- Does DC have a God-Given Right to Vote on Marriage? According to the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), (you know… Maggie Gallagher's Catholic/Mormon front group that used lies to squelch same-sex Marriage in Maine.), the citizens of Washington DC have a right to vote on marriage, which the DC council is blocking. (Via Towleroad)
One of the things I find interesting is how circular the Anita's tactics are. When a court decision saying that denying same-sex marriage rights is illegal comes through, they call the judges "activists" and the judges are "legislating from the bench"; therefore, the legislators should be the ones to make a law-- (that is what happened in California). When the legislators (the peoples' duly elected representatives, by the way) do pass a law allowing same-sex marriage, they are trampling the peoples' right to vote. If a people's vote legalizes it, the Anita's challenge it in the courts. Round and Round it goes. Sometimes, it seems like they just want to wear the resistance down so anti-gay laws are passed through sheer fatigue. Why won't they see that no one is equal until EVERYONE is equal?
- Boycott the Salvation Army's Red Kettles and toy drives! Why, you ask?
- They are extremely anti-gay and they have lobbied AGAINST the repeal of anti-gay laws in Scotland, arguing that homosexuality will harm children. John Aravosis @ AmericaBlog has a roundup.
- They are also checking residency when they help a family and give the children toys. Whether this is an impromptu immigration check or not, I think it is horrible that they would end up saying "I'm sorry honey. Santa can't give you a toy because you don't live here." They also verify the immigration status of anyone who comes to the shelter.
- There are plenty of other organizations out there that extend a hand to families that one can donate to, without supporting anti-gay policies or discrimination against undocumented immigrants. It's Christmas, for crying out loud!
- They are extremely anti-gay and they have lobbied AGAINST the repeal of anti-gay laws in Scotland, arguing that homosexuality will harm children. John Aravosis @ AmericaBlog has a roundup.
- Ben Nelson is going to introduce a Stupak-style amendment in the Senate, and is threatening to filibuster if it is not adopted. Here we go again!
- Enlightened Catholic speaks about the Catholic Church's lack of response on Uganda. They have some interesting thoughts there. I urge you to check it out. Like the Enlightened Catholic, I too am amazed at how the Catholic Church preaches one thing and practices another. I would think that Uganda's proposed law would fall under the "treat homosexuals with dignity and respect" doctrine, but apparently, their position more closely resembles "the only good gay is a dead gay".
- Youngest, openly gay mayor elected in Campbell, CA. Woot! Way to Go! We've come a long way, but we've got a long way to go.
- Rick Warren is at it again. Now he's trying to say that he shouldn't have to state a position on Uganda because no one cared when "146,000 Christians were killed because of their faith." I agree with Alvin McEwen:
The irony is that Warren is also a member of this same group who are always complaining about the erosion of Christian values in America.
If this is true, all of them, especially Warren, should take a good look in the mirror before pointing fingers.
I was always told that when you point a finger at someone, three point back at yourself.
- Family Research Council's stance is built on distortion. We knew that already. However, we need to hold their feet to the fire and let them know just how damaging their distortions are. Alvin also has a breakdown of how the FRC has distorted facts to make a case against LGBT equality.
- Joe Jervis @ Joe My God has a tweet of the day that I find interesting. NOM thinks that DC Councilman Tommy Wells' letter opposing reauthorizing the DC School voucher program is a punishment for needy children and the Catholic Church. In actuality, he's saying that DC voters should not pay for private schools that do not provide a decent or adequate education and taxpayers in Washington DC should not have to support schools that encourage discrimination.
What Wells' letter says:
We believe the program has placed too many District students in underperforming private schools and supports discriminatory employment practices at religious-based schools, in violation of the D.C. Human Rights Act. DCOSP provides vouchers for students to attend some schools that are seriously deficient. Specifically, these schools were not accredited or even in the process of becoming accredited, and employed teachers who had not graduated from college. According to a report by the General Accountability Office, these schools: "Did not meet basic requirements to operate in the District. For example, a few had no certificate of occupancy on file with the District or had certificates that did not specify educational use." We acknowledge that some of our publicly funded voucher students attend high-performing private schools. A small minority attend Sidwell Friends, St. Albans, and John Carroll High School. However, too many attend schools with fewer resources and lower standards than those of our public schools.
I agree with Joe and with Councilman Wells. If you don't think public schools are doing an adequate job educating your children, pay for the schools with your own damn money, not my taxes!
- LGBT POV has an excellent article and interview about Harvey Milk's induction into the California Hall of Fame with his nephew, Stuart. "Ya gotta give 'em hope!"
- Humor Via MadPriest
- Cardinal says gays 'will never go to heaven' To paraphrase from an earlier post: Until they own up to the pedophilia and abuse and start making efforts to clean house and handle it appropriately, the Catholic Church has lost all credibility in telling others what to do with their sexuality.
- New York Senate votes down gay marriage.
"All the biological and developmental evidence shows that homosexuality cannot be learned so teaching about same-sex relationships in schools cannot result in increases in homosexuality. You cannot learn homosexuality like you can learn maths! A certain amount of same-sex horseplay is common in adolescence but there is no evidence that is disproportionately results in adult homosexuality."
- UN AIDS opposes sodomy laws. Statement: Laws that criminalize groups and behaviours threaten to jeopardize universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support
- "Quis custodes custodiet?" is Latin for "Who is guarding the guards?" Terrence @ Queering the Church has an article up about how the Vatican ties into the pedophilia cover up in Dublin, the US and other places. It is worth noting that in the 35-page document from the Vatican's Holy Office he discusses there is no mention of any support or concern for the welfare of any victims complaining. It purely concentrates on the canon laws for dealing with complaints against priests.
Progressive Catholic has an Op-ed from the 12-2-2009 issue of the Irish times. Maureen Gaffney says the Church's view of sexuality is at the root of its troubles.
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