the same voice my children hear.
Link to this post | | Filed: General |
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| 50 Most Loathsome in America |
| 01.31.05 (6:55 pm) [edit] |
Bert, over at TCF, has pointed me to the 50 Most Loathsome People in America, 2004 list. Ann Coulter is on the list at number 50. I expected her to be closer to the number one spot. Anyway, I especially liked what TCF said in response to: #47. 50 Cent
Crimes: Sole credential for being a rapper, aside from his affiliation with Dr. Dre, is having been shot several times. Spent his first record company advance on crack to sell. Can barely talk, let alone rap. Represents the worst aspect of urban culture, its tendency to collapse in on itself in an orgy of mobsterism and self-destructive spending. Obnoxious tendency to pull out large wads of cash and wave them around in people’s faces (not a figure of speech).
Smoking Gun: Ugliest rapper to make it since Biggie.
Punishment: Getting his ass kicked by Will Smith. TCF responded with this: 50 Cents - You wrote 'Represents the worse in urban culture...' This reminds me of what Rush Limbaugh really wanted to say, when he blamed the Pistons/Pacers brawl on the 'hip/hop culture' in the NBA. Go ahead, call it like it is! 50 Cent represents the worse in Black culture, prevalent Black attitudes, which contribute greatly to the continuing deterioration of the Black community.
If anybody gives you crap for saying it, tell them this Black man gave you permission One of the funniest I saw was: 4. Dick Cheney
Crimes: So loathsome his own party is frightened of him. Manages to deliver stunning lies with an air of sneering authority. Shamelessly employs scare tactics in order to strip the federal government of any resemblance to the one described in the constitution. So visibly evil that all of the documented evidence against him is superfluous. The kind of guy who starts talking cannibalism the minute he steps on the lifeboat.
Smoking Gun: Managed to make his own shame at producing gay offspring into a negative for Kerry.
Punishment: Hacked to death by Mexican migrant workers. Others on the Loathsome list: Laura Bush, George W. Bush, John Kerry, Ellen DeGeneres (nothing to do with the whole surprise break-up), everyone who got together to watch the last episode of "Friends", Clarence Thomas, Ronald Reagan (dude, he died), Condi Rice, Dan Rather, Jessica Simpson (no mention of that horrid sister of hers), and Donald Rumsfeld. The list is a must-read. Don't forget to check TCF's comments. They're just as funny.
Link to this post | | Filed: General |
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| My Lesbian Lover Tried to Kill My Husband |
| 01.31.05 (12:20 am) [edit] |
Is it just me, or is the news full of crazy shit lately? Dear gawd this story is even crazier than the lesbian who set a blaze to her expartner and new girlfriend. A quick synopsis. A heterosexual married woman meets a lesbian at a party, They swap spit and exchange phone numbers. When the married woman's marriage hit a rough spot, she hooked up with the lesbian and the lesbian moved in with her. The lesbian supposedly got controlling and proposed to the woman who was already married. The married woman freaks and says she wants to go back to her hubbie. The lesbian moves out and attempts to kill the hubbie. I swear, that's Jerry Springer drama right there. Let's talk about falling for straight women, shall we? By the way, to be fair about it. . . that lesbian is really messed up in the head! The Straight Woman Poll (poll is for lesbians, guys!)
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues |
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| Do These Genes Make Me Look Gay? |
| 01.30.05 (11:57 pm) [edit] |
 Scientists at the University of Illinois have concluded there is no one "gay" gene. Well, that's nice to know. They've brought company. Our study helps to establish that genes play an important role in determining whether a man is gay or heterosexual," [Dr Mustanski] said, but added that other factors were also important. "Sexual orientation is a complex trait. There is no one 'gay' gene.
"Our best guess is that multiple genes, potentially interacting with environmental influences, explain differences in sexual orientation."
So, the debate continues. The debate would continue even if every scientist in the world agreed that people are born gay.
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues |
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| Military School Costume Party Mocks Gays, Blacks, and Jews |
| 01.30.05 (11:05 pm) [edit] |
Reported by 365gay.com: Despite a public outcry from gay, Jewish and African American civil rights groups, Virginia Military Institute will allow its own students to investigate a party at which some cadets dressed in drag while others wore Nazi uniforms and still others were in black face.
Pictures of the Halloween party only came to light one weekend when it was learned they had been posted on the Internet.
One picture shows three cadets in VMI uniform shirts giving the Nazi salute to the camera. Two of the students are wearing swastika armbands and one had a Hitler-style mustache.
Another photo shows a cadet was dressed as "a starving African". Other pictures show two men in tiaras, wigs and eye shadow. Both are wearing underpants and tank tops that read, "I [heart] a man in uniform."
There is also a picture of a man in a loincloth wearing dark makeup, and one of a man with a bull's-eye drawn on the rear of his pants. You are looking at tomorrow's future Iraqi prison guards. Be afraid. Be very afraid. Allowing their own investigators to look into the situation reminds me of the GOP's attempt to change the ethics rules to protect one of their own. They're training them to watch each other's asses early. I guess it's never really too early.
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Dr. Dobson Defends Spongebob Attack in Letter |
| 01.30.05 (10:53 pm) [edit] |
Dr. James Dobson is putting pen to paper and defending his attack on Spongebob. He writes: Some of you heard the bogus story and believed it. We received more than 1,200 e-mails in the first few days, almost all of them critical because of my perceived attack on poor SpongeBob. One more time, let me say that the problem is not with SpongeBob or the other cartoon characters. It is with the way they will be used in the classroom.
And that brings me to the larger issue. It does not matter what the secular media says about me. In the final analysis, who cares? What is vitally important, however, are the children of this country and the effort being made to manipulate them for political purposes.
[ . . . ]
Parents, I urge you to keep a close eye on your sons and daughters. Watch carefully everything that goes into their little minds. Monitor their textbooks and the words of their teachers. Do not turn them over to harmful television programs. When God’s name is used in vain, or when sex and violence come on the screen, turn off the tube and then read and discuss together the scriptures found in Psalm 103:1: "I will set before my eyes no vile thing" [NIV]. Read uplifting and inspiring stories to your children daily. He doesn't care what the media says about him, but his letter explaining himself sure looks like he does. It's pretty damn long! Read the entire letter.
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| British Goverment Official Announces He Has HIV |
| 01.30.05 (9:42 pm) [edit] |
Chris Smith, Britain's first openly gay government official, has announced that he's been HIV positive for 17 years. He says he was inspired by Nelson Mandela to go public with the hopes that it would remove some of the negative stigma attached to the disease.
"What Nelson Mandela said very much struck a chord with me," Smith was quoted as saying in the Sunday Times newspaper. "He spoke about how nobody should be ashamed of HIV and said that it should be regarded just like any other illness. He was brave and right."
Regardless of the statistics that state otherwise, HIV is still viewed as "the gay diesease" or the disease of the sexually promiscuous. It's that mentality that allows us to turn a blind eye to the AIDS epidemic in Africa. It's also that ignorance that allows the Black Christians in America to blatanly ignore the large amount of African American women who are inflicted with the disease. Their master wasn't even aware there was an HIV epidemic among Black female Americans. But, they were aware their master needed their help to win the election.
Smith goes on to say:
"If I can help to demystify this, if I can help to challenge a little bit of prejudice, if I can help to give a little bit of greater confidence to other people who are affected in the same way, well, let's say something."
Related article: Smith hopes HIV revelation will help fight Aids in Africa
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| The American Hand-Picked Iraqi Government -- At Last! |
| 01.30.05 (12:18 pm) [edit] |
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Iraqis voted for the first time in history today. Welcome to the world of democracy.
I have no doubt that GW's little GOP soldiers are applauding and gloating -- as if this seals some sort of declaration that their cowboy was right all along about those WMDs and Iraq being connected to 9/11. This is no declaration of righteousness by any means. The sad part is that most of the people who are supporting GW and waving the flag of democracy have some idea that democracies everywhere are exactly like the system we use in the US. Any fool with even 1 brain cell in his or her head should know better.
In many democractic societies, the President is nothing more than a figurehead. A separate person would behave in the capacity that the United States President performs. An example would be Germany. "The USA and Germany are federal republics governed by representative democracy, in which the states play a crucial role." (Wikipedia, Republic). The Federal President in Germany has powers that are limited to ceremonial and representative duties. The head of the government in Germany is really the Chancellor. The Chancellor is elected by political party members; the Chancellor is not elected directly by the people. To Americans that's unheard of. Ask your average American who elects the head of the government in a democracy and they will no doubt state "the people" in a collective sense, not a representative sense.
If we had that kind of democratic system in the United States, there would be times when a Democratic controlled Senate chose the President. The Senate was controlled by Democrats when Ronald Reagan was in office. Imagine the possibilities.
So, what form of democracy will Iraq become? In its present state, I don't see Iraq becoming an effective functioning democracy anytime soon. With "elected" officials that are hand-picked by the United States government to run as candidates in the first place, that has to be the most destructive way to start forming any democracy. "Ok, now you're going to be a democratic society and you'll get to vote for the very first time ever. But, you must choose between the people the Americans have chosen to take care of you." I say the Americans are getting more out of this than the Iraqis -- a hand-picked government in a country rich with oil. Gooo Democracy!
Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Gay Students Bullied and Christians Screwed by Bush |
| 01.29.05 (6:34 pm) [edit] |
Just a couple of things to mention: A report out of the UK estimates that up to 60,000 school age children are the victims of homophobic bullying. London's mayor, Ken Livingstone, is calling for the creation of an educational program that is more inclusive and does not assume that all students are heterosexual.
Rush Limbaugh once stated that openly gay students were showing off their sexuality and asking for trouble. I guess if you hide it -- the way Rush hid that drug problem of his -- life would be so much simpler.
And quoted from the threatening letter the good Christian folks sent GW and Karl Rove:
"Is [Bush] prepared to spend significant political capital on [social security] privatisation but reluctant to devote the same energy to preserving traditional marriage?
"If so, it would create outrage with countless voters who stood with him just a few weeks ago, including an unprecedented number of African-Americans, Latinos and Catholics who broke with tradition and supported the President solely because of this issue."
Yeah it would create outrage. You bastards were had! Used. Abused. Tossed aside. So how many more bitches does Bush have now? Toss in the Christian African Americans, the Latinos, and the Catholics he used to win votes by appealing to their hatred of homosexuals. He's been quite busy bendin' a whole lot of people ovah.
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Texas Judge Declares Former Lesbian Partner Has Parenting Rights |
| 01.29.05 (12:40 pm) [edit] |
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I'm not sure how I missed this one.
Another broken lesbian relationship involving a child has ended up in one lesbian attempting to use a homophobic law to keep the other from remaining in the child's life. Sometimes those folks down there in Texas surprise me. The Texas Supreme Court has denied the biological mother's request to overturn the adoption of her 6-year-old daughter by her former lesbian partner. The biological mother, Julie Ann Hobbs, claims the adoption should be deemed void since Texas does not allow same-sex marriage or same-sex co-parenting. Umm, didn't Hobbs know that when she allowed her partner to adopt the child? The things we do when we're in love. The shit we stoop to when we're jilted ex-lovers.
Janet Kathleen Van Stavern filed for joint custody and standard visitation of the 6 year old girl -- a child born via artifical insemination, then adopted by Van Stavern in 2001. A District Judge ruled Van Stavern has parental rights to the child. A court date is set for April 4, and Hobbs plans to appeal the family court ruling.
This reminds me of how much we have in common with straight people. No, they don't use anti-gay laws to keep parents out of children's lives, but they sure do a lot of other things. All is well with Dick and Jane, until Jane catches Dick doin' the next door neighbor Sally. Suddenly Dick is really a dick and doesn't deserve to see the kids anymore. Or, maybe Dick catches Jane doin' Sally. You know what I mean . . .
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| ABC Canceled Debate Between Lesbians and Ex-Gay Man |
| 01.29.05 (2:55 am) [edit] |
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Well, I don't know about anybody else, but I've had just about enough of the ex-gays taking every opportunity they can get to persuade homosexuals to live a life that we simply do not wish to live -- even if we could. The ex-gays need to understand that I won't bother them, if they don't bother me. It's really that simple.
ABC's Good Morning America cancelled a scheduled debate between, Stephen -- a now married ex-gay -- and a lesbian couple. Stephen was supposed to discuss Margaret Spelling's disapproval of PBS running an epidose of "Postcards from Buster" that contained a scene with lesbians heading to Vermont. After the lesbian couple learned that Stephen was an ex-gay, they decided they didn't want to be in the same room with him. Can't blame 'em there! They're like those pesty religious freaks who bug ya at 8 am on Saturday morning. ABC tried to make arrangments to do the debate via satellite, but arrangements fell through. One source claims ABC canceled the debate at the lesbian couple's request.
A debate between an ex-gay man who is now married-with-children and a lesbian couple with children was scheduled for no other reason than to increase ratings. So, I don't really give a rat's ass if the debate was canceled at the lesbian couple's request. If ABC really wanted to address the issue of lesbian and gay parenting in a non-combatant environment, that was not the way to do it. ABC will still get something out of this failed attempt to see the lesbians battle it out with the ex-homo; the network will be in the headlines for a few days, maybe a week at the maximum.
Based on what I've read in the article, this is not a case of discrimination. It sounds like poor planning on the part of ABC, and exaggeration on the part of the Christian "news media." Besides, the couple has every right to refuse to talk to Stephen, or anybody else. It's not like they're the head of a nation that advocates freedom of speech.
Thanks to SistersTalk reader Leanne for the tip.
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| GW Paid Off Anti-Gay Activist to Advocate Gay Ban |
| 01.28.05 (10:48 pm) [edit] |
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Quoting those greats words of Margaret Spellings, the new education secretary who was livid that PBS used public funding for a children's cartoon that included lesbians, "that's not what public funds are meant for."
GW used public funds, taxpayer money, to pay an anti-gay activist to write a report that spoke against gay marriage. Gallagher admitted she received $21,000 from the Department of Health and Human Services to push Bush’s $300 million initiative to ban gay marriage.
Ok, now . . . who else was paid off by that administration? It's not surprising, but it's definitely enough to inspire me to keep talkin'. It annoys the hell out of the little GOP soldiers.
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Is a Federal Gay Adoption Ban Next? |
| 01.28.05 (10:26 pm) [edit] |
It's been an odd kinda day. I heard "good night, Mom" from my boys at 9pm on a Friday night (it is Friday, isn't it?) and I've been completely caught up in a new business project that I didn't even notice the time.
Speaking of children, our little bundles of joy. . .
GW has stated that children are worse off if they are raised by gay people than they are if they are raised by straight people. I didn't know GW's parents were gay! Holy shit! Experts have disagreed with GW. Big surprise there, does it take an expert?
Ya know, I have to pause here and think about the response GW's opinion about gay parents will provoke from his 1 million loving and adoring homosexual fans. (pausing, reflecting, thinking. . . laughing!) Can we say, "Thank you, Daddy. May I have another?"
So, is a federal gay adoption ban on GW's list of How to Appease the Religious Right?
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| On the Definition of Marriage: Which Definition Do You Mean? |
| 01.27.05 (11:22 pm) [edit] |
 When the state stepped in and decided it should play a role in heterosexual marriage, the state decided that it could play a role in not only defining marriage, but setting the criteria for marriage. Many states have laws that dictate minimum age of consent for marriage -- 17 or 18 in most states, unless the girl is pregnant. The United States, and most countries, have laws that state a marriage is defined as a union between 1 man and 1 woman. Some countries still allow a man to marry more than one woman. So, in essence, marriage is defined by the government -- not by the Bible. If that's not the case, then why is the religious right calling on the government to etch in concrete a definition for marriage?
Scott Simpson, a lawyer for California's Department of Justice, said recently "Marriage has always meant a man and a woman. That is what is fundamental about marriage." I noticed Scott's language. He said a man and a woman. He's right. The state has always defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman. It seems the religious right is forgetting that marriage has had (and continues to have) many state definitions:
Polygyny: a man has more than one wife simultaneously.
Polyandry: a woman has more than one husband. Practiced in Tibet, Zanskar, Nepal, and Sri Lanka and some regions of China.
Endogamy: typically results in marriage between cousins. Practiced in areas like Iraq where it's important to marry within the same social circles.
Common law marriage: two people are deemed married after living together openly as a married couple under specified conditions for a specified period of time.
If the state wants to continue defining marriage in whatever way it wishes, so be it; however, heterosexual married people should not receive special rights (like tax breaks) just because they are married. That's where the inequality rears its ugly head. My argument supporting gay marriage has always been one that speaks to equality. I have never cared to have the government define for me what my relationship with my life partner should be. That's my decision alone. The present marriage system as-is is a discriminatory system that should anger even single heterosexuals. Why should single people without children bear the heaviest tax burden? Why should married people be entitled to cheaper insurance policies for their home, auto and health?
Historically, marriage served an economic purpose. Today, it still serves that purpose. I don't know where these religious fanatics get off with the whole "marriage-as-a-religious- tradition" bit. Those who oppose gay marriage on the premise that marriage is some sacred union between 1 man and 1 woman, well . . . I have to wonder how far up their asses they had to reach to find their head. Marriage has existed a lot longer as a union between multiple men and women a lot longer than it's existed as a union between 1 man and 1 woman. It just goes to show how well you can train a parrot to mimic an idiot.
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Anti-Gay Dart Team Booted & Marlon Brando Voted Sexiest |
| 01.27.05 (3:22 pm) [edit] |
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Tblog is having trouble with its posting editor, so bear with me.
A few quick news mentions and it's time for me to prepare for one of my last 5 MBA classes ever. I remember the first day of grad school long ago. Seeing the first syllabus. It looked like a book -- no exaggeration there. I said, "This is the syllabus?!" The professor said, "Welcome to grad school." I'm considering a PhD in Communications, so if anyone wants to contribute to my PhD fund, I'll be beggin' soon enough.
Ok, a story in Gay Wired mentions that an anti-gay dart team has been banned from a dart-bar in the UK after they made nasty homophobic comments to an all-gay opposing team. It didn't matter to the bar owner that this was one of the country's best dart teams. Out ya go, homophobic bastards!
Marlon Brando has been voted the sexiest man by a gay magazine? Umm. . .ok.
New York Medical School refuses to lift its ban on gay med students. It's a private Catholic college affiliated with the Archdiocese of New York. I guess it's more important to have straight doctors than it is to save lives.
Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Cop Threatens to Arrest Woman For Fuck Bush Bumper Sticker |
| 01.27.05 (11:09 am) [edit] |
 Denver police officer Sgt. Michael Karasek threatened to arrest Shasta Bates because she flaunted a "Fuck Bush" bumper sticker on her truck. One man confronted Shasta Bates while she stood inside a UPS store about her bumper sticker, saying it bothered him. He then went out to find Karasek. Karasek then entered the UPS and threatened to arrest Bates if she didn't remove the sticker. Bates filed a complaint. Karasek will be disciplined, but specifics on how he will be disciplined weren't mentioned. I keep thinking I need a "Dumb Ass" category. What was this guy thinking? Did he think he would be able to bully Bates into submission just because he was a cop? Props to Shasta Bates! Thanks to SistersTalk reader Dawn for the tip.
Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Happy Birthday, Ellen DeGeneres |
| 01.26.05 (8:15 pm) [edit] |
 Ellen DeGeneres is 47 today, born 01/26/58.
Also born today:
[i]Derek Bond[/i] (1919 B-Scotland; F-Saturday Night Out, When 8 Bells Toll); [i]Angela Davis [/i](1944 Black Leader); [i]Julia Grant [/i](1926 Wife Of Ulysses S. Grant, 18th President Of US); [i]William Hopper, Jr[/i]. (1915 Died-1970; Tv-Perry Mason -- Detective Paul Drake); [i]Anne Jeffreys[/i] (1923 40's Film Star; Former Opera Singer; Tv-Topper ); [i]Wayne Gretzky [/i](1961 Pro Hockey Player); [i]Eartha Kitt [/i](1928 Singer/Actress; F-Uncle Tom's Cabin, Friday Foster, Last Resort); [i]Joan Leslie [/i](1925 F-Star Dust, Military Academy, Camille, Nancy Drew: Reporter); [i] Douglas Mac Arthur [/i](1880 Dead-1964 Am. General In WW 2 In SW Pacific); [i]Mary Murphy[/i] (1931 Leading Lady 50's; Once Married To Dale Robertson; F-Manhattan, Harlow); [i]Paul Newman[/i] (1925 F-Hud; Butch Cassidy; Sting, The Color of Money); [i]Maria Trapp [/i](1905 Singer-Story Told In The Sound Of Music Movie); [i]Jimmy Van Heusen [/i]( 1913 Song Writer; Oscar-"Swinging On A Star" In Going My Way -- '44); [i]Jack Youngblood [/i](1950 Football); [i]Anita Baker [/i](1958 Singer); [i]Eddie Van Halen [/i](1957 Lead Guitar - Van Halen)
Celebrity Birthdays
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| Law Professor Says Gay Ban Will Wilt Under Scrutiny |
| 01.26.05 (6:55 pm) [edit] |
A constitutional law professor in Kansas testified before the House Federal and State Affairs Committee that a proposed Kansas gay marriage ban would wilt under scrutiny by Supreme Court judges. He said, "it would be found quite quickly unconstitutional."
[Bill Rich] said the U.S. Supreme Court already has ruled it is unconstitutional for states to make it more difficult for some groups to seek relief from the government.
"It has nothing to do with same-sex marriage, as such. It has everything to do with democracy," he said.
It's always been my belief that gay marriage bans are unconstitutional, not because they define marriage as a union between 1 man and 1 woman, but because they don't afford the same rights to one group of law-abiding taxing-paying Americans that they do to another group of law-abiding tax-paying Americans. If our Supreme Court Justices did their job as they should, gay marriage bans wouldn't stand a chance once they reach the nation's highest court. The anti-homosexuals know that too, which is why they have worked to remove a citizen's right to challenge the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) by passing of the Marriage Protection Act.
The Marriage Protection Act strips federal courts of any jurisdiction over same-sex marriage cases -- despite the fact that both DOMA and the Marriage Protection Act are unconstitutional. Why so much work to keep us from challenging their gay bans? Perhaps we might have a chance at overturning them?
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Alabama Sheriff Doesn't Have Free Speech |
| 01.26.05 (5:35 pm) [edit] |
Remember this guy?
The Alabama Sheriff who longed for the good ol' days when homos were forced to remain silent will remove the public homophobic letter he published on the county's website.
Sheriff Holcomb said the letter was never meant to represent the Sheriff's office official policy. He said, "We at the Marshall County Sheriff's Department have always treated all victims of crime, all criminal suspects, all detainees, all inmates exactly the same."
Yeah, stick it, Sheriff Holocomb. And you know where.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Education Department Balks at PBS Lesbian Characters |
| 01.26.05 (5:16 pm) [edit] |
Margaret Spellings, the new education secretary, protested a PBS cartoon episode of Postcards from Buster -- not yet aired-- that depicted lesbian characters on their way to Vermont:
The nation's new education secretary denounced PBS on Tuesday for spending public money on a cartoon with lesbian characters, saying many parents would not want children exposed to such lifestyles.
Spellings said the episode does not represent what Congress meant public funding to be used for. By law, she said, any funded shows must give top attention to "research-based educational objectives, content and materials."
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Examining Lesbian Stereotypes |
| 01.25.05 (9:23 pm) [edit] |
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I read a post on a newsgroup in which a straight woman asked why lesbians discriminate against heterosexual women. I've never heard that question before. The usual question is why we discriminate against bisexuals. This particular heterosexual woman viewed lesbian women as anti any female that represented the traditional family unit. My first thought was she was giving herself and any other heterosexual woman much more credit than they deserved. This heterosexual woman was making a few other assumptions:
1. Lesbian women who are without children are jealous of heterosexual women who are mothers
2. Lesbian women who have children wish there was a man around in the family
3. Lesbian women who have children with other lesbian women don't view their family as "traditional" in every sense of the word
While we're looking at lesbian stereotypes, let's examine a few others:
[b][i]Lesbians hate men[/i]. [/b]
No we don't. Well, speaking just for myself, I really dislike the really stupid ones. Like the ones who hit on a lesbian at a gay bar. Yeah, those men. Now, I have met many, many straight and bisexual women who can dog the hell out of men. They sound more anti-male than lesbians do -- perhaps that's because they actually deal with men on an intimate and personal level and we don't. Yes? So, if there are any male-haters in the world, folks, it ain't the lesbians. If ya noticed, the most prominent feminists in the world, the ones who seem the most anti-male, are straight or bisexual.
[b][i]A lesbian just needs the right man to come along.[/i][/b]
This one just cracks my shit up everytime I hear it -- especially when I hear it from a guy who's hitting on me in a GAY bar. My comeback is always, "and I guess a straight man just needs the right guy to come along and make him gay?" People, it doesn't work that way.
[b][i] Lesbians want to be men.[/i][/b]
I am perfectly happy with the parts I have. There's a huge difference between butch lesbians and transgendered female-to-male (FTM) identified individuals who might or might not identify as a lesbian. Typically, those who are FTM plan to (want to) change their gender. Butch lesbians do not.
[b][i]Women become lesbians because they can't find a man.[/i][/b]
I've been married and would still be married if I had simply walked away from the divorce proceedings. It was that easy. Many lesbians have had relationships with men. Many lesbians are propositioned by men -- even the butch ones! Statistics show that women outnumber men in the United States and in most parts of the world. And with the infidelity rate, well . . . finding a man just ain't that difficult.
[b][i]Women become lesbians because they were sexually abused as children.[/i][/b]
This one is another one that makes me roll my eyes. How many women were not sexually abused as children? I know just as many straight women who were sexually abused as I know lesbians who were sexually abused.
[b][i]
Lesbians look like men.[/i][/b]
I've been shocked a few times to learn that there are quite a few butch (masculine in appearance) women who are not lesbians. My "gaydar" has completely missed the femme lesbian across the room in the low-cut dress and 6 inch heels.
Straight people aren't the only ones who submit to stereotyping gay women. Gay people are just as guilty of it. I'm thinking it's part of who we are -- part of our basic desire to fit everyone into categories that make them easier to describe in conversation.
If there's anyone who wants to submit a gay man's stereotype piece (or already has one), please do.
update:
I thought this Jane's World piece was perfect:
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Here's What Stupid Looks Like in Arkansas |
| 01.25.05 (7:15 pm) [edit] |
 Ok, so for those people who haven't the foggiest idea what the words [i]stupid[/i] and [i]hateful [/i] look like personified, here's a clue:
(Little Rock, Arkansas) Proposed legislation banning any mention of gay families in Arkansas school books has been met with heavy criticism in state Legislature.
The bill, filed by Rep. Roy Ragland (R-Marshall) would force the state's school districts to purchase only textbooks which define marriage as between one man and one woman. Ragland said the legislation was aimed at bringing school books in line with the state Constitution when bans same-sex marriage.
Anti-Gay Textbook Bill Sparks Fiery Debate
So, Mr. Roy Raglard claims these new anti-gay textbooks are in line with Arkansas's new anti-gay marriage ban. Let's see, if that's the case, Arkansas schools should ban books that mention:
1. Stealing
2. Drunk driving
3. Murder
4. Slavery
5. Child abuse
6. Disorderly conduct
7. Spousal abuse
8. Animal cruelty
Should I go on? Take a good look at Rep. Roy Ragland, folks. That's what stupid and hateful looks like. Apparently, they're even dumber in Alabama.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Politician Used Gay Researcher to Spy on Gay Rival |
| 01.25.05 (1:40 pm) [edit] |
Candy Atherton wanted to ensure she won the last election. How do you ensure a victory? Ya dig up dirt on your rival! Atherton attempted to use her openly gay reasearcher, Paul Phillips, to spy on her rival, so she could use the information against him during the election:
A Labour MP told her researcher to dig the dirt on her gay Tory rival to damage him, a tribunal heard today.
Candy Atherton, MP for Falmouth and Camborne, asked Paul Phillips to use his contacts to find out whether Ashley Crossley frequented gay bars in Soho, the south London hearing was told.
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“[Phillips] said ‘I can’t do anything which is homophobic.’ Candy said she wasn’t going to do anything that was homophobic but she just believed in people being open about what they did.
“She then said she was ‘out’ about not being gay and he should be ‘out’ about being gay.”
Phillips was fired and is suing for discrimination because he feels she wouldn't have asked anyone else to spy on her rival. Phillips says the places she needed him to go and the things she needed him to do (talking to his friends and family) required a gay person.
Well, we have our David Dreiers in this country, so why not spread that kind of love elsewhere?
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| 3 Gay Couples Drop Challenge of Defense of Marriage Act |
| 01.25.05 (12:52 pm) [edit] |
After reading this article, I'm wondering where the gay rights movement will go:
"Three gay couples dropped their lawsuits Tuesday challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act, saying they don't want to risk having a conservative U.S. Supreme Court set legal precedent by rejecting their cases.
Robin Tyler, executive director of the Equality Campaign, the gay rights group that helped bring the lawsuits, said she doesn't consider the decision to drop the suits a setback for her cause.
``It's a loss when people don't stand up and fight for their rights,'' she said.
``You pick your battles, but you continue fighting,'' Tyler said. ``We understand it's a matter of time....Love always wins.''
We've learned to better calculate the opponent's moves, something the GOP has been very good at all along -- being the sneaky bastards they are. But, do we need to back away from the fight altogether?
Are we submitting to a new form of closetness -- backing down from fights we should have, fights that are long overdue, and fights we have the right to reciprocate or initiate? I think we are. We're becoming a new class of out-and-closeted homosexuals.
We're out and proud -- attending our gay pride fests every summer -- yet backing down from the religious right wrong because 51% of the country voted for GW and 11 states banned same-sex marriage in the last election.
We back down as the GOP and religious wrong follow the lead of their smirkin' leader. I'm ashamed, to be quite honest. Remembering the civil rights movement and how so many Black Americans and allies laid their bodies on the line -- literally -- for what they believed in, I am ashamed to see this mass gay-flight starting to happen. Compared to the challenges and hardships Black Americans faced during the civil rights movement in this country, how dare you people cower!
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Lesbians & Gays Remember the Holocaust |
| 01.25.05 (1:40 am) [edit] |
Thursday 27th January 2005 marks Holocaust Memorial Day.
Holocaust Memorial Day promotes awareness and raises understanding of the Holocaust and its victims. The Memorial seeks to remind us of the grave atrocities of the Holocaust, hoping to inspire us to ensure that racism, sexism, and extreme cruelty have no place in society.
The Holocaust Memorial serves as an important reminder to members of the LGBT community -- as the infamous gay pink triangle has its roots in the Holocaust. It's widely believed, and documented, that Hitler came for the homosexuals first. Gay males were made to wear pink triangles, while lesbians wore the black triangles. This branding was meant to single out homosexuals to prison guards and other Holocaust victims. It was estimated that 2,000,000 gay men lived in Germany during Hitler's rule. It was Hitler's goal to find all gay men and remove them from society.
This is a time to remember all Holocaust victims, gay and straight:
"We must be on the watch for any revival of anti-Semitism, and ready to act against the new forms of it that are appearing today," Annan said. "That obligation binds us not only to the Jewish people, but to all others that have been, or may be, threatened with a similar fate."
United Nations commemorates 60th anniversary of the Holocaust
| Link to this post | | Filed: Religion, LGBT Issues
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| Christians Use Social Security to Bully GW |
| 01.25.05 (12:45 am) [edit] |
It's payback time, GW:
WASHINGTON, Jan. 24 - A coalition of major conservative Christian groups is threatening to withhold support for President Bush's plans to remake Social Security unless Mr. Bush vigorously champions a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. The move came as Senate Republicans vowed on Monday to reintroduce the proposed amendment, which failed in the Senate last year by a substantial margin. Party leaders, who left it off their list of priorities for the legislative year, said they had no immediate plans to bring it to the floor because they still lacked the votes for passage.
Did GW really think he could use those Christians to win the election and they wouldn't expect anything in return for their hard work? That just doesn't seem very Christian-like to me. Anyone else?
I must admit, it's nice to see GW's ass in a sling for once. What surprises me about these lovely Christian folks (no, not the hypocrisy. that doesn't surprise me) is these people are most concerned about homosexuals than they are about world peace, poverty, homelessness, child abuse, spousal abuse, finding the cure for cancer, finding the cure for AIDS . . . . Just imagine what good Christian folks like these can accomplish if they bullied Presidents into passing legislation that ensured every child in America never went to bed hungry. Just imagine what these good Christian folks can accomplish if they bullied Presidents into passing legislation that ensured that anyone who sexually abused a child received a mandatory 25-year prison sentence.
But oh no! They will not work for such superficial goals such as those. They will work long and hard to ensure that every heterosexual married couple in America knows their marriage has been branded sacred by the federal government.
God Bless the good Christians! They will save the world and reserve their seat on the bus to heaven by ignoring children who go to bed hungry every night, and instead zone in on the homosexuals. God Bless the good Christians! They will save the world and reserve their seat on the bus to heaven by ignoring all the abused wives (and husbands) in their precious heterosexual marriages, and instead focus on banning gay marriage. God Bless the good Christians, indeed. Can I have an "amen?" They will save the world and reserve their seat on the bus to heaven by ignoring the millions of homeless people in the world, and instead focus on banning gay marriage. God Bless the good Christians . . . .
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics, Religion
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| Richard Nixon Secretary Dies |
| 01.24.05 (6:31 pm) [edit] |
The loyal secretay who claims she accidentally erased 18 1/2 minutes of the infamous Watergate tape, has died. Rose Mary Woods, Secretary of President Nixon, payed a crucial role in the Watergate scandal. Sources says Woods never talked much about those years with Nixon after she left the White House. As I read sources about Woods, I was reminded of Condi Rice. Woods was often viewed as part of the Nixon family. Rice has been treated as a trusted member of Bush's family -- often spending spending holidays at the Bush ranch in Texas. Secrets, secrets. Dontcha just love 'em?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Federal Gay Ban Goal Resurrected |
| 01.24.05 (5:25 pm) [edit] |
What's with Colorado? Wayne Allard, R-Colo., has vowed to revive the vehement pursuit of equality for heterosexuals only. He plans to resurrect the fight to establish a constitutional ban on gay marriage. If you recall, Allard and another politician from Colorado (Marilyn Musgrave) were the first to take those steps to estalish a federal gay ban -- on GW's cue, of course. Musgrave, a GW and Cheney favorite even before she joined the ranks at the White House, never gave up her fight to ban gay marriage between homosexuals in America. Unhappy that their efforts failed in 2004, Allard says, "We think we have more support this time than we had last time around." I'm guessing that mandate GW thinks he has gives Allard the confidence he needs to continue this noble fight. He's also relying on the fact that 11 states successfully passed gay bans. He hopes the others will fall in line. Other articles: Senators to press for gay marriage banThune signs on to amendment to ban gay marriage U.S. Senators Plan To Push Gay-Marriage AmendmentSo, for my favorite little GOP soldiers who keep an eye on the SistersTalk blog. . . I think I'll continue to discuss the gay marriage issue, as long as your people continue to walk about with a stick up their asses.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Counselors Not Trained to Deal With Gay Students |
| 01.23.05 (11:32 pm) [edit] |
A recent article states that three quarters of Indiana school counselors are not trained to assist gay and lesbian students. 93.5 percent of those counselors in rural areas and 67.3 percent in urban areas stated there were inadequate resources to assist them with counseling gay and lesbian students.
In a survey of 118 high school and middle school counselors from Indiana:
About 80 percent of counselors reported dealing professionally with gay and lesbian students.
About 97 percent of respondents said it was the school counselor's role to counsel gay and lesbian teens, but about 82 percent believed such services should only be offered at the student's request.
About 94 percent of counselors from urban schools who had dealt with gay students had been approached directly by those seeking assistance; about 84 percent of counselors in rural schools reported the same.
The growing trend in high schools across the nation is the formulation of LGBT support groups; however, for many students, taking that first step and actually joining the group is difficult. The support groups don't provide the privacy many students may need to begin the process of dealing with their sexuality; counselors provide that privacy because they're professionals bound by a code of conduct that insists they keep conversations between themselves and students private -- except in cases involving abuse or intent to cause harm.
One of the answers here is definitely more education and training for middle school and high school counselors. The increased risk of suicide among homosexual or questioning teenagers -- due to isolation, rejection, confusion, and shame -- is more than enough reason to invest in the added training and resources.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| SistersTalk Nominated for Bloggie as Best GLBT Blog |
| 01.23.05 (10:46 pm) [edit] |
Much to my surprise, SistersTalk has been nominated to receive a Bloggie: one of 30 publicly-chosen awards given to weblog writers and those related to weblogs. This is the fifth ceremony. SistersTalk is a finalist in the gay/lesbian/bi/trans (GLBT) blog category. View the 5th Annual Weblog Awards and pick your favorite. Thank you very much for this show of appreciation. You like me . . . or you really love to hate me. I'll accept either! I wish I had known when the nominations were open so I could nominate some of my favorites in various categories, but this is one of those things I'm always the last to know about. Go take a look at the nominees. You may find some great blogs you haven't read before.
| Link to this post | | Filed: General
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| Did Kate Moss Kiss Naomi Campbell's Female Personal Assistant? |
| 01.23.05 (7:18 pm) [edit] |
 Dear lord! I'd like to strangle the editor of this article: MOSS' 'LESBIAN CLINCH' WITH CAMPBELL'S FORMER PA .
Campbell's former personal assistant said she was grabbed by Kate Moss and kissed after she complimented her on how nice she looked. Allegedly, Moss and Campbell's former PA then made out (nothing more than kissing and touching body parts) in a hotel room. Umm, you know how girls get. Compliment them and they wanna touch your 2000 parts!
So, why is there a picture of Naomi Campbell accompanying the original article when Campbell has nothing to do with the intimate details? Shouldn't there be a picture of Kate Moss or Campbell's former PA? Also, notice how the writer classified the accusation as "damning" -- as if a supermodel with lesbian (or bisexual, excuse me) tendencies is the most horrific thing in the world.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| Underground Gay Language Makes a Comeback |
| 01.23.05 (6:58 pm) [edit] |
An interesting story on thestar.com says a secret gay slang language is coming back in Britain:
Polari, the gay slang used as a secret underground language before the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Britain back in the 1960s, is making a comeback.
I can imagine what some people will call this: a sorta ebonics for gay people? Here's a sample: "They were forever trolling (walking) down to a fantabulosa (wonderful) bar for a bijou drinkette. As feele homies (young men) they would love to zhoosh their riah (fix their hair)."
This language was used before 1967, when sex between gay men was illegal. The story makes no mention of sex between homosexual females.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Papa Bush to the Rescue |
| 01.23.05 (1:58 pm) [edit] |
Papa George H. W. Bush came to his little boy's defense after leaders worldwide viewed GW's speech as a warning that the Bush Administration would take a more aggressive role in securing freedom worldwide:
"People want to read a lot into it -- that this means new aggression or newly asserted military forces," former president George H.W. Bush said. "That's not what that speech is about. It's about freedom." Former President George H.W. Bush talks to the media during an impromptu visit to the White House Saturday. After George W. Bush's second inaugural address, in which he promised to defend those who seek freedom everywhere, there has been confusion overseas and in the United States over whether he was signaling a shift in foreign policy. Some interpreted the speech as presaging a more confrontational relationship with Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and other nations that are allies in the war on terrorism but also have records of abusing human rights. Bush's Father Warns Against Extrapolating From Speech
I would interpret GW's comments the same way. He thinks he has a "mandate", remember? He thinks he can do whatever the hell he wants after 51% of the country re-elected him even though: there were no WMDs in Iraq, Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11, he bulldozed the homos, he attacked civil liberties on all fronts, and he set out to systematically divide the nation to ensure he would win a second term. Well, if I got away with that kind of behavior and people elected me to be President, I would assume I could do whatever the hell I wanted too.
Now, if GW (and his little GOP soldiers who are runnin' on extremely high levels of testosterone) seem to think we can just wander around the world and pick fights because we're the big, strong, mighty USA, they sure have another think comin'. At one point, Japan was the best military power in the world. Hell, even the Roman Empire crumbled like day old bread. The thing that humors me the most are the people who aren't even Americans who are standing on the sidelines singing our praises and treating us like we're hot shit. They too forgot the Roman Empire was conquered. Did they forget, or are they ignorant wanna-be Americans?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Gavin Newsom: G-Man to Some |
| 01.23.05 (1:20 pm) [edit] |
I read an interesting article on Gavin Newsom, the San Fran, CA mayor who performed gay and lesbian weddings in CA last summer. The article talks about Newsom's other political passions -- homeless people, the poor, and cleaning up housing projects.
[Gavin Newsom] spends so much time in Hunters Point, in Sunnyvale and other housing projects in the southeastern quadrant of the city that young men there, idle on a weekday mid-morning, pass him by with a casual greeting: "G, man." Most weekends he heads out there accompanied only by one of the police officers who serve as his drivers and his personal aide, Daniel Homsey. A few weeks ago he grabbed a bunch of kids off a street and took them to Burger King -- cost him $60. Then he took a bunch to watch a 49ers game in the mayoral box. Even Newsom himself wonders why he is so relaxed in places where rich and powerful white guys seldom venture. And attributes it, too, to his upbringing. Newsom in Four Acts : What shaped the man who took on homelessness, gay marriage, Bayview-Hunters Point and the hotel strike in one year
Granted, Newsome is criticized for reaching out to those he did not do so well with in the last election (gays, Blacks, the poor), but I would argue there's a sincerity in his actions. The fact that he fared so poorly with these groups in the last election was Newsom's warning that he missed the boat on so many issues. Newsom paid attention to that warning, unlike other politicians who simply rely on the constituency that elected them in the first place to re-elect them the next time around. That do-what-you've-always-don e tactic works well for many politicians -- Republican and Democratic alike.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Catholic Church Bans Civil Unions, Even For Heterosexuals |
| 01.22.05 (11:12 pm) [edit] |
Well, as I continue my constant chatter about equal rights for gays and lesbians -- you know, that thing so many want me to shut up about -- I point everyone to the Catholic Church's latest policy: no civil unions for anyone, not even heterosexuals:
Catholic priests will not be permitted to conduct civil unions for either heterosexual or homosexual couples.
Catholic Communications director Lyndsay Freer told the Herald on Sunday that the status of marriage was "diminished by making any other kind of relationship its equivalent".
The Church did not see the purpose of civil unions for heterosexual couples, she said.
Heterosexual couples in New Zealand are opting for civil unions instead of the traditional word marriage. It's got the Catholic Church in an uproar. A new bill recently allows heterosexual and homosexual couples to have a civil union and have the same rights as traditional married couples. So, some heterosexuals said, "ok, let's have a civil union."
I must admit even I'm trying to figure out why a heterosexual couple would opt for a civil union instead of marriage. The beauty is that they have the right to define their relationship the way they want to define it. One religious official said:
"What's the difference between civil unions for heterosexual couples and marriage? If you get married in a registry office it's a civil ceremony, so why would a heterosexual couple prefer a civil union to a marriage?"
I don't know why a heterosexual couple would prefer a civil union to marriage, but I'm thoroughly enjoying the big fuss everyone is making. This whole situation gets more complicated by the minute.
By the way, I won't be shutting up about much of anything too soon, so ya may wanna try another blog if this one is giving you a sick stomach.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Religion
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| Donald Trump Makes 3rd Attempt To Preserve Sanctity of Marriage |
| 01.22.05 (6:09 pm) [edit] |
Continuing with my usual agenda of exposing blatant hypocrisies, I'd like to half-ass congratulate Donald Trump and his third bride on their new (not sure how long) life together:
View the 83 image slide show of the big event. Pay close attention to the police who are providing security for the event. I sure hope Trump is paying the city back for that.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| MTV Seeks Latina Lesbians for Documentary |
| 01.22.05 (4:18 pm) [edit] |
Posted to the SistersTalk message board by the MTV staff:
Are you a lesbian Latina professional interviewing for jobs or internships? MTV wants to hear your story for an upcoming documentary about the lives of young gay Latinos/as. If you… Are a Latina lesbian Appear to be under the age of 25 Are willing to appear on camera And a professional looking for a job or internship, or struggling with your job or internship because of your identity… Tell us about it! Email logolatino@mtvstaff.com*Be sure to include your name and full contact information in your note (address, phone, e-mail, and best times to reach you). Tell us as much as you can about what your story is and what would happen if our cameras documented your life. We look forward to hearing from you!
By the way, if you're not utilizing the new SistersTalk message board, it's probably because you don't know it exists. I'm too busy with other things to pay too much attention to it right now. I'll take better care of it soon.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT
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| Rolling Stone Refused to Run Ad for Bible |
| 01.22.05 (2:23 pm) [edit] |
CNN reported two days ago that Rolling Stone magazine refused to run an ad for a new translation of the Bible:
On Tuesday, USA Today quoted Kent Brownridge, general manager of Wenner Media, as saying his staff first saw the ad copy last week, and "we are not in the business of publishing advertising for religious messages."
That's right. And churches aren't in the business of running ads for rock concerts, television shows, or any other pop culture related items or issues -- unless they are specifically related to religion.
I don't see the problem here --unless the hypocritical-Christians think they have the right to be everywhere, while everyone they disapprove of should be censored, like oh . . . Spongebob.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Religion, Pop Culture
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| Morning After AIDS Drug |
| 01.22.05 (12:11 am) [edit] |
I heard this mentioned on a rather quirky news show called The Daily Buzz and I was just able to find a story on it via Yahoo:
WASHINGTON - A "morning after" treatment for the AIDS virus can help prevent infection after a rape, contact with a contaminated needle or even a night of passion without a condom, U.S. health officials said on Thursday. 'Morning After' Treatment Advised to Prevent AIDS
I see some potential risks with the use of a "morning after" AIDS drug. I venture to guess some people might become haphazard with their sexual activity, thinking there's a quick fix in the morning to avoid AIDS infection. Also, I wonder how many people will feel confortable going to their doctor and telling her/him that he/she had unprotected sex the night before and now wishes to receive the "morning after" treatment.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues, Women's Issues, Sex & Sexuality
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| Mom Threw Sex Parties for Boys to Be Cool |
| 01.21.05 (7:53 pm) [edit] |
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reports a 40 year old woman in Colorado says she threw sex parties for teenage boys, providing them with marijuana, methamphetamine and alcohol, so she could be considered a "cool mom." Funny thing is, authorities don't know if she even has kids.
The woman is apparently suffering from some serious self-esteem issue from high school. She said she wasn't very popular in high school so she wanted to feel like she fit in. Umm, honey. It's time to fuckin' grow up -- and fit in with grown-ups. Allegedly she had sex with a few of the boys also.
I don't care what excuses anybody can come up with: this woman is sick. I don't care if she was abused as a child. I don't care if she was unpopular as a kid. I don't care if she's poor. I don't care what her excuse is -- just because this is a female. She's sick -- as sick as any man who decides to throw sex parties for teenage girls and provide them with marijuana, methamphetamine and alcohol.
| Link to this post | | Filed: General
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| Who is This Barbara Boxer? |
| 01.21.05 (6:46 pm) [edit] |
While some Democrats are still struggling to find their voices after November's election losses, Senator Barbara Boxer of California is not among them. – Washington Post
The question on a lot of tongues lately is “Who is Barbara Boxer?” She’s been the most outspoken voice of opposition regarding Condi Rice’s appointment as the new Secretary of State. She cast 1 of 2 votes against her confirmation; Senator John Kerry cast the other.
Boxer was elected as a Democratic US Senator to represent CA in 1992. She was re-elected in 2004, winning re-election by 20% -- a record for any Senatorial candidate.
Boxer continues to question the Bush Administration’s integrity and she continues to challenge Condi Rice to admit the Bush Administration made mistakes regarding the Iraq war. Some say Boxer may become the most vocal and liberal voice of the Democratic party in the coming years – mostly because her term expires 2 years after GW leaves office. Boxer says she's just doing what she's always done.
I look forward to watching Boxer in action. One thing I know the GOP groupies will jump on is Boxer’s daughter married Senator Hillary Clinton’s brother in 1994; they then divorced in 2000. I can see them connecting Boxer to Senator Clinton in the sneakiest of fashions.
Read more about Barbara Boxer:
Boxer’s Opinion About George Bush’s Federal Marriage Amendment (I love it!)
Barbara Boxer on the Issues
Barbara Boxer takes center stage
Thank you, Senator, may I have another!
Boxer Is Loudest Voice of Opposition to Rice Nomination
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| FCC Chief Michael Powell Resigns |
| 01.21.05 (12:05 pm) [edit] |
The other Powell in GW's camp has resigned:
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael K. Powell, who opposed tight regulation of telecommunications but backed unprecedented fines against broadcast indecency, announced Friday he is resigning. Powell, who has held the job for four years, said in a statement that he informed President Bush that he would depart in March. Michael Powell stepping down as head of FCC
So, what's goin' on here? I had a visitor once state that the Bush Administration mass exits were less important than analyzing the capabilities of those who will replace them. I disagree. Why so many exits? I think both issues are equally important. The Powell exits are quite curious indeed.
Other articles:
FCC Chairman Powell resigns
Bio box: Michael Powell
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Two Lesbians Allegedly Rape a Third |
| 01.20.05 (10:59 pm) [edit] |
I had to read this story three times. Something about the story is bugging me, but I can't quite figure out what:
Rachel Ann Klobertanz, 22, and Augusta Claire Kendall, 22, who also attends Smith, appeared before District Court Judge W. Michael Goggins on Tueday of this week and pleaded innocent to charges of rape and sexual assault. Both women told police that on the previous Friday night, January 14, they engaged in consensual sex with another female, a 20-year-old. However, what they described as commencing as a night of socializing apparently spiraled into a lurid episode of violence and sexual battery. Lesbian Rape Charged
I'm the last person to jump to the defense of a rapist (male or female), but there's something vaguely familiar about this story. If any of my visitors know where I'm going with that, let me know.
I think it's this comment that set off a warning that there's something else going on here that none of the women have mentioned publicly yet:
In an Associated Press account, David Roundtree, an attorney for Kendall, said that “there are some significant issues with respect to consent,”
And this comment:
Gonter also wrote that Gerard Tomasini, a male roommate of Kendall and Klobertanz, also obtained a restraining order against both women after he learned from police following their arrest that the two owned a knife collection.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Dangerous Negroes in America |
| 01.20.05 (10:20 pm) [edit] |
Excellent article on Dr. King:
“It will not be easy for us if we’re intent on celebrating Martin Luther King’s life,” he said. Again theorizing on what King’s stance on contemporary issues might be, Rushing noted that he would probably be conflicted on gay rights, certainly on the issue of gay marriage. And, he pointed out, “not one woman was allowed to speak” at the 1963 march. But Rushing also noted that King had chosen Bayard Rustin, “not a closeted homosexual,” to organize the march — despite the opposition of some of his advisors — because Rustin had helped King with strategy in the Montgomery bus boycott. “Martin Luther King always said civil rights are not just for black people,” Rushing said. “I suspect he would’ve gotten his strategy regarding women and gays and lesbians.” Citing Hoover’s description of King as “the most dangerous Negro in America,” Rushing said, “I think J. Edgar Hoover almost got it right: Martin Luther King is challenging you all to become dangerous Negroes. And we have to ask, ‘How can I be a dangerous Negro?” His statement was met with a standing ovation. King Speaker urges dangerous activism
I kinda like that idea: dangerous activism. I think I'm well on my way.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| The Christians Are Offended by Spongebob |
| 01.20.05 (10:02 pm) [edit] |
 I read the article SpongeBob song offends US Christian groups and was reminded about the new Spongebob movie.
I took my children to see the Spongebob movie (I can't believe I forgot to mention this). There's a part near the end of the movie where Patrick, Spongebob's best friend and sidekick, sports a pair of fishnet pantyhose and high heel black leather boots. He's wearing this get-up while Spongebob (dressed in what looks like Jimmy Hendrix attire) sings the movie's theme song.
I died laughing when I saw it, even though it was just a brief shot of him in those pantyhose, it was classic! My boys laughed a lot too. But, they didn't associate Patrick's high heel boots and pantyhose with homosexuality. I know because I asked.
I venture to guess that most of the people who associate those images with homosexuality are adults. To kids, Partick is just a goofball with nothing more than air in his head.
Falwell and Dobson's constant search for homosexuality in children's television is really quite amusing. It's as if the man has run out of homeless shelters to visit. Many of the cartoonists who create these fictional characters are gay. Because of that, subtle hints of homosexuality exists all over children's cartoons. That's always been the case. If you take a look at the old Wonder Woman comic books, lesbianism and BDSM run rampant! (by the way, if you didn't send me a Christmas present, I'll take some old Wonder Woman comic books)
An abundance of supposed gay characters in children's cartoons won't turn your kid into a homo, nor will it make your son suddenly want to wear fishnet stockings and high heel black leather boots. If any of you are that worried about it, you should probably start breeding a new clan of straight cartoonists.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Michael Moore's Bodyguard Arrested |
| 01.20.05 (8:44 pm) [edit] |
I love it! FoxNews, home of Bill O'Reilly, is reporting that Michael Moore's bodyguard was arrested for carrying an unlicensed gun at New York's JFK airport. Let's see . . . Rush Limbaugh sends his maid out for drugs and Michael Moore's bodyguard carries unlicensed weapons. Dayum, where can I find this kind of help!?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| OJ Simpson's Daughter: Is She Gay? |
| 01.20.05 (8:12 pm) [edit] |
 I saw a picture of OJ Simpson's daughter today, Sydney, while reading an article about a fight she was involved in. At first glance of the picture, I thought, "that girl is so gay!"
Now, I haven't read anything about this anywhere and I'm relying on my "gaydar" to make a blatantly stereotypical judgment about the girl's sexuality. But daaaang! Look at her! I know, I could be completely wrong. Way off base. That reminds me, we should talk about lesbian stereotyping -- you know, that thing I just resorted to.
Hopefully, Sydney Simpson isn't another Tom Cruise, or else I'll be facing a big fat lawsuit for calling her gay -- if she's really not.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Oh! Time to Boot the Chinese Out of America |
| 01.20.05 (1:59 pm) [edit] |
Wooo weee! I've completed the first draft of my thesis, with only 3 hours left until it's due. The closer I get to completing this MBA program, the more refined my procrastination skills become. Back to what I enjoy the most, bitchin' about the news. So, I fear we'll be deporting innocent Asian Americans in the coming months. The FBI warns there may be Chinese terrorists in Boston. Just the excuse we need to boot Asians out the US. Less competition for American students who are severely lagging behind in Math and Science, eh? And no, that's not a stereotype. Asians/Asian Americans are known for being extremely smart people -- due to the dedication they commit to their studies. Sidenote: yes, I did notice that GW was sworn in today. Gawd damnit, it's not a dream. Anyway (no ranting about GW today, Genia), I guess this Chinese terrorist issue makes all Chinese people look so uncivilized.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Most Blacks Are 7th or 8th Cousins |
| 01.19.05 (11:18 pm) [edit] |
A quick post and it's back to my thesis.
I found this article pretty interesting:
I've yet to do much research on how many Blacks are direct descendants of people like Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. I imagine that kind of information will surface in Howard's research, since she's bound to run into quite a bit of racial mixing during her research.
As long as I'm not related to Condi Rice or George Bush, I'm ok with whatever interesting finds Howard's research turns up.
| Link to this post | | Filed: General
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| You Have No First Amendment Rights Here |
| 01.19.05 (1:09 pm) [edit] |
Please review the SistersTalk disclaimer. A few important things to note from the disclaimer:
[i]Offensive language and materials[/i]
You, as a reader, are visiting the SistersTalk blog of your own free will. If you view material you find offensive, please leave and never return. The writer has the right to use foul language on the SistersTalk blog; however, you do not. You have the right to use foul language on your own blog.
[i]Commenting on the SistersTalk Blog[/i]
Commenting on the SistersTalk blog is a privilege, [b]not a right.[/b] In lieu of that, comments can be deleted at the writer's will. [b]Free speech exists on your blog, not the SistersTalk blog. [/b] Blatant SPAM will be deleted. Rude comments designed to initiate interest in your own blog will be deleted.
I'm quite humored by the GOP's little soldiers (and others) bitching about me violating their First Amendment Rights here at the SistersTalk blog. You have no First Amendment Rights on this blog; you do, however, have First Amendment Rights on your own blog. I will make a deal with ya though; when you people stop violating my civil liberties, I'll let you run rampant here at SistersTalk.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Bitch Sessions
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| Canadian Military Allows Gay Marriages on Base |
| 01.19.05 (10:01 am) [edit] |
The Canadian Armed Forces has approved same-sex marriage ceremonies on military bases. Until the Canadian federal government passes a law that redefines marriage, laying the foundation for premarriage counseling and the use of military chapels, the guidelines for same-sex couples getting married on base are considered "interim."
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Gay Marriage Supporters Re-Elected at Phenomenal Rates |
| 01.19.05 (9:55 am) [edit] |
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) reports that gay marriage supporters were re-elected by an alarming rate in 2004:
According to the HRC report, none of the lawmakers in Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee who publicly supported gay marriage ended up losing his or her seat.
President Bush, who supports an amendment to the U.S. Constitution banning gay marriage, carried all seven of those states in November.
This is an interesting find, one definitely worth paying attention to. How gay marriage backers can maintain their seats in states where Bush was the chosen Presidential candidate says a lot about the workings of politics on both a state and federal level.
More:
Opposing Anti-Gay Amendments Had Little Effect On Incumbents
Gays Are Perfectly Able To Marry An Opposite Sex Member
American Wedding: Bigotry may still abound, but homosexual couples in Massachusetts finally have real rights
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Lesbians & Sodomites Civilized, Brothas Are Not? |
| 01.18.05 (10:20 pm) [edit] |
I receive so much email from SistersTalk visitors -- most of which I respond to (not always using the good southern manners my grandma taught me, but I do respond). I'm completing the first draft of my Masters Thesis (due on Thursday) so my entries lately have been less-than-bitchy-as-usual . That may explain the unusual amount of odd correspondence I'm receiving from people who just wanna ruffle my feathers a bit. Tonight, I received this from TheeLordsRebel@aol.com:
[b]"Lesbians, Sodomites" Civilized, Black MLK, Jr. Celebrators [Are] Not[/b]
Daily, news shows, advertisements, and shows in general, demonstrate how Dr/Rev MLK, Jr.'s "dream," is really a nightmare and fantasy.
In this case, on one of the most deplorable times possible, 1/17/05, CNN Headline News showed two young, Black male youths fighting, during a Dr King Holiday festival. Why was this necessary? What message was meant to be conveyed to the non-Black public? Who were the producers and directors who chose to pick this particular fisticuff?
Following the Rev King fisticuffs, CNN showed a "gay" parade, but showed no instances of violence, disruption, or abnormality? Yet, homosexuality is against God's Will--fights are regularly in the battle, in many forms.
The Lord's Rebel received a quick one-line "Have a good one" response from me. I closed my email box and returned to my thesis research. But, here I sit a few hours later still wondering what the hell that was all about?. I'm not quite sure why so many people send me these sorts of things -- as if I control the way the media potrays gays and lesbians. The Lord's Rebel has obviously been living under a rock. Usually when the media broadcasts gay pride marches, many gays and lesbians flinch with embarassment because the most outrageous and colorful characters in attendance always make the evening news. The Lord's Rebel is upset because CNN supposedly made Blacks look uncivilized by airing a fight between two Black men during a MLK celebration, while homosexuals -- the sexually deviant sodomites -- were depicted as civilized. And, The Lord's Rebel wrote me to air his or her grievances (lucky me!), although I do not work for CNN, nor am I affiliated with CNN in any way. Perhaps I should send The Lord's Rebel on over to Ms. Barber's neck of the woods. She might give a fuck about his issues.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Bitch Sessions
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| Hell Hath No Fury Like a Crazy Lesbian Scorned |
| 01.18.05 (4:10 pm) [edit] |
Miss Wrigglesworth, 26, told the jury she ended the relationship with Metcalfe. "I said I don't feel the same way any more, that I loved her but wasn't in love with her."
Never tell a woman that, even a lesbian.
Sarah Metcalfe allegedly started a blaze in a caravan where her former lover, Katie Wrigglesworth, was trapped with her new love interest, Emma Shakesheff.
Metcalfe claims Wrigglesworth had informed her she was going to the bedroom to make love to Shakesheff. Metcalfe followed, saw the two women embraced, lost it, poured the gasoline, and started the fire.
Wrigglesworth suffered 40% burns to her arms, legs and body; Shakesheff suffered 44% secondary burns.
Well, perhaps Metcalfe has an excellent lawyer who knows how to manipulate a few ancient anti-gay laws.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Hustler Will Launch Gay Adult Video-on-Demand |
| 01.18.05 (3:53 pm) [edit] |
LFP Broadcasting, parent company of Hustler TV, will work with Conwest Resources Incorporated, parent company of Falcon Studios, to provide gay porn fans a gay adult video-on-demand (VOD) channel. Hustler TV will provide Falcon gay titles as part of a separate video-on-demand service under the Falcon banner. Hustler TV will handle all distribution, sales and marketing for the network.
"We are extremely excited to partner with Hustler TV to launch the Falcon brand into a new and expanding market of VOD customers," said Todd Montgomery, Conwest Resources President and CEO. "Our familiar brands are already a favorite of the gay adult community and should prove to be an extremely popular VOD offering."
Now, why do I see gay men and heterosexual men -- who love phoney lesbian porn -- being the most excited about this announcement?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Sex & Sexuality
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| PFLAG Hires New Executive Director |
| 01.18.05 (3:15 pm) [edit] |
Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) has announced the selection of a new Exective Director to lead the 250,000 member organization. Jody Michael Huckaby, former Executive Director of New Mexico AIDS Services, Inc., Bering Community Service Foundation and, the Washington Humane Society, will take begin leading PFLAG in March 2005.
PFLAG is the nation's leading family-based organization committed to the civil rights of LGBT community. The organization was founded in 1973 by mothers and fathers, and has grown to well over 250,000 members in over 500 chapters throughout the United States.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Fox Censors Cartoon Ass While O'Reilly Ass Continues |
| 01.18.05 (12:24 pm) [edit] |
 I would say I can't believe it, but it would be a damn lie. Colin Powell's little boy, Michael Powell, has Fox shakin' in GW's boots. An AP story on Yahoo says that Fox covered up a cartoon ass on the show Family Guy because they were skurred of what Little Powell might say.
This decision came after Little Powell fined 169 Fox stations for an episode of "Married By America" that "showed people licking whipped cream from strippers' bodies and a man in his underwear being spanked by strippers." Dear fuckin' gawd! Is that all? Whipped cream, strippers, underwear, and spankings? Perhaps it was the subtle suggestion that marriage might not be so sacred that ticked off Little Powell and his conservative counterparts.
Now, what I don't understand is why Fox is afraid to show a cartoon ass when they let O'Reilly-the-ass talk to the country on a regular basis.
Why do I feel like the country is being run like a fuckin' daycare center -- as if we're all children and we need daycare providers to take care of us and tell us not to run with scissors?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| Exclusive Interview With OTEP's Lesbian Lead Vocalist, Otep Shamaya |
| 01.18.05 (8:55 am) [edit] |
 ST: Have you always been a fan of heavy metal? How did you decide that heavy metal would be the genre you would pursue?
OTEP: I come from the working class, raised in an environment of poverty and violence. As a child, I found sanctuary in art. In fact, I was a visual artist first, then found my hunger for poetry. My first understanding of music came from the most unlikely of sources: East Coast Hip Hop (Rakim, Mobb Deep, Biggie Smalls), the Grunge Movement of the late 90s (Nirvana, Soundgarden), and Hippy Metal from the Acid Culture (The Doors, Jefferson Airplane). Once I discovered the power of art in music, I decided that I wanted to fuse the images and symbols from my visual and literary endeavors into a sonic hybrid. This fusion needed to be volatile, and convey all levels of aggression, power, vulnerability, and to celebrate survival against any obstacle. Metal was the perfect landscape, but we have many influences that distinguish our music from the herd. From jazz fusion to industrial and goth rock, to performance art, hip hop, and death metal, we never refuse inspiration, no matter the source.
ST: I've read you can be somewhat difficult to work with. Is that true? And to what do you contribute that?
OTEP: It seems most women in positions of authority are deemed difficult to work with, while men enjoy a status of being considered driven or passionate. But nevertheless, I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to live my life as an artist and writer. I consider it an honor to have earned this level of achievement and will never forget how hard we worked to get here or where we come from. If that makes me difficult, then so be it. But at least I have my integrity and have always tried my best, against all odds.
ST: Which of the OTEP albums is your favorite?
OTEP: House of Secrets is our latest release and would be my favorite. For now.
Read the rest: Exclusive Interview With OTEP's Lesbian Lead Vocalist
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| Was Abraham Lincoln a Homosexual? |
| 01.18.05 (7:56 am) [edit] |
New Biography Speculates on Sexuality of Abe Lincoln
Written By Ross von Metzke
That's what a new biography on the 16th president of the United States ponders, and while critics are mixed on the outcome of their questioning, one thing remains certain. Abe Lincoln’s sexuality is a topic of discussion biographers and historians never seem to tire of.
The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln is written by C. A. Tripp, a former researcher for sex-studies pioneer Alfred Kinsey, so it should come as no surprise that Tripp’s look into the bedroom behavior of Lincoln has ruffled more than a few feathers among biographers, historians and readers alike.
While many biographers have opted to steer clear of questioning Lincoln’s sexuality, Tripp tackles some heavy questions head on, suggesting Lincoln had physically intimate relations with a succession of men before and during his troubled marriage to Mary Todd.
The New York Times suggests that while Tripp’s subject matter makes for interesting subject matter, his findings don’t exactly gel well at the book’s conclusion.
"Tripp can lay out a case, but his discussion of its implications is so erratic that the reader is often left on his own," the paper said.
Tripp doesn’t make any declaration that Lincoln was indeed gay, but he uses a measurement of sexuality developed by Kinsey to argue that Lincoln was primarily homosexual in orientation but was capable of sexual relations with women.
Tripp died in May 2003, shortly after finishing the book's manuscript. The author spent 10 years researching his subject.
Reviews of the book have been mixed – several prominent critics have accused Tripp of applying modern sexual attitudes to 19th century behavior and jumping to conclusions.
© 2005 GayWired.com, All Rights Reserved. Reprinted with Permission
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| First Gay History Month in the UK |
| 01.18.05 (7:34 am) [edit] |
Schools in the UK will celebrate the first gay history month in February 2005.
The project, to be held in February, will highlight the hidden history of household names who would probably today identity as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, such as William Shakespeare, who was rumoured to be bisexual, and Florence Nightingale, who few people know was a lesbian.
Other events covered during the month will include talks on the early years of gays and lesbians in British television and discussions of the history of the British LGBT Muslim movement. Pupils will also study modern gay icons such as Freddie Mercury and Sir Ian McKellen, alongside more historical gay and bisexual figures such as Isaac Newton and Alexander the Great.
Although this is a voluntary initiative, it's being backed by the government. In addition, funds to support the effort were provided by a grant from the Department for Education and Skills.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Gay Pride Flag Ban in UK |
| 01.18.05 (7:25 am) [edit] |
Bars in Soho, the heart of London's gay and lesbian community, are being told to remove the gay pride flags they have flying outside their establishment. For every day an establishment refuses to remove the flag, bar owners are faced with a £250 fine. The flags are seen as advertisements the bar owners did not have permission to install:
"Placing a flag pole on the exterior of a building is a structural change that the establishment would need planning permission to make".
The spokeswoman also said Soho was a conservation area and there were lots of businesses who want to put 'adverts' on their premises.
The Mayor of London has written to the Westminster City Council and expressed the opinion that this is very offensive to gays and lesbians.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Gay Organizations Changing Priorities |
| 01.17.05 (8:54 pm) [edit] |
Lambda Legal, Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Log Cabin Republicans, Stonewall Democrats, the National Center for Lesbian Rights and other LGBT groups issued a joint statement about its immediate goals:
These include hate crimes legislation, employment protection, immigration rights for gays and lesbian partners, overturning the ban on gays in the military and continuing battle against constitutional bans on same-sex marriage in states and Congress.
It appears gay and lesbian organizations are changing priorities as a result of the 2004 elections. Most likely, this is something Cheryl Jacques knew was on the horizon -- as mentioned on her website.
This comes at a time when Black Conservative religious leaders are discussing the future of the Black vote -- looking specifically at things like abortion and gay marriage.
I guess it's never too early to gear up for 2008.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi at the Golden Globes |
| 01.17.05 (8:24 pm) [edit] |
 Sky Showbiz reports that Ellen and Portia made their first public appearance at the Golden Globe Awards, letting the whole world know they are indeed an item.
I hope Ellen and Portia are enjoying themselves because on January 10, SFGate's Daily Dish reported that Alex Hedison, Ellen's expartner, was planning to sue Ellen for palimony and sue Portia de Rossi for "alienation of affection" -- an ancient legal term that classifies seducing one's spouse as theft. Now, how will that work in CA, where same-sex marriage isn't legal?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| I Love This Woman |
| 01.17.05 (4:13 am) [edit] |
When [72 year old] Lee Drury De Cesare asked Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist whether he was gay Friday, it wasn't the first time she has silenced a room.
[. . . ]
During an interview Saturday at her eighth-floor Madeira Beach condo, De Cesare said it was an important question to ask. She said Crist, who is expected to run for governor in 2006, is part of a Republican administration that discriminates against gay people.
Read more . . .
| Link to this post | | Filed: General
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| Age of Consent Laws in 11 States That Banned Gay Marriage |
| 01.16.05 (10:08 pm) [edit] |
Let's review the 11 states that passed laws banning gay marriage between consenting adults. I want to look at the age the law allows grown men to have sex with teenage girls in these same states:
Arkansas: Age of sexual consent is between 14 and 16.
Georgia: Age of consent is 16. It used to be 14.
Kentucky: Age of consent is 16.
Michigan: Two ages are listed, 13 and 16 -- with varying circumstances depending on who the person is and how the person is related to the victim.
Mississippi: Age of consent is 16.
Montana: Age of consent is listed as 14 and 16, with a couple of different stipulations listed.
North Dakota: Age of consent is 15.
Ohio: Age of consent is 16.
Oklahoma: Age of consent is 14 or 16, depending on the circumstances.
Oregon: Age of consent is 18.
Utah: Age of consent is 14 or 16, depending on the circumstance and the age of the parties.
Now, to show Jim Bob just how ridiculous it is to mix religion and same-sex marriage with this issue, it seems to me that all that good Christian folks who were working so hard to ensure that consenting homosexual adults would not be allowed to marry in those 11 states had much more important things to do, like, oh, protecting minors. It definitely would have been
a much more important thing to concern themselves about since protecting the country's youth seems to be something they bitch and moan about all the damn time. But oh noooo, what was on the ballot instead? Was there a referendum to raise the Age of Consent law in those states? Nope! There was a referendum to keep the homos from getting married, becuse they're much more concerned about what's going on in our bedrooms than they are about which grown man or woman is having sex with their teenager. Kinda makes ya wonder whose ass they're watchin' out for, now doesn't it?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Bitch Sessions
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| Bush Won't Push for Gay Marriage Ban in Second Term? |
| 01.16.05 (3:31 pm) [edit] |
Ok, so who did GW really use to help him win the election? Latest reports send a mixed message about Bush's own gay agenda:
WASHINGTON (AFP) - President George W. Bush will not actively seek to ban gay marriage in the United States during his second term in office -- a stance certain to anger the social conservatives who helped re-elect him.
[. . . ]
"I do believe it's necessary," Bush said. But he went on to imply that pursuing it in the US Senate, which must approve a constitutional amendment by 67 of its 100 votes, would be futile.
Many Senators think the Defense of Marriage Act, an existing law that allows states not to recognize gay marriages enacted in other states, is sufficient, according to Bush.
Now, that's always been the case. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) has always been a tool that states and the federal government could use to work around recognizing gay and lesbian unions. I'm absolutely certain the Bush Administration has always known that.
I'm waiting to see which HRC member will write GW and thank him for his lovely gesture. Perhaps one of his 1 million gay bitches will do the honor.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Teacher at Christian Oklahoma School Rapes Student |
| 01.15.05 (10:02 pm) [edit] |
A teacher from a Christian school in Oklahoma (one of the states that voted to ban same-sex marriage and has banned same-sex adoptions) was arrested for having sex with one of his 16 year old female students.
I expect a very harsh sentence for this perv who had sex with his 16 year old student.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Religion
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| Tracking You With a National Driver's License |
| 01.15.05 (9:09 pm) [edit] |
Are you ready to have a national driver's license that allows the federal government to track you and your whereabouts at all times? Ready or not, here it comes:
The same ID across the country, even with a different logo for each of the 50 states, is "a national ID card. They might pretend it's not, but it is," said Bruce Schneier, a computer security expert and author of "Beyond Fear: Thinking Sensibly about Security in an Uncertain World."
Between the national ID card, the Patriot Act that allows the government to search your home, phone and internet records without your knowledge or a warrant, and the mico chip placed in a patient's arm that's supposedly designed to help doctors with providing faster care, we're looking at becoming a country of walking targets with zero privacy.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Pentagon Planned Gay Conversion Chemical Weapon |
| 01.15.05 (8:15 pm) [edit] |
Reported by Conservative Voice:
A spokesperson for the Department of Defense has confirmed a report that Air Force officials proposed developing a gay conversion chemical weapon in 1994. The proposal, part of a plan from Wright Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, was to develop "chemicals that effect (sic) human behavior so that discipline and morale in enemy units is adversely effected (sic). One distasteful but completely non- lethal example would be strong aphrodisiacs, especially if the chemical also caused homosexual behavior."
WHAT in the hell were they thinking? And these were supposedly the smart people! Well, well, well. . . in God we trust; all others, I believe in conspiracy theories. And yep, it was our good friend Bubba Clinton in the White House then -- the same friend who gave us the Defense of Marriage Act.
This gay conversion chemical weapon was supposed to make enemy soliders sexually attracted to each other, causing a break down in morale and discipline in their unit.
This is blatanly homophobic and stupid and it makes homosexuals out to be nothing more than people running around on constant "horney."
More information: US planned to make love not war with 'gay bomb'
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| MTV Postpones GAY TV |
| 01.15.05 (7:56 pm) [edit] |
The New York Times reports MTV has postponed the debut of its GAY TV channel:
MTV Networks' plan to start a cable channel devoted to gay and lesbian programming has been slightly delayed, the company announced yesterday, with a new start date for the channel, called Logo, pushed back five months, to June 30.
For some reason, I expect to see lots of gay men, Madonna, Cher, and Ani DiFranco. Why is that?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| Black Conservatives and the GW Distraction |
| 01.15.05 (5:24 pm) [edit] |
Louise Chu wrote an article about Dr. King's family and what they thought Dr. King would have said about gay marriage. Most of the comments about Dr. King's opinion on gay marriage were pretty predictable; some said he would have supported gay rights and gay marriage; some said he wouldn't have condoned gay marriage (mostly the younger ones who didn't really know him well). It was the comments about GW and his using gay marriage to divide and conquer the Black electorate that I found most interesting:
Some black leaders have accused Republicans of using the gay marriage debate in the last election as a ploy to divide the black electorate, which typically votes mostly Democrat, on an issue that has never been a priority in the community.
"I don't remember neither Jesus or Martin Luther King discussing the issue," Lowery said. "I don't think it was on the agenda back then any more than it is now."
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, who also worked closely with King, said the idea of a U.S. constitutional amendment on gay marriage has been used as a diversion.
I would agree with those who assert that GW used the gay issue to divide the Black electorate. It worked like a charm, too. It's a damn shame that we have Blacks who are more concerned about what other Blacks are doing in the bedroom than they are about what other Blacks are doing in the classroom. It's a damn shame that we have Blacks who are more concerned about what other Blacks are doing in the bedroom than they are about what other Blacks are doing in the boardroom. Feeding us this line of bullshit about family values and homosexuals being responsible for the spread of AIDS in the Black community. Give me a fuckin' break.
As far as I know, homosexual Blacks don't have a damn thing to do with the amazing number of illegitimate children born to Black mothers. As far as I know, homosexuals don't have a damn thing to do with the high rate of AIDS in heterosexual Black women. The Barbers of the Black conservative movement need to put a check on that ass and get thee some research skills. And while they're at it, they need to talk to the Black ministers of their churches about all that infidelity they participate in on a very regular basis. I'm gettin' pretty damn tired of this high horse these bitches are riding in on and lookin' down at us from.
Dr. King would be quite disappointed to see so many Black conservatives actively participating in the GW distraction.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Bitch Sessions
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| Ohio's Gay Marriage Amendment Used Against Victims of Domestic Violence |
| 01.15.05 (4:43 pm) [edit] |
Public defenders in Ohio are using OH's new amendment that bans gay marriage to ask judges to dismiss domestic abuse charges against their clients since their clients are not married to their victims. Only a low-down dirty son-of-a-bitch who beats his or her partner would then turn around and use a homophobic law to avoid prosecution. And only a slimey, pathetic, ambulance-chasin' attorney would stoop low enough to agree to use that law to help his or her client.
If lawyers in Ohio are successful in arguing that Ohio's gay marriage amendment should allow judges to throw out domestic abuse charges against homosexuals who beat their partners simply because they are not married, then heterosexual women who are beaten by men they are not married to should be treated the same way:
The attorneys say the charges violate the amendment by affording marriage-like legal status to unmarried victims who live with those accused of attacking them.
It will be interesting to follow this issue.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues & Women's Issues
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| Ellen DeGeneres Gives J. Lo Dance Lessons |
| 01.15.05 (1:50 am) [edit] |
Portia de Rossi isn't keeping her new love interest Ellen DeGeneres busy enough these days. Contact Music reports that Ellen visited pop diva J. Lo while she was making the video for her latest release Get Right. While on the set, Ellen gave J. Lo a few dance lessons, but not until after she mocked J. Lo by showing up on the set with an entourage -- complete with a guy who swept the floor in front of her as she walked.
Only Ellen DeGeneres could get away with that.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| Unmarried Sex No Longer Illegal in Virgina |
| 01.15.05 (1:39 am) [edit] |
I'm sure this hurts a few hearts, but the Virgina state Supreme Court decided a 19th-century Virginia law that banned sex between unmarried persons was unconstitutional. Wow! And it only took them until 2005 to get that law taken care of. The ruling was based on the Supreme Court's decision that sodomy laws in Texas were uncostitutional; however, Virgina did not deal directly with the Virgina law that makes sodomy illegal.
So, basically . . . the Virginia state Supreme Court used a ruling from a case that ruled sodomy laws were unconstitutional in order to justify overturning its unmarried sex ban, but did not use the same ruling to overturn its own state sodomy law. I just love the way our political and legal system works in this country.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| No Weapons, No Keys, No Glasses |
| 01.14.05 (12:34 pm) [edit] |
Now that the search for those deadly, horrific weapons of mucho destruction has ened in Iraq, I'll never find my keys. I was hoping they would show up once someone found the weapons and swept underneath them. I'm still looking for my glasses too, GW. Thanks a lot!
So, can we officially call this fiasco the search for the missing missing weapons? How about the search for bin Laden? That's a search that doesn't exist anymore either. What do we call that one?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Gay Republicans: GW's 1 Million Bitches |
| 01.13.05 (11:37 am) [edit] |
January 17, 2005 is Martin Luther King Day. The press is diligently working on tributes for the slain civil rights leader. How sweet of them. I read an article by Paul Rockwell at The Black Commentator. Rockwell witers: "[Dr. Martin Luther] King . . . called himself "a drum major for justice," and his mission, as he described it, was, 'to disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed.'" This made me think of GW's gay Republicans, who, after the Bush Administration's blatant misuse and abuse of taxpaying gay Americans in order to win votes at the polls, are still waving Bush's flag and licking his cowboy boots. Why would they do such a thing? They claim it's because they are more aware of the truth, more patriotic, and more inclined than the rest of us homos to react and act out of self-indignation. Personally, I think it's all about their bank statements and the fact that GW keeps it looking the way they want them to look. They're GW bitches. The fight for gay rights is larger than the White House. It's a battle that extends to public opinion and it's one the LGBT community has fought for decades -- starting somewhat officially with Stonewall in 1969. So, it's understandable that a homosexual would opt to side with the party of fat checkbooks. They're the ones who are most aware of the power of cold hard cash. If one can align himself with the party that will put that cold hard cash in their pockets, you can always buy yourself upper-class privileges -- privileges that oftentimes supersede those that straight, poor Americans receive. I remember reading an article about a lesbian couple that sued their swanky, private country club for not providing them the same rights they provide unmarried heterosexuals who use the club as a couple. Well, how many poor straight people have country club privileges? And really, how many upper-class homosexual couples really need those protections that marriage affords middle class and lower class homosexual couples? Note Mary Cheney and her partner, for example. Does she really need a marriage license to protect her and her partner? Absolutely not. But, aligning herself with the Republican party and playing the right cards from the right trick deck was a really good investment in her future. Upper-class, white, gay Republicans have it made -- and they know it. Successful networking with other upper-class white Republicans (gay or straight) often helps maintain gay Republicans in the lifestyle they have become accustomed. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. There's nothing wrong with that at all; however, GW's diligent and ruthless attack on every homosexual in America should have prompted some of these GW gay Republicans to pump the brakes. And if that wasn't enough, all the lies coming out of that administration should have motivated all these GW submissives to think about that collar around their necks. I will give the gay Republicans props though. They're living well in good ol' Jesusland. Success is good and it's always the best revenge. But, at whose expense have they been successful? Bowing at GW's feet and continuing to support that administration is a blatant admission that you're a GW bitch -- 1 of 1 million.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Queer Eye for the Straight Girl |
| 01.13.05 (12:21 am) [edit] |
Reality TV has reached a new low. Bravo launched Queer Eye for the Straight Girl. Umm, hello! A dyke can tell a straight chic a mile away -- especially those who have this really stupid habit (incredibly stupid habit) of falling for straight women.
A review on AfterEllen.com of Tuesday's premier episode says:
With Straight Girl we have a fag hag dynamic, not a flirtatious one. Not that there’s anything wrong with fag hags (props to Margaret Cho), but the super-friendly, super-giggly relationship between the straight girl and the three boys on the make-better team just isn’t very interesting to watch. There are already a zillion makeover shows on TV with straight women being made over by gay men, and this concept is about as over as last year’s Ugg boots.
I loved the part about Margaret Cho! I'm really not too fond of her. But anyhoo. . .
I hear ya on the ridiculous remake of straight girl make-over shows. What is up with that? Now, a more interesting show to watch would be a big-ass, sassy, Black drag queen who gets to help straight girls choose their husbands -- a sorta RuPaul meets the Bachelorette. I wouldn't miss a single episode.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Pop Culture
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| Bill Banning Gay Discrimination in Illinois Passes |
| 01.12.05 (9:03 am) [edit] |
Bravo to those activists and politicians who have worked diligently since 1974 to ensure that gays and lesbians in IL are protected by law against discrimination in employment and housing.
I live in Wisconsin, just a few minutes across the IL border. I've worked in IL many times and hated doing it because I had no protection from discrimination. Wisconsin was the first state to provide protection for gays and lesbians in employment and housing.
Now, gays and lesbians in IL no longer have to hunt for companies that voluntarily include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policy. Companies have no choice in the matter now. It's a damn shame the government has to tell a company to behave above board in matters like these. A damn shame indeed.
Excellent work!
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Alabama Sheriff Misses Those Queer-Free Days |
| 01.12.05 (8:15 am) [edit] |
Christian Grantham points me to Alabama Sheriff Yearns for the Fagless 50s:
In a letter to the community, [Marshall County Sheriff Mac] Holcomb praises the values of the 1940s and 1950s, when "Men were men and women were women and there was no mistaking which was which. ... Homosexuality was very queer and a despicable act ... an abomination." Other source: Sheriff's Office
Well, I'm doing my part to celebrate vintage porn and honor all those homosexuals of the good ol' days. This one's for you, Sheriff Mac Holcomb.
Thanks again, Christian!
 Compliments of Vintagelove.com
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Black Republicans Ignore Bush's Role in Deceit |
| 01.11.05 (5:30 pm) [edit] |
The blogs are buzzin' about Armstrong Williams, and Black Republican bloggers -- like the good little trained GOP soldiers they are -- are sticking to the script just as well as their counterparts. It's all about Armstrong. Very few unkind words about their Commander in Chief. Why is that? Why is the hand that accepted the cash worse than the hand that extended the offer?
Why is it that the brains (can't believe I used that word) behind the plan is a lesser evil than the man who implemented the plan? Are Black Republicans so brainwashed that they refuse to force the Bush Administration to share the blame in this matter? Are Black Republicans that concerned about maintaining their precious self-righteousness that they're willing to let one of their own sink alone when he did not act alone? Of course they are. They have learned the ways of the GOP well.
I am most disgusted by the self-proclaimed Christian Black Republicans who are willing to ignore the wrongdoing of their self-proclaimed Christian Commander in Chief. Christians don't deceive the people they lead, honey, and they certainly don't pay other people to deceive the masses either. That lame bullshit you speak is just that . . . lame bullshit. But, I give you As for your rhetoric, dahlin'. I took that course too: Sophomore year English.
Yep, the liberals will be talking about this one for awhile. Talking about how fucked up it is that all the little GOP soldiers are conveniently ignoring Bush's participation in all this and sending one of their talkin' heads down the river. One down, how many more to go?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| God Has Gone Too Far? |
| 01.11.05 (1:53 pm) [edit] |
While reading Send a Message to God: He has gone too far this time, I felt like I should sit on the other side of the room -- far away from all the windows in case a lightning bolt suddenly came crashing through it. Heather Mac Donald writes:
In the wake of the tsunami disaster, it's time for believers to take a more proactive role in world events. It's time to boycott God.
[. . .]
Where is God's incentive to behave? He gets credit for the good things and no blame for the bad. Former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft is fond of thanking God for keeping America safe since 9/11; Ashcroft never asks why, if God has fended off terrorist strikes since 9/11, he let the hijackers on the planes on the day itself. Was God caught off guard the first time around, like the U.S. government? But he is omniscient and omnipotent.
Mac Donald has a point. In the Bible, God accepts blame for the Great Flood, so why not talk about God's work in relation to the tsunami disaster? Do we not want to associate God with bad events? All things happen for a reason, correct?
A quick reminder: if you haven't donated to the relief effort yet, click the Tsunami ad to the left and donate, please. Just $5 will help a lot. All donations made by January 31, 2005 will be eligible for qualified charitable gifts on your 2004 taxes.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Religion
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| KKK Will Adopt-A-Highway. How Sweet |
| 01.10.05 (10:23 pm) [edit] |
 A few years back, a KKK group in Missouri wanted to play Boy Scouts. They attempted to adopt a stretch of highway and ensure it remained neat and tidy, in exchange for posted propaganda praise for the organization. Missouri attempted to block the organization from participating in the Adopt-A-Highway program. Recently, the Surpreme Court ruled (without comment, mind you) that the KKK had a First Amendment right to pick up garbage along the road and have signs erected in their honor for the whole world to see.
So, I see Scalia didn't make his usual snide ass comments about the court getting involved in "culture wars." Oh right, this isn't about homosexuals this time -- just the KKK.
When the drag queens in Missouri want to adopt a stretch of highway and have signs erected in their honor, I don't want to hear one word from the peanut gallery.
Now, if anyone has an agenda here folks, I'd say the KKK certainly does. Free speech my ass. This is about letting the world know that groups like the KKK still exist in good ol' America -- and always will.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Bitch Sessions
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| How Often Do We Practice Safe Sex? |
| 01.10.05 (4:16 pm) [edit] |
After clicking on the Cyber Dyke ad in the left sidebar and wandering around a bit, I found a great new comic that had me glued to my monitor for, oh, quite some time. **big ass grin** In one particular section, there's an older woman having sex with one of her young playthings. She's wearing a glove. This made me wonder about safe sex and how many of us really practice safe sex: condoms over strap-ons and other sex toys, gloves for fingering and fisting, no mixing when moving from one orifice to another, ect.
So, here's another wonderful poll (don't you just love these?). Hey! Don't forget to come back and take the poll after viewing the comic. The comic is rated X, so don't view it with children in the room, please.
comments still available, please review
| Link to this post | | Sexuality
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| Which One of You Homo Married Couples Is Responsible? |
| 01.10.05 (2:59 pm) [edit] |
Now which one of you married homosexual couples in MA is responsible for this? What a lovely couple they were.
For every one homosexual couple that legally marries in MA, we see one heterosexual couple suffer from severe separation/divorce syndrome. Damn you, bastards!
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Armstrong Williams Ate Well in Master's House |
| 01.09.05 (4:41 pm) [edit] |
 Well, well, well. I took a little breather before I commented on brotha Armstrong Williams' (shown here with Condi Rice) public announcement that he misled the world when he accepted $240,000 from the GOP to be a puppet -- promoting Bush's No Child Left Behind.
Armstrong Williams, a prominent conservative commentator who was a protégé of Senator Strom Thurmond and Justice Clarence Thomas of the Supreme Court, acknowledged yesterday that he was paid $240,000 by the Department of Education to promote its initiatives on his syndicated television program and to other African-Americans in the news media.
But . . . many of the little GOP soldiers who visit this blog will swear that Bush has never used any Black Americans to deceive other Black Americans and they will also swear that the Bush Administration has never used any other minority to deceive anyone else. To that I say, you're all a buncha lying sons-of-Bushes. I say to the Black Republicans who had knowledge of these wrongdoings, I hope you're well-fed in Master's house.
Now, why would the Bush Administration pay a Black commentator to promote No Child Left Behind? Could it have something to do with oh, winning Black votes in the 2004 election? If the Bush Administration was willing to manipulate Black Americans, do you really think he gives a damn about our future?
Let me guess. God told him to do it.
Let's see how the GOP's little soldiers handle this one. Will they turn on Armstrong Williams? Or will this story be met with the usual, played-out, lack-of-creativity response: "damn looney liberals and their conspiracy theories"?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Bitch Sessions
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| Conservative Group Drops Suit Against FL Lesbian Couple |
| 01.09.05 (2:40 pm) [edit] |
A lesbian couple in Key West, FL sued for the right to marry. A conservative anti-gay marriage group decided to sue the couple, but then decided to drop their suit against the couple -- opting to draft an anti-gay marriage amendment to FL's state Constitution instead. Aww, that was just too kind of them.
If you recall, in November, Cheryl Jacques thanked Jeb Bush for his decision to not pursue a state anti-gay amendment. I was a bit shocked by her pleasantries because I viewed it as a "thank you for deciding to fuck us over later instead of now." Jeb Bush said he might support a gay ban if the court starts to allow gay marriages in Florida. So, why the thank-you?
Also, why the thank-you when:
I'm not seeing much to thank Jeb Bush for. I didn't see it in November when the HRC pleasantries were extended either. I venture to guess the HRC will be starting its anti-Jeb Bush campaign soon. Or no? If what Jacques says about the HRC's retreat is true, I expect to see a shift in priorities soon.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| AG Nominee Played Role in Torture Scandal & Anti-Gay Amendment |
| 01.06.05 (7:25 pm) [edit] |
Copyright The Illustrated Daily Scribble
Looks like Bush's Attorney General nominee Alberto Gonzales has been quite busy. Allegedely, he had his hands all over the federal anti-gay amendment also -- even though Bush failed to disclose Gonzales's name when he mentioned the lawyers who worked on the amendment.
Bush may not be very smart, but his advisors have coaxed him along quite nicely. Using a house full of minorities to fuck with people's civil liberties is absolutely ingenious. It's quite difficult to call the man a racist and a homophobe. Well, difficult for anyone but me.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Politics
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| Jacques Speaks of HRC Retreat from Marriage Rights |
| 01.06.05 (9:07 am) [edit] |
About 5 days after the election, I wrote:
Will the same Democrats who threatened potential Nader voters threaten the LGBT community to keep quiet about gay rights to ensure that a Democratic president wins the White House in 2008? It sure is a possibility and I certainly wouldn't be surprised. Will organizations like the HRC and NGLTF cave to the pressure?
After Cheryl Jacques, HRC's former Director was fired, both Jacques and the HRC kept quiet about why. In a recent Boston Globe article, Jacques finally talks (at least a little) about the split:
"If we all take a vow of silence and never mention gay marriage again, do you really think George Bush is not going to raise the Federal Marriage Amendment again?" she said in an interview with the Globe. "They're going to use that issue whether we vow never to touch it or not. It's . . . silly . . . to believe that somehow our enemies, those who support discrimination, are going to play by the rules, and not raise the issue if we don't."
[. . . ]
"There is a minority of voices who somehow think that we should retreat," Jacques said.
So, while I'm not surprised to hear Jacques speak of the HRC caving to political pressure, I'm certainly very annoyed. Personally, I feel the retreat officially began when the HRC endorsed John Kerry. Kerry did not support full marriage rights for gays and lesbians, so why did the HRC endorse his candidacy? A compromise? Hell no! The last Democrat we had in office gave us the Defense of Marriage Act. Endorsing Kerry was most definitely a retreat -- especially since he and his pretty-boy cohort Edwards both made sure they repeatedly declared that marriage was a heterosexual institution.
Thanks Christian for the tip!
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Examining the Relationship Between Fear and Racism |
| 01.06.05 (12:49 am) [edit] |
Revisiting the racism thread. I felt this needed to be moved to its own post and removed from the race and dating thread.
One of my visitors pointed me to a comic she's created about her own experiences with racism. She's a white lesbian whose parents taught her to fear Blacks. Eventually she began to fear Blacks in large numbers -- especially men. Honey, even I fear some people in large numbers -- oh, like gang members (who are Black, Hispanic, White, and what-have-you). Oh, and pissed off old Black women. But that's another post entirely.
One page from Erika's comic illustrated the shame (embarassment?) I think a lot of people feel when they start to think about their own irrational (maybe not a good word) fears and prejudices. I also noticed Erika immediately began apologizing about her feelings, even before we read page 1 of her strip.
Please, take a look at the comic and I'll pause here for discussion. Thanks Erika!
| Link to this post | | Filed: General
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| Ex-Gays Masquerading as Phoney Success Stories? |
| 01.05.05 (9:51 pm) [edit] |
Lesbianation.com has a great article on the ex-gay movement:
The dirty little secret of ex-gay ministries and treatment programs is that when further pressed, ex-gays will reluctantly admit that they are not truly void of same-sex attraction. Further, many of the exalted are often paid employees that work hard to tow the company line regardless of personal cost or ultimate truth. In fact, there have been several high profile defections and relapses from ex-gay ministries.
[. . . ]
Once a drag queen who went by the alter-ego Candi, John Paulk continues to purport to be living proof that one can conveniently shed (or in his case repress) their sexuality. As a result, he has made a handsome living traveling the country actively promoting a non-existent homosexual cure.
Interesting, very interesting. The thought never occurred to me that some ex-gays might be paid employees masquerading as phoney success stories. It reminds me of something right out of the Stepford Wives.
Other sources about this would be useful if anyone has any.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Are You a Racist if You Date Exclusively OUTSIDE Your Race? |
| 01.04.05 (7:56 pm) [edit] |
I recently wrote The R Word: Racism In The Lesbian Community:
Mention the word racism in a group of lesbians and you're usually met with two responses: denial or silence. Rarely will any of us ever hear a lesbian admit she's a racist. I find that a bit odd because I know lots of lesbians who practice systematic discrimination against women who are of different racial and ethnic groups.
The article was picked up by the usual gay publications and I received the usual responses -- some negative, some positive. One of the complaints was that I forgot to take one thing into consideration while writing my article: what I was seeing was not racism at all, but instead an exercise in extremely selective taste. In other words, what I find attractive, another person won't find attractive -- hair color, eye color, height, weight, and even race.
Another thing someone pointed out is that discrimination is not inheritantly racist behavior. After thinking about that one, I had to agree . . . and disagree.
So, is it racist behavior to date exclusively outside your own race? It would depend on the reason:
I know many Black butch lesbians who prefer white lesbians because of stereotypes that make white women out to be submissive and easily manipulated. To me, that's racist behavior. I know many white men who prefer Black women because of the assumed sexual submissiveness. To me, that's racist behavior. Both examples place one person in an assumed position of supremacy over another; of course I am assuming these are not agreed upon roles. So, even though these parties are dating outside their race, they are doing so in order to feel superior to their mate.
Someone likened dating exclusively within your race to being a homosexual: you just can't help who you're attracted to. No, it wasn't me! We're talking skin tone here, not body parts. I thought that was a far stretch.
| Link to this post | | Filed: General
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| Catholic School Scandal Involving Gay Dads |
| 01.04.05 (4:16 pm) [edit] |
A gay male couple enrolled their children in their Catholic church's kindergarten and the other parents had a fit.
(Costa Mesa, CA) — The Orange County diocese of the Roman Catholic Church is under attack by a group of parents and parishioners upset with the church’s decision to allow a gay couple to enroll their children in a church school. The group has demanded that St. John the Baptist School in Costa Mesa accept only families that pledge to abide by Catholic teachings, The Los Angeles Times reported Sunday. Parents Angry Over Catholic School Enrollment of Gay Couple's Kids
One kind, religious, righteous, without-sin woman said: “The boys are being used by these men as pawns to further their agenda,” said Monica Sii, who has four children at St. John.
I am still trying to figure out what this gay agenda is. Some of these fools are so upset that their 5 year old will have to sit next to a 5 year old whose Daddy is gay that they're threatening to call up the Pope!
I swear, all these idiots in America will drive me to drinkin'.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues & Religion
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| IRS Sends Warning to Gay Couples |
| 01.04.05 (3:43 pm) [edit] |
Aaaah, the joys of being a US citizen. All that hard work in Iraq just so we can pass on these great democratic traditions:
(Washington) The Internal Revenue Service is warning same-sex couples that they cannot file joint income tax returns even if they were legally married in Massachusetts or Canada.
The IRS says it is basing its denial of joint filings on Federal DOMA which restricts marriage to opposite-sex couples.
IRS Sends Warning To Gay Couples
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| Free Breast Implants Cause a Stir. I See Hypocrisy |
| 01.04.05 (9:05 am) [edit] |
Thirteen women won free breast implants through radio contests, now the National Research Center for Women & Families and the National Organization for Women (NOW) are in an uproar. I have never won anything through one of those radio contests and these women win breast implants.
According to the Associated Press, NOW and The National Research Center for Women and Families are in an uproar because these women have to sign a waiver that protects the company from all liability claims. In addition, it just bugs the hell out of NOW that the women are subjecting themselves to "unrealistic body images promoted in the entertainment industry."
NOW is urging the public to send e-mails to Clear Channel and the FCC to complain about what it considers a "degrading and unethical contest." About 3,400 messages have been sent to the FCC and Clear Channel, NOW said Monday.
I'll go out on a limb here and point out blatant hypocrisy.
NOW is pro-choice when it comes to a woman having an abortion, but it is adamantly against a woman choosing to have breast implants and it is urging people to send emails protesting what it considers a "degrading and unethical contest" although these women CHOSE to send in contest entry forms?
So, NOW gets to choose what is and is not ethical and proper behavior for women (and how many NOW supporters jumped on that bandwagon)? Sounds a lot like what the GOP is doing.
| Link to this post | | Filed: Women's Issues
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| Chinese Gays Will Marry Opposite Sex |
| 01.02.05 (8:48 pm) [edit] |
Maybe America ain't so bad. I have to learn how to write dialect. I want to be able to say "America" in a Texas accent. Anyway, homosexuals in China don't have it as well as we do here in the states:
(Beijing) The Chinese government says that the vast majority of its gay population is in heterosexual marriages.
[. . . ]
Zhang Beichuan, a government health department official said that 80 percent of gays will marry or are already wed. He said that the estimate is based on interviews with gay men and lesbians and shows the continuing pressure put on gays by long-standing conservative cultural traditions that stress the importance of traditional families.
[. . . ]
"Chinese people see gay activities as something disgusting and against the Chinese moral and ethic," said Cong, who blames widespread ignorance of homosexuality.
I bet you the religious fanatics are drooling and making plane reservations to China right now to learn their secret. "So, umm. . . how do you pressure all those homosexuals into submission? We have nuclear arms to trade for your secret."
Of course, I'm assuming Chinese homosexuals dislike being in heterosexual marriages. That sorta thing seems to work well for some here in the United States who are in heterosexual marriages and have an extra mate (or two or three) -- especially if you can live in the privileged heterosexual world, checkin' "Married" on those 1040 tax forms, and getting all the security us homos . . . . Ok, I'll shut up.
I'm so fuckin' jaded. I know.
| Link to this post | | Filed: LGBT Issues
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| I've Never Been a Prostitute, So I Don't Know |
| 01.01.05 (11:21 pm) [edit] |
An article from the Economist says:
Two adults enter a room, agree on a price, and have sex. Has either committed a crime? Common sense suggests not: sex is not illegal in itself, and the fact that money has changed hands does not turn a private act into a social menace. If both parties consent, it is hard to see how either is a victim.
This article offers several arguments: the right says the sex trade is plain wrong; liberals say what consenting adults do in private is their own business; and the left believes all prostitutes are victims. According to the article, I would be a liberal. I believe what consenting adults do in their own time is their own business.
I read Andrea Dworkin as an undergrad. She wrote extensively on prostitution and she believed all prostitutes are victims; the man pays to use the woman's body:
Prostitution: what is it? It is the use of a woman's body for sex by a man, he pays money, he does what he wants. The minute you move away from what it really is, you move away from prostitution into the world of ideas. You will feel better; you will have a better time; it is more fun; there is plenty to discuss, but you will be discussing ideas, not prostitution. Prostitution is not an idea.
And I'll say right here I really, really disliked Dworkin's work (every last bit of it).
So, are all female prostitutes victims? And if they are, then male prostitutes must be victims also, correct? If a female pays a female prostitute, are they both victims?
| Link to this post | | Filed: Sex & Sexuality
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| Quick Update About Changes |
| 01.01.05 (3:05 pm) [edit] |
I'm making a few changes to the blog to make it easier to find what you're looking for in the future. I've added categories to the sidebar. Each post will show a category. I'm going through the past few months and categorizing select posts (not all of them). You can still use the archives link in the right sidebar to find old posts as usual.
I've removed the sideblog because as posts get bumped to the archives, the comments are deleted and removed all together. Sex & Sexuality has become a regular category here at SistersTalk instead of a separate sideblog -- as suggested by several readers.
The comment SPAM continues and I continue to delete it. To all the SPAMMERS: I've run message boards for years. My index finger is trained to spot SPAM and delete it.
| Link to this post | | Filed: General
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