Revoked

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Via JMG: OREGON: Marriage Gets Its Hearing

Here's how things went in Oregon yesterday:

Lawyers for four gay and lesbian couples and the state of Oregon urged a federal judge Wednesday to strike down Oregon's voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage. No comments were made in favor of the ban, so lawyers on both sides of the case were in the rare position of asking for the same ruling from the judge. Oregon's attorney general, Democrat Ellen Rosenblum, has said the ban is legally indefensible and has refused to offer arguments in favor of keeping it.
Judge Michael McShane did not say which way he was leaning. His questioning focused heavily on how he should apply precedents from higher courts and whether he should delay implementation of his ruling until appeals courts sort out gay marriage cases pending around the country. The judge is deciding two parallel cases. The couples who filed suit are asking him to declare the ban unconstitutional and allow same-sex couples to wed. They also want an order that same-sex marriages performed in other states must be recognized in Oregon.

NOM isn't happy about not being there.

McShane has said he won't rule on the constitutionality of the same-sex marriage ban until he decides on a request filed this week by the National Organization for Marriage to defend it. McShane said he'll consider the group's request next month and, if he grants it, he'll hold new oral arguments so the group can defend the ban. The group's chairman, John Eastman, said the judge would benefit from hearing several arguments that weren't raised in court Wednesday because nobody was defending the ban. "The notion that there are no plausible arguments to make in defense of marriage is ludicrous," said Eastman, who also is a law professor at Chapman University in California.

Labels: John Eastman, marriage equality, NOM, Oregon

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: PolitiFact Rates Ralph Reed's Claims About Gay Parenting As Totally False

On Sunday, Ralph Reed appeared on ABC's This Week to declare that social science has found "irrefutable" proof that children are better off being raised by a mom and a dad. PolitiFact has rated his claims as totally false.

We did find one study funded by conservative organizations as showing gay parents are worse than straight ones, but it’s been denounced by the American Sociological Association, the researcher’s own university and many reputable sociologists. In conducting the study, Mark Regnerus loosely defined same-sex couples and, in doing so, only spoke with two children who were actually raised by gay parents. Research is still limited, but many reputable studies so far have concluded that children of gay parents, generally speaking, are just as well off as children of straight parents. What’s more important is the number of parents a child has, experts told us. "Kids are better off with two parents," said Andrew Cherlin, a sociology professor at Johns Hopkins University. "But we don't have much evidence that those parents must be of the opposite gender."

Their final ruling: "All reputable research so far indicates that children brought up by gay parents are just well off as those brought up by straight parents. We rate Reed’s statement False."

Labels: bigotry, Christianists, gay families, gay parenting, LGBT rights, liars, PolitiFact, Ralph Reed, religion

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via Daily Dharma

For the Practice | April 24, 2014

You practice the piano not in order to perform but for the sake of practicing the piano. With music, you don’t practice and then one day become a concert pianist. You are that. Practice is as much an expression of that as of practice itself.

—Philip Glass, “First Lesson, Best Lesson”

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Via JMG: Which Case Will Get To SCOTUS First?

While various legal groups jockey to get to the Supreme Court, Freedom To Marry head Evan Wolfson speaks about the marriage equality cases currently before the various circuit courts of appeal:

Presumably, we will soon - meaning, in a matter of months - have rulings from one or more of the federal appellate courts. Then there's the possibility of further procedures as to whether the three-judge panels in those courts that will rule will then go to the broader, full panel of the entire circuit courts [a process called en banc review]. That could consume a few more months. When that gets resolved (either by bypassing that step or by having another set of arguments and further round of decisions), then whoever loses that ultimate appeals court ruling may ask the Supreme Court to hear the case. That's called "seeking cert." That stage then requires another few months of briefing and argument, with one side saying the Supreme Court should hear the case and the other side saying the Court should not hear the case. Then, it's up to the Supreme Court to decide whether it's going to take one of the cases or not. It takes only four of the nine justices to vote to hear a case.

There are presently 65 marriage equality lawsuits in progress in 31 states and US territories. Freedom To Marry has posted a handy chart.

Labels: Evan Wolfson, Freedom To Marry, marriage equality, SCOTUS

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Betty White Defends The Gay Community | Betty White Interview | Larry King Now Ora TV

vIA Budistas Gays: Uma opinião sobre a homosexualidade

O Precioso Senhor da Dança, S.Ema. Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, partilha sua opinião sobre a homosexualidade. Essa história foi retirada do facebook de um aluno que presenciou esse fato.
Uma senhora, após a palestra do lama sobre a diversidade da vida, perguntou:

- Mestre, o que é um homossexual?
Ele: – Um homossexual é uma pessoa que faz sexo com o mesmo sexo.
Ela: – Acho que o senhor não entendeu… Como o budismo vê o homossexualismo?
Ele: – Nós não vemos o homossexualismo. No budismo, não temos o costume de ver as pessoas fazendo sexo.
Ela [impaciente]: – Mestre, o que eu quero saber é a opinião do budismo sobre pessoas que fazem sexo com o mesmo sexo.
Ele: – Alguém pode dar opinião sobre quem não conhece? Você está falando em “pessoas”. Que pessoas?
Ela [quase louca]: – Qualquer uma! Qualquer uma!
Ele: – Todas as pessoas são milagres.
Ela [começando a espumar]: – O HOMOSSEXUALISMO É CERTO OU ERRADO?
Ele: – Atos homossexuais consensuais são atos de amor.
Tudo isso com a mesma expressão de quem vê um passarinho azul. Seguem-se aplausos e gargalhadas. Rinpoche sorri.

Mais histórias do Senhor da Dança

Este blog é fantásticos e conta muitas histórias sobre S.Ema. Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, um mestre tibetano autêntico e reconhecido da linhagem Niygma.

Acesse: O senhor da Dança.

Via Budistas Gays

Via Daily Dharma

Suffering Ends, Wisdom Begins | April 23, 2014

When it’s time to suffer, you should suffer; when it’s time to cry, you should cry. Cry completely. Cry until there are no more tears and then recognize in your exhaustion that you’re alive. The sun still rises and sets. The seasons come and go. Absolutely nothing remains the same and that includes suffering. When the suffering ends wisdom begins to raise the right questions.

—Seido Ray Ronci, “The Examined Life”

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Links - Via Dan Nicoletta / FB:

Dan said, "I am really excited about the upcoming Milk stamp but sickened that news agencies are saying he is the first openly gay person elected to office as ABC7 just did. It matters because women matter. Kathy Kozachenko — first openly gay or lesbian candidate to win public office in the United States (won a seat on the Ann Arbor, Michigan, city council). Elaine Noble became the first openly gay or lesbian candidate ever elected to a state-level office in America when she was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives."

I am really excited about the upcoming Milk stamp but sickened that news agencies are saying he is the first openly gay person elected to office as ABC7 just did. It matters because women matter.
Kathy Kozachenko — first openly gay or lesbian candidate to win public office in the United States (won a seat on the Ann Arbor, Michigan, city council)
Elaine Noble became the first openly gay or lesbian candidate ever elected to a state-level office in America when she was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

Via Daily Dharma

Complete Transformation | April 22, 2014

If spirituality is only about self-transcendence—about seeing through the story of ‘me’ that we habitually inhabit—then it runs the risk of cutting us loose from that story so that we no longer take care of the human wounds of self and other. No matter how imaginary the self proves to be, we return to its world. If spiritual or transcendent insight doesn’t lead to healing and transformation in our actual daily lives, it is clearly incomplete.

—Henry Shukman, “Light and Dark”

Monday, April 21, 2014

Via JMG: xkcd On Brendan Eich

(Via JMG reader Mike)

Labels: boycotts, Brendan Eich, Mozilla, xkcd

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: USPS Begins Milk Stamp Pre-Orders

Via press release from the White House:

The U.S. Postal Service officially revealed the Harvey Milk Forever Stamp today. The stamp’s official first-day-of-issue ceremony will take place May 22 at the White House. The public is invited to attend the May 28 Harvey Milk Forever Stamp special dedication ceremony in San Francisco. Details on the time and location will be forthcoming. Customers may order the Harvey Milk stamp now for delivery following the May 22 stamp issuance. The stamp image is based on a circa 1977 black and white photograph of Milk in front of his Castro Street Camera store in San Francisco taken by Daniel Nicoletta of Grants Pass, OR. Antonio Alcalá of Alexandria, VA, was art director for the stamp.

Pre-order your stamps here.

Labels: Harvey Milk, LGBT History, USPS

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via Daily Dharma

Union of Compassion and Wisdom | April 21, 2014

The essence of Buddha’s teaching is the union of compassion and wisdom, the view of interdependence and emptiness. An altruistic attitude is altruistic. It is not confused in itself. But without wisdom, we can act with obscured compassion or stupid compassion.

—Matthieu Ricard, “Karma Crossroads”

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Via Daily Dharma

Inner and Outer Nature | April 20, 2014

When there is no ego or selfishness, there is nothing that will destroy nature, nothing that will exploit and abuse nature. Then the external, physical aspect of nature will be able to conserve itself automatically.

—Buddhadasa, “Conserving the Inner Ecology”

Saturday, April 19, 2014

Via Daily Dharma

Not Part of the Deal | April 19, 2014

The mind must be monitored and inventoried like an alcoholic in recovery or a Washington lobbyist: It never goes away until it gets what it wants. And what it wants is to be in control at all times. But control is not part of the deal of being a human being. We may rightly try to confront injustices, but some things can only be seen, noted, and accepted for what they are.

—Stephen Altschuler, “Sitting Practice Redux”

Via JMG: Tumblr: Judgmental Maps

Embiggen for better reading. More cities here.

Labels: maps, NYC, silliness, Tumblr

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Friday, April 18, 2014

Via JMG: OREGON: An Openly Gay Federal Judge Will Hear Next Week's Marriage Case

Openly gay US District Court Judge Michael J. McShane will hear next week's marriage equality case in Oregon.

Unlike the five federal judges who have struck down laws prohibiting same-sex marriages in other states in recent months, McShane won't have anyone in the courtroom defending Oregon's constitutional ban when he holds oral arguments Wednesday. And, unlike the other judges, McShane also happens to be one of just nine openly gay members of the federal judiciary, according to the Human Rights Campaign. It's an unusual combination of factors for the 53-year-old jurist, who has served as a federal judge for less than a year. McShane, citing the sensitivity of the case, declined to be interviewed for this story. But friends say they're confident he'll produce a careful decision while setting aside any personal feelings. "You don't want to be the lawyer going in saying with a wink, 'I'm the lawyer on the gay-marriage side and he's going to be with me,'" says Lane Borg, who heads Metropolitan Public Defender and has known McShane for decades. "They would be ill-advised to think that just because Michael is gay that he is going to rule that way."

NOM chairman John Eastman has the sadz: "The question is not his sexual orientation, but whether he is situated identically to the plaintiffs and will benefit from the exact relief he provides to them."

RELATED: McShane began his career as a public defender in Portland. He was nominated to the federal bench by President Obama in September 2012. (Tipped by JMG reader Sam)

Labels: lawsuits, marriage equality, Oregon

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via JMG: Oregon Readies Gay Marriage Licenses

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum declared in February that she will not defend the state against the marriage equality suit filed in October 2013 by local attorneys on behalf of two gay couples. That case hasn't even been heard yet, much less ruled upon, but the state is getting ready for good news. Via the Associated Press:

In light of the Oregon attorney general's decision to not defend the state's ban on gay marriage, Oregon is now revising its marriage licenses to include forms for same-sex couples. Previously, when people applied for a marriage license, they were asked either to identify as a "bride" or "groom." Now, the new form designates as "Party A" and "Party B." Applicants can also choose to be identified as "bride," "groom" or "spouse." Another change to marriage licenses: eliminating the term "maiden name." Instead, applicants will be asked to provide their "name at birth." Most of Oregon's counties use an electronic version of the marriage form. Clerks are in the process of working with a software vendor to update the online forms.

(Tipped by JMG reader Robert)

Labels: LGBT rights, marriage equality, Oregon

Reposted from Joe Jervis

Via Daily Dharma

Let Go in a Discerning Way | April 18, 2014

When you let go of the body, let go in a discerning way. Don't let go in a way in which delusion and misunderstanding overcome the mind. Don't get disgusted with the body so that the mind becomes restless and agitated and stops meditating. That kind of dislike is wrong. When we look at things we don't like—such as the inconstancy, the stressfulness, and the unattractiveness of the body—remember that they're part of the noble truths.

—Phra Ajaan Suwat Suvaco, "This Body of Mine"