Thursday, July 16, 2015
Via JMG: Siri: Call Her Caitlyn Jenner
Apple has given Siri new instructions:
Reposted from Joe Jervis
Siri is as witty as she is intelligent. The voice that lives inside your iPhone will now subtly correct your improper use of "Bruce" when you ask about Caitlyn Jenner. Apple's virtual assistant has been updated to make sure it won't misuse Jenner's correct name and gender when asked for more information on the athlete and reality star. Jenner, who unveiled her transition officially in Vanity Fair's July issue, no longer goes by the name "Bruce," and Siri is going to make sure you're well aware of that.The update came via a company called Wolfram Alpha.
Via JMG: Justice Anthony Kennedy Compares Marriage Uproar To Flag Burning Ruling
Kennedy, who was the deciding vote in both cases, described how the reaction decades ago was critical at first but changed over time. His remarks at the 9th Circuit Judicial Conference were his first public comments since he wrote the decision last month that put an end to same-sex marriage bans in 14 states. Kennedy drew the comparison in response to a moderator's question about how justices weather reaction to closely watched rulings. "Eighty senators went to the floor of the Senate to denounce the court," he said of the 1989 ruling. "President Bush took the week off and visited flag factories, but I noticed that after two or three months people began thinking about the issues."Kennedy believes that controversial rulings such as Obergefell "draw down on a capital of trust" which the court replenishes with less controversial rulings.
Homofóbicos podem receber multa de até R$ 60 mil no RJ
Diversos casais foram agredidos no Rio de Janeiro nos últimos meses
Na prática, homofóbicos podem receber multa de até R$ 60 mil caso pratiquem discriminação. O texto define como discriminação impedir o acesso ou permanência de homossexuais em determinados locais, impor tratamento diferenciado ou cobrar tarifa extra, recusar ou dificultar o ingresso de aluno em estabelecimento de ensino público ou privado, negar oportunidades de trabalho, impedir acesso ao transporte público e induzir ou incitar pelos meios de comunicação social a discriminação, preconceito ou prática de atos de violência ou coação contra qualquer pessoa em virtude de preconceito de sexo e de orientação sexual.
A lei visa proteger gays, lésbicas e bissexuais, mas não cita transexuais. A medida também não se aplica a instituições religiosas. Leia a reportagem completa no G1.
Caitlyn Jenner Takes ESPYs By Storm: 'Trans People Deserve Something Vital. They Deserve Your Respect'
In her first public appearance since
announcing her decision to transition, Caitlyn Jenner mesmerized the
crowd at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on Wednesday as she accepted
the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2015 ESPY Awards.
Homosexuality: It's Time We Reconcile Our Beliefs with Scientific Evidence and 21st Century Values
It is a good thing we are discussing a topic rarely brought up in Muslim communities.
Many with same-sex preferences in our communities are forced into heterosexual relationships or treated as outcasts and sometimes even driven to suicide, because we have trouble accepting homosexuality.
Make the jump here to read the full article
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 16/07/2015
“A vida humana neste planeta é como um jogo, um jogo divino. Cada um,
enquanto indivíduo, está em uma casa do jogo, mas também enquanto
humanidade nos encontramos em determinada posição. O ponto de partida é o
estado de total ignorância a respeito da nossa verdadeira identidade e
das consequências disso em nossas vidas. Vamos passando por diversas
casas que oferecem diferentes oportunidades de aprendizado, até que
chegamos ao fim do jogo, quando finalmente temos a lembrança de quem somos e do que viemos fazer aqui.”
“Human life on this planet is like a divine game. As individuals, each
of us occupies one spot on the board game, while humanity as a whole
also occupies a certain position on the board. The game’s starting point
is the state of total ignorance of our true identity and the
consequences it has for our lives. We move from one spot to the next in
the game, with each square providing us different opportunities for
learning. Ultimately, we reach the end of the game, which is when we
finally remember who we are and what we have come here to do.”
Today's Daily Dharma: Effective Practice
Effective Practice
We
have two faces: our intrinsic nature and our reactive patterns—the bad
habits of the psyche. Effective practice mirrors both, gradually
revealing our nature, while at the same time, clarifying what obstructs
it.
- Anne Klein, "Across the Expanse"
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do Dia- Flor del Día - Flower of the Day 15/07/2015
“A mentira é o aspecto mais sutil do eu inferior. No núcleo central da
mentira está a ideia da vítima, pois ela faz a entidade acreditar estar
sozinha e isolada. Essa camada do véu de ilusão produz a ideia de eu e
meu. E a partir daí nasce a carência, com todos os seus incontáveis
desdobramentos.”
“La mentira es el aspecto más sutil del yo inferior. En el núcleo central de la mentira está la idea de víctima, porque ésta hace a la entidad creer estar sola y aislada. Esta capa del velo de ilusión produce la idea de yo y mío. Y a partir de ahí nace la carencia, con todos sus incontables desdoblamientos.”
“La mentira es el aspecto más sutil del yo inferior. En el núcleo central de la mentira está la idea de víctima, porque ésta hace a la entidad creer estar sola y aislada. Esta capa del velo de ilusión produce la idea de yo y mío. Y a partir de ahí nace la carencia, con todos sus incontables desdoblamientos.”
“Deceit is the most subtle aspect of the lower self. At the center of
deceit is the idea of the victim, which makes human beings believe that
they are alone and isolated. This layer of the veil produces the idea of
‘me’ and ‘mine’. From here, neediness is born, along with all its other
countless unfoldings.”
Today's Daily Dharma: Accepting Groundlessness
Accepting Groundlessness
|
I
see that a lot of us are just running around in circles pretending that
there's ground where there actually isn't any ground. And that somehow,
if we could learn to not be afraid of groundlessness, not be afraid of
insecurity and uncertainty, it would be calling on an inner strength
that would allow us to be open and free and loving and compassionate in
any situation.
|
|
|
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Via WGB: Italian Sports Magazine Faces Backlash Over Gay Rugby Cover
The cover of the 11 July edition of SportWeek features Giacomo and Stefano – teammates in life and in gay-friendly amateur Rome squad Libera Rugby – with the headline: ‘Who’s afraid of a kiss?’
Going by the backlash on social media, it would appear a lot of the magazine’s readers.
‘That’s disgusting,’ tweeted one fan.
‘You’re painfully conformist and ideological,’ wrote another.
The hate was balanced out with supportive comments, many seeing the cover as a positive challenge to the homophobia rampant in Italian sport.
‘I’m not afraid,’ wrote a Twitter user, ‘but many Italians are, and its fear and ignorance that create homophobia.’" Full story here via Gay Star News!
WGB: I think we need to send Ben Cohen to Italy STAT to talk with these homophobes!
Via WGB: The Senate voted DOWN a measure to end harassment based on sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools.
Senate Republicans Just Said 'FUCK YOU' to LGBT Kids Who are Bullied!
David Badash just provided an insightful update on today's vote:
"Literally, 45 Republicans – and only Republicans – all voted to let LGBTQ kids continue to be bullied and discriminated against in our nation's school. Six Republican Senators did cross the aisle to vote for Sen. Franken's legislation, an amendment attached to a bill updating No Child Left Behind – an appropriate gesture, in fact, but eight more Republicans were needed to bring to vote to 60 "yeas."
The Washington Post credits Tennessee Republican Senator Lamar Alexander with leading the charge against Sen. Franken's SENDA legislation, the Student Nondiscrimination Act, claiming it would lead to “costly lawsuits.”
Apparently, fear of possible lawsuits outweighs Senator Alexander's concern about the actual emotional and physical harm being visited upon LGBTQ youth.
Here's the list of all U.S. Senators who this afternoon voted to allow our nation's LGBTQ youth to continue to be bullied – these are the NAY's. You'll notice that each NAY is from a Republican Senator, headed by Sen. Alexander:
| Alexander (R-TN) Barrasso (R-WY) Blunt (R-MO) Boozman (R-AR) Burr (R-NC) Capito (R-WV) Cassidy (R-LA) Coats (R-IN) Cochran (R-MS) Corker (R-TN) Cornyn (R-TX) Cotton (R-AR) Crapo (R-ID) Cruz (R-TX) Daines (R-MT) | Enzi (R-WY) Ernst (R-IA) Fischer (R-NE) Flake (R-AZ) Gardner (R-CO) Grassley (R-IA) Hatch (R-UT) Hoeven (R-ND) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Lankford (R-OK) Lee (R-UT) McCain (R-AZ) McConnell (R-KY) Moran (R-KS) | Paul (R-KY) Perdue (R-GA) Risch (R-ID) Roberts (R-KS) Rounds (R-SD) Sasse (R-NE) Scott (R-SC) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Sullivan (R-AK) Thune (R-SD) Tillis (R-NC) Toomey (R-PA) Vitter (R-LA) Wicker (R-MS) |
Here's the list of all the US Senators who voted to help protect LGBTQ youth from bullying – these are the YEAs:
| Ayotte (R-NH) Baldwin (D-WI) Bennet (D-CO) Blumenthal (D-CT) Booker (D-NJ) Boxer (D-CA) Brown (D-OH) Cantwell (D-WA) Cardin (D-MD) Carper (D-DE) Casey (D-PA) Collins (R-ME) Coons (D-DE) Donnelly (D-IN) Durbin (D-IL) Feinstein (D-CA) Franken (D-MN) Gillibrand (D-NY) | Heinrich (D-NM) Heitkamp (D-ND) Heller (R-NV) Hirono (D-HI) Johnson (R-WI) Kaine (D-VA) King (I-ME) Kirk (R-IL) Klobuchar (D-MN) Leahy (D-VT) Manchin (D-WV) Markey (D-MA) McCaskill (D-MO) Menendez (D-NJ) Merkley (D-OR) Mikulski (D-MD) Murkowski (R-AK) Murphy (D-CT) | Murray (D-WA) Peters (D-MI) Portman (R-OH) Reed (D-RI) Reid (D-NV) Sanders (I-VT) Schatz (D-HI) Schumer (D-NY) Shaheen (D-NH) Stabenow (D-MI) Tester (D-MT) Udall (D-NM) Warner (D-VA) Warren (D-MA) Whitehouse (D-RI) Wyden (D-OR) |
Not voting were U.S. Republican Senators and 2016 presidential candidates Lindsey Graham and Marco Rubio. FULL DETAILS AND BACKGROUND ON THE BILL!
Via JMG: GLAD Sues Walmart Over Spousal Benefits
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) and the Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs (WLC) have filed a class action lawsuit against Walmart, charging the retail giant with discriminating against employees who were married to same-sex spouses by denying their spouses health insurance benefits. The Complaint was filed this morning in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, and can be read here.The couple has been together for 33 years.
The lawsuit, Jacqueline Cote, et al. v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is the first class action filed on behalf of gay workers since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of marriage equality in Obergefell v. Hodges on June 26, 2015, and alleges that Walmart violated Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act by discriminating against Jaqueline Cote based on her sex. The action seeks to demonstrate how existing federal law can be used to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) workers.
The class representative, Jacqueline (Jackie) Cote, works in Walmart's Swansea, MA store, and was denied spousal health insurance for her wife, Diana (Dee) Smithson. Dee has battled ovarian cancer since 2012. Due to Walmart's sex discrimination, Dee lacked health insurance to pay for her treatment and has racked up a minimum of $150,000 in uninsured medical expenses.
Via JMG: UNAIDS Report: Eight Million Lives Saved Globally Since Year 2000
The world has made "extraordinary progress" against AIDS, slashing the rate of new infections by more than a third and saving nearly 8 million lives since 2000, a new report finds. Fifteen years of work to make sure more people get drugs that can keep them healthy and keep them from infecting others has had spectacular effects on the pandemic that has killed nearly 40 million people, the United Nations AIDS agency UNAIDS says in its report. Distribution of condoms has averted around 50 million new HIV infections since the HIV pandemic started in the 1980s, and other programs to educate people about how HIV spreads and to encourage safe sex have helped, also. "The world has delivered on halting and reversing the AIDS epidemic," said U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.But temper your celebrations because more than a million are still dying every year. (Tipped by JMG reader David)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)