Quote of the Day

"I made the mistake of not having sex until I was 23! I loved being with another man and felt relieved that I finally knew who I was. I made the mistake of falling in love too soon because I was naive and romantic. My advice to you is to never chase love. It will find you when you least expect it. Have fun, have lots of safe sex and enjoy your sexuality. Be proud of who you are. I made a lot of mistakes. Stay away from drugs, they’re a waste of time. Stand up for every human being’s rights. Be loving, kind and strong. Set an example. You’re going to have one hell of a life!”

- Elton John, from a coming anthology titled Dear Me: A Letter To My 16 Year-Old Self.

House Bill Would Cut Funding To States That Oppose LGBT Adoption

Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) has introduced a bill that would restrict federal child welfare funding from any state that discriminates against LGBT people attempting to adopt.

Stark said in an interview that he introduced the legislation, H.R. 3827, in part because thousands of children each year "age out" of the child welfare system without finding homes. "We got 25,000 kids a year maturing out of the welfare system without permanent foster care or adoptive care, and the prospects of those children having a successful adult life are diminished greatly," he said. "These are kids who end up in the criminal justice system, or end up homeless."

States with explicit restrictions on adoption that the pending legislation would affect are Utah, Florida, Arkansas, Nebraska and Mississippi. Florida, for example, has a statute specifically prohibiting gays from adopting, and in Arkansas, voters last year approved Act 1, which prevents unmarried co-habitating couples, including same-sex partners, from adopting children. The legislation, Stark said, also would restrict funds for states where restrictions are put in place by agencies, individual social workers or judges, or where restrictions are part of the common law of the state. For states that don't comply with the law, federal officials could withhold from the states funds provided to them for child welfare services. The bill also calls for a Government Accountability Office study within five years to examine how states are complying with the new rules.

Stark rates the chances of his bill passing as "pretty good," but no hearing is yet planned. A spokesman for the HRC said they'll get behind the bill if it gains traction in Congress.

Courtesy of JMG

20% Of Polled Identify As Republicans

From a story about an ABC News/Washington Post poll about attitudes on health care reform comes this little nugget: "Only 20 percent of adults identify themselves as Republicans, little changed in recent months, but still the lowest single number in Post-ABC polls since 1983."

Courtesy of JMG

Subject: Stay off FOX

It's about time Democrats stood up to FOX! The White House communications director said FOX is a "wing of the Republican Party...let's not pretend they're a news network."

To draw attention to its biased coverage, President Obama will not appear on FOX for the rest of this year.

I signed a petition urging Democrats to support President Obama's stance by staying off FOX as long as he does. Can you join me at the link below?

http://civic.moveon.org/foxobama/?r_by=17603-538505-1HB2w4x&rc=paste

Thanks!

National Equality March: "Imagine"

"IMAGINE" featuring Eva Cassidy (music available on iTunes) National Equality March, October 11, 2009 Washington DC (additional pics from the Prop 8 March and DADT Rally in Washington DC)