Sunday, September 11, 2011

JMG Quote Of The Day - Paul Krugman


"What happened after 9/11 — and I think even people on the right know this, whether they admit it or not — was deeply shameful. The atrocity should have been a unifying event, but instead it became a wedge issue. Fake heroes like Bernie Kerik, Rudy Giuliani, and, yes, George W. Bush raced to cash in on the horror. And then the attack was used to justify an unrelated war the neocons wanted to fight, for all the wrong reasons. A lot of other people behaved badly. How many of our professional pundits — people who should have understood very well what was happening — took the easy way out, turning a blind eye to the corruption and lending their support to the hijacking of the atrocity? The memory of 9/11 has been irrevocably poisoned; it has become an occasion for shame. And in its heart, the nation knows it." - Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman, writing for the New York Times.

RELATED: Krugman's column has already caused furor in the rightwing blogosphere, with GOProud's Chris Barron tweeting that Krugman "may be the most despicable human being to ever wander the planet."
 

reposted from Joe

Castro Lowers Rainbow Flag Ten Years After 9/11

Via Belirico: LGBT Media Shrinks Further: 365gay to Close

As the LGBT online world continues to refocus, consolidate, and reorganize, longtime queer news site 365gay.com has become the latest casualty. door-bolt.jpgEditor-In-Chief Jennifer Vanasco brings us the details:
Some of you have been reading since 365gay was started as a Canadian publication in the 1990s. Some of you have been reading since Logo took over, in 2006. Some of you are newer - last year, last month, last week.
...
Now, it's coming to an end.
September 30 will be our last day of operations. Logo has shifted its online strategy and so the site is closing and I am moving on to other things.
365gay.com is one of the many corporate-owned sites that have also struggled financially as the economy continues to flounder. LGBT social media site connexion.org recently announced it will be closing up shop on Sept 14.

When I complain about the trouble large-scale popular independent bloggers are having lately, keep in mind that these corporate sites have more ability to attract advertisers and financial backing than we do. Pam's House Blend was forced to consolidate with FireDogLake to relieve pressure from owner Pam Spaulding; I'm the only full-time editor left here at Bilerico Project. Some other site owners are quietly discussing further changes that will shrink the LGBT online media even more.

Interestingly enough, the sites that seem to be having problems most are those who do original reporting and long-form opinion or analysis pieces while short-form bloggers who clip quotes from other sources and include a basic rewrite of some facts or a witty remark continue to grow readership and attract advertisers. I'd be interested to hear Projectors' thoughts on why the trend is happening and where it'll end.

make the jump here to read the full article

Todays WTF: "Gays are bigger threat to America than 9/11" Really?

GOP state legislator again says gays are bigger threat to America than 9/11


And of course, Oklahoma GOPer Sally Kerns met with a known hate group to discuss her wacko theories.

Reposted from AmericaBlogGay

Friday, September 9, 2011

Via HimalayaCrafts:


Overcome anger by peacefulness: overcome evil by good. Overcome the mean by generosity; and the man who lies by truth. ~ Buddha 

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Via JMG: Tick Tock....


Recent timeline here. (Via - Dan Savage)


reposted from Joe

It Gets Better - Barney frank

Via JMG: Schweddy Balls Ice Cream


It exists.


reposted from Joe

Via JMG: Christian Group: We May Hate Gays But At Least We Aren't Executing Them


"Liberal activists in America deride churches for upholding traditional marriage but seem mostly silent when Islamist regimes execute homosexuals and adulterers. Enshrining parts of Shari’a into Western legal codes, as the Archbishop of Canterbury has suggested, or accommodating it by social custom, opens a door to manifold dangers that churches and human rights organizations cannot ignore.

"Multiculturalism and political correctness sometimes argue for accommodating Sharia in the West. But Christians and others concerned about human rights must defend Western legal traditions of equality before the law. Liberal activists so quick to accuse traditional Christians of homophobia and Islamophobia might give a little more attention to how the Islamic Republic of Iran treats its people." - Faith McDonnell, spokesperson for the Institute of Religion & Democracy, responding to news of gays executed in Iran.

RELATED: In January the IRD slammed the U.S. State Department for working to prevent the abuse and executions of LGBT people in foreign countries. Everybody got that? If the United States tries to help foreign gays, that is anti-Christian meddling in the affairs of sovereign nations. But if the IRD can propagandize the very murders the State Department is working to stop? WAHOO. What filthy, transparent, hypocritical motherfuckers.

ALSO FUCKING RELATED: It should be noted that America, too, executes its homosexuals. Only we mostly do it at the hands (and baseball bats) of self-identified Christian civilians.

reposted from Joe

The Gruen Transfer - The Pitch: Banning All Religion

Yep, you're a bigot!

 

Joan Halifax: Compassion and the true meaning of empathy










2 from AmericablogGay:




It can be difficult to read the tea leaves of which way a judge is thinking of ruling, but this would be bad news, as it would permit the anti-gay bigots to appeal the Prop 8 case even if the state of California refused to do so. LA Times

The California Supreme Court appeared ready Tuesday to rule that the backers of Proposition 8 and other ballot measures have the right to defend them in court, a stance that would give opponents of same-sex marriage the chance to champion the initiative all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
During an hour of oral arguments, several justices appeared skeptical that only elected state officials may defend measures passed by voters, as gay-rights lawyers claimed.
The seven-member court will decide within 90 days whether ProtectMarriage, the sponsors of Proposition 8, have the right to represent the state in litigation. That ruling will clear the way for the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to decide whether ProtectMarriage had standing to appeal U.S. District Judge Vaughn R. Walker's ruling against the 2008 ballot measure. 


More on the Prop 8 hearing in California 

John provided a link to the live oral hearing below. If you missed it, you can see the archived video here. CNN also has a good rundown of the arguments and questions posed by the various justices.
In response to a question posed by Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, the attorneys from both sides sparred over whether or not the state's interest "evaporates" when there is no one to defend it in court.
Charles Cooper, attorney for the ballot sponsors, said California specifically allows voters to directly enact this kind of legislation, and that its official sponsors should be allowed to step in when the state refuses to defend such measures. But he was pressed hard by several justices over whether Prop 8 proponents could ultimately prove actual injury if same-sex marriages were allowed to resume in the state.
However, Theodore Olson, a former solicitor general in the Bush administration and a leading conservative lawyer, said only state officials can defend state laws. He is defending a coalition of same-sex couples and several civil rights groups.
"There is ample authority that individuals do not have a right to defend a law unless they would suffer a direct and immediate harm from its invalidation," Olson said. "The proponents of Proposition 8 will not suffer any harm from a decision that grants gay and lesbian Californians their fundamental civil right to marry."
The defender's of Prop 8 would have one believe it is all about protecting the voter's rights, but I would argue there is no inherent right to vote on other's civil rights, period.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Via JMG: David Barton: If You Vote In Support Of Gay Rights, God Will Curse You


"I will tell you where this becomes very significant politically, it Romans 1:27-32, the scripture says not only does God not approve homosexuality, it says He does not approve those who do approve of homosexuality. So I’ve got a ballot, I’ve got a vote, I vote for somebody that approves homosexuality, God doesn’t approve me if I approve those who approve homosexuality. The Bible is so good about helping us know how to vote, because what you said is exactly right. The reason homosexuality will kill the blessing and I’ll tell you why, if I support someone who supports homosexuality, it will kill the blessing on me whether I’m a homosexual or not." - Dominionist David Barton, speaking on Christian television.