Via Courage Campaign:

Dear Daniel -- If you didn't see, today the 9th Circuit made a ruling on the Prop 8 case. The court declined to rule on the constitutionality, instead submitting a question to the California Supreme Court with regard to the question of standing and whether state law allows ballot initiative proponents to defend initiatives in court. At issue is the question of standing in state and federal law. Okay, now what the heck does all that mean? We'll tell you. Today at 2:30 p.m. PST we're hosting a live chat with The National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) Legal Director and Prop 8 expert Shannon Minter at www.Prop8TrialTracker.com. You can join us by going to www.Prop8TrialTracker.com at that time. Shannon was the lead attorney on the In re Marriage Cases ruling at the California Supreme Court. That was the ruling that set this whole ball rolling; a case we won in which the Court ruled that same-sex couples cannot be constitutionally denied the freedom to marry. Shannon's also the Legal Director at the NCLR, one of the country's foremost and successful legal organizations. You may recall he and his deputy Chris Stoll joined the P8TT community a few months ago to answer your questions at the time. They had so much fun, they agreed to come back! Got questions on what the 9th Circuit "question" is, exactly? How the California Supreme Court may rule? When the 9th Circuit will decide on the merits, if at all? What will happen if the case is dismissed for lack of standing at the California Supreme Court or 9th Circuit? We're here to help. So if you've got Prop 8 questions, we've got answers. Join us at www.Prop8TrialTracker.com at 2:30 PM PST and fire away. Thanks for all you do, Rick Jacobs Founder and Chair, Courage Campaign

Via JMG: Another Reason To Boycott Chick-Fil-A

Not that we really needed another one.

(Via - Good As You)

Labels: bigotry, boycotts, fast food, religion

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Via JMG: Gareth Thomas On Ellen DeGeneres

After Elton points us to this clip of today's Ellen appearance by out rugby star Gareth Thomas. Mickey Rourke has said he'll have his front two teeth removed to play Thomas in an upcoming biopic.

Via JMG: Billboard Of The Day

Real or photoshopped? The source doesn't give a location.

Labels: advertising, atheism, religion

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Via JMG: HomoQuotable - Jonathan Capehart

"I guess we're supposed to presume that Palin supports the repeal of the ban on gay men and lesbians from serving openly in the military. And I suppose by extension we should presume that she is down with gay equality. But it's easy to support something that has already happened and costs you little to speak out about -- even if it is in the form a retweet. DADT was repealed with 65 votes in the Senate on Dec. 22.

"Palin had a chance to take a stand last November when her daughter Willow apparently unleashed the f-bomb (the one that rhymes with drag) on someone criticizing the premier of Sarah Palin's Alaska on Facebook. Bristol Palin seemed to step up with an apology of sorts. But the former governor, reality television star and self-proclaimed Mama Grizzly remained mute. This raises lots of questions about what constitutes accepted banter in the Palins' Wasilla manse. Leadership is about staking out positions when it's difficult, not just when it's easy. Once again, it seems, Palin has taken the easy route." - Jonathan Capehart, writing for the Washington Post.

Labels: DADT, HomoQuotable, Jonathan Capehart, Sarah Palin

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Via JMG: BREAKING: 9th Circuit Court Punts Prop 8 To State Supreme Court On "Standing"

Here's the ruling. Analysis and reactions shortly.

Labels: California, Ninth Circuit Court., Proposition 8

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Via EQCA:

January 4, 2011

Dear Daniel, The Ninth Circuit Court has just released its opinion on the Proposition 8 case. The Court has asked the California Supreme Court to consider whether Protect Marriage -- the campaign that put Prop. 8 on the ballot -- has standing to appeal. The Court also ruled that Imperial County, which had tried to intervene in the case, does not have standing to appeal. Equality California’s amicus briefs helped shape the Court’s opinion. We were the only party to file an amicus brief on Imperial County’s attempt to intervene, contending exactly what the Court found -- that the County does not have standing. The Ninth Circuit Court is also sending the California Supreme Court our second amicus brief that contends that Protect Marriage also does not have standing to appeal. Our amicus brief is the only amicus brief from our side they are sending the California Supreme Court, out of the 25 total amicus briefs filed in the case. Thanks to our counsel, David C. Codell, for writing these influential amicus briefs. We owe our thanks to the American Foundation for Equal Rights and the brilliant legal team, including Ted Olson, David Boies and San Francisco Deputy City Attorney Terese Stewart, for once again making the case. We are incredibly lucky to have them on our side. Now we wait, again. The California Supreme Court will schedule its hearing shortly. As always, Equality California will continue to track the case’s progress and put our legal experts and our team to work to shape the outcome. In solidarity, Geoff Kors Executive Director Equality California

Via JMG: Quote Of The Day II - Father Cutie

"There are so many homosexuals, both active and celibate, at all levels of clergy and Church hierarchy that the church would never be able to function if they were really to exclude all of them from ministry." - Father Alberto Cutie (his real name), in his new book which slams the Catholic Church as misogynistic and hypocritical.

Cutie left the priesthood in 2009 after a Miami tabloid photographed him making out with the woman who eventually became his wife. Prior to being outed as a heterosexual, Cutie had been something a pop star in Latin media, earning him the nickname, "Father Oprah."

Labels: Alberto Cutie, books, Catholic Church, Quote Of The Day, religion

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Via JMG: Debate Watch: 100% Of RNC Chair Candidates Denounce Same-Sex Marriage

RNC Chairman Michael Steele is fighting for his job at today's debate, where every single candidate responded to NOM's question on marriage equality by invoking Jeebus, traditional values, and the sanctity of one man-one woman.

Labels: bigotry, GOP, marriage equality, Michael Steele, NOM, RNC

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Via JMG: CALIFORNIA: Pastor Who Backed Prop 8 Held On Multiple Child Molestation Charges

Pastor Tom Daniels of Rio Linda, California is being held on $6M bail after being charged with multiple felony counts of sexual assault on a child. Lavender Newswire reports that Daniels twice made donations to Protect Marriage, the backers of Proposition 8.

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Via Adam & Andy:

 

http://www.adamandandy.com/archive.html

Via SacBee:

Via JustaBahai: new blog posting on same sex marriage

 

http://justabahai.wordpress.com/2010/12/31/we-verily/   ...and the hot discussion in some Bahai circles is the conviction that gays and lesbians cannot do the same, cannot “verily” state their committment as equals...

Via JMG: Los Angeles Times: President Obama, Enough Agonizing Over Gay Marriage

From an editorial in today's Los Angeles Times:

We can't peer into President Obama's soul, but his statement last week that he is "struggling" with whether to endorse same-sex marriage is open to an unedifying interpretation. Given the president's support of gay rights in other contexts, his opposition to marriage equality raises the question of whether the struggle Obama referred to is between politics and principle. If so, we hope principle will prevail. [snip] When he ran for the presidency in 2008, it was the conventional wisdom that supporting gay marriage would be politically fatal. With shifts in public attitudes, that probably will not be the case in 2012. According to the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, 42% of adults now favor same-sex marriage, compared to 37% in 2009. The trend seems clear. We'd prefer to think that such considerations wouldn't be uppermost in Obama's mind. What should determine his position is logic and the fact that same-sex couples across America, not just those in his circle, yearn for recognition of their relationships. Enough agonizing, Mr. President. Support marriage equality.

Labels: Barack Obama, Los Angeles Times, marriage equality

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Via JMG: Dan Savage On Sex, Religion & Bullying

Via JMG: Ricky Gervais: Out of England 2 (Stand-up Special) - "The Book of Noah"

Via Sacbee:

Via JMG: The $50,000 Cock Shot

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre has been fined $50,000 by the NFL for sending his cock shot to a female employee of the New York Jets, for whom Favre played at the time. Favre had faced a suspension by the league, a slight punishment considering he is expected to retire after this weekend. The fine is less than 1% of Favre's 2010 salary, but on a per-inch basis (NSFW), the fine, at least, is a whopper.

Labels: football, NFL, silliness, sports

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Via JMG: HomoQuotable - Steve Weinstein

"[T]he majority of gay men and lesbians want nothing more than to raise families behind picket fences. There are other signs of increasing conformity in the gay world. Leather is seen by most younger men as more silly than hot. While they may exercise, younger men mostly don’t strive for Adonis physiques. It goes on. (Lesbians are way ahead of the curve on this. They’ve been mating and nesting for years.)

"Is this bad? Probably not. We’ve been fighting for acceptance. Now that we’re getting it, it’s up to us to do what we want with it. If younger gay men and lesbians want the same things as their straight counterparts, so be it. Have we lost something? Probably. Just as blacks lose their jive and soul when they become middle-class suburbanites, and Jews lose their Yiddishkeite, so we shed the camp, the bitchy humor, the diva worship, and the other facets that defined “gay” for so long. Most people, however, would consider it a fair tradeoff." - Steve Weinstein, writing for Edge On The Net in response to yesterday's JMG post about Jonah Goldberg's column on the "homosexual bourgeoisie."

Labels: DADT, Edge, HomoQuotable, LGBT culture

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