Sunday, November 15, 2015

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day 15/11/2015

“Estamos atravessando um momento difícil. A pobreza, a violência, a corrupção... Tudo isso é um chamado para uma reflexão: onde nós estamos errando? Chegou o momento de assumirmos a nossa responsabilidade. É muito limitado pensar que toda a maldade do mundo está somente no coração dos criminosos e dos terroristas. A verdade é que nós somos co-criadores de tudo o que acontece. Nós criamos essa realidade.”

“Estamos atravesando un momento difícil. La pobreza, la violencia, la corrupción... Todo eso es un llamado para una reflexión: ¿Dónde nos estamos equivocando? Llegó el momento de asumir nuestra responsabilidad. Es muy limitado pensar que toda la maldad del mundo está solamente en el corazón de los criminales y de los terroristas. La verdad es que somos co-creadores de todo lo que sucede. Nosotros creamos esta realidad.”

“We are passing through a very difficult moment. Poverty, violence, and corruption are all calling us to reflect on where we are going wrong. The moment has arrived for us all to take responsibility. It is very limited to think that all the evil in the world only exists in the hearts of criminals and terrorists. The truth is that we are co-creators of everything that happens here on this plane. We create this reality.”

Today's Daily Dharma: How to Negotiate Conflict

How to Negotiate Conflict
Learning how to negotiate conflict demands that we become more present, more fearless. We may need to relinquish the hopeful image of ourselves as remaining serene under all circumstances, like sitting buddhas carved from wood or stone. . . . Whether the results are invigorating or devitalizing depends on how consciously we work with ourselves and our circumstances.
—Diane Musho Hamilton, "Transforming Conflict"
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Saturday, November 14, 2015

Via back2stonewall: Is This The First “Gay” Movie Ever Made? – Different From Others (1919) – Video

We all know there is a HUGE selection of gay films available to watch. Many are recent while some began to come into mainstream media in the 1990’s. But is it possible that the first film ever to showcase a gay couple was made almost 100 years ago?

A few years ago the UCLA Film and Television Archives discovered a film that was produced in 1919 Germany. During that time in Germany, a Social Democratic government came into power allowing long-standing censorship laws to be lifted. 

Acting quickly, filmmaker Richard Oswald joined with psychiatrist and gay-rights pioneer Magnus Hirschfeld to write and produce the first gay centered film.

 

Different From The Others was a 90 minute film centered around a famous violinist and his male student. This was a drama that showed a love affair between the two men. Although the film did not show any sex, it is very clear in the film that the two men were in love. Unfortunately, the film suffered many vicious attacks from the right-wing press calling Oswald a “perverted Jew”.

The complete physical copy of the film was lost except for 40 minutes that Hirschfeld edited into a 1926 documentary about tolerance.

As part of the preservation, the gay and lesbian film festival, Outfest, partnered with UCLA Film and Television Archives has reassembled those 40 minutes based on Oswald’s screenplay.
“To use the term ‘restore’ would be wrong,” says Jan-Christopher Horak, director of the archives. “There’s not enough footage for a real restoration. But what we have put together allows people to experience the remarkable culture that existed in Berlin in the 1920s, which was wiped out, of course, by the Nazis. As far as I know, this is the earliest document we have of gays and lesbians being represented on-screen.”
This is an incredible piece of LGBT history. This may be the first example of LGBT people being depicted in film. This also may be one of the first steps towards the fight for LGBT equality. 

Released in released in 1919 and starring Conrad Veidt and Reinhold Schünzel. You can watch Different From Others below:





Make the jump here to read the full and original here

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day 14/11/2015

“O que está por trás de todos esses jogos de acusação, da possessividade, do ciúme e da culpa? É você acreditar que a sua felicidade depende do outro. Essa é a ilusão básica que faz de você um escravo. A felicidade verdadeira é aquela que vem de dentro e não depende de nada nem de ninguém. A liberdade e a felicidade caminham sempre juntas.” 

“¿Qué está por detrás de todos esos juegos de acusación, de la posesividad, de los celos y de la culpa? Es creer que tu felicidad depende del otro. Esa es la ilusión básica que hace de ti un esclavo. La felicidad verdadera es aquella que viene de adentro y no depende de nada ni de nadie. La libertad y la felicidad caminan siempre juntas.”

“What is behind all of these games of accusation, possessiveness, jealousy, and guilt? It is the belief that our happiness depends on the other. This is the basic illusion that makes us into a slave. True happiness comes from within, and it doesn’t depend on anything or anyone. Freedom and happiness always walk hand-in-hand.”

Today's Daily Dharma: The Chaos Under the Hood

The Chaos Under the Hood
No matter how savvy and independent and self-controlled we may presume ourselves to be, without mindfulness, chaos is what we discover when we begin to look under the hood.
—Kathleen Dowling Singh, "The Chaos Under the Hood"
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Friday, November 13, 2015

Via JMG: Anti-Gay Activist: Candidates Wouldn’t Have Attended “Death To Gays” Event If They’d Known In Advance



Anti-gay activist Michael Brown, who makes a living writing a series of vile anti-LGBT books, says that GOP candidates would never have attended Kevin Swanson’s “death to gays” convention if they’d been warned in advance of Swanson’s views. Of course we know that they WERE warned, over and over, especially Ted Cruz, who was asked about his attendance by CNN’s Jake Tapper on the day before the event began.

Brown’s claims come, rather laughably, via a column on BarbWire, a site best known here for also publishing columns by several advocates of executing homosexuals. His column comes in the form of an open letter to Rachel Maddow:
In light of the extreme rhetoric of that rally, I felt it was important to you remind you of what’s happening in the world that most of us live in. That rhetoric does not represent us in the least. It’s also important that you recognize that the presidential candidates who attended this rally (Bobby Jindal, Mike Huckabee, and Ted Cruz) were there to identify with the cause of religious liberty, and they too would categorically reject some of the words spoken at the conference (as well as reject some of the positions advocated by at least one of the speakers outside of the conference).
I also feel confident that, had they known in advance what Kevin Swanson, the conference’s chief organizer, planned to say, they would not have attended the rally. Rachel, as a conservative moral leader, I’ve sat at behind the scenes meetings of groups like Focus on the Family or the Family Research Council, and I never heard one hostile word spoken about gays or lesbians, let alone a word calling for violence or execution. Perish the thought! That’s because those things violate the very spirit of our faith, and, as I stated earlier, it is that faith that informs us and guides us, a faith that clings tightly to the words and example of Jesus.

NOTE: I don’t link to BarbWire because that site sets off my malware alarms. Feel free to seek out the full column if you are confident that your virus protections are up to date.

PREVIOUSLY ON JMG: Michael Brown claims gay activists want Christians thrown into prison. Michael Brown claims that Hillary Clinton is controlled by Satanic homosexuals. Michael Brown claims that the Bible is 100% true except for the parts he doesn’t like. Michael Brown leads a hate march of hundreds of Christians to disrupt Charlotte’s gay pride parade. Michael Brown debuts his book with a video using small children to ridicule gay families.

Via JMG: Michelangelo Signorile Calls Out Media For Ignoring GOP Candidates’ Embrace Of “Death To Gays” Pastor

MichelangeloSignorileLS


 
As I noted again in the post below this one, so far only Rachel Maddow has reported on last weekend’s “death to gays” convention, where three GOP presidential candidates were interviewed by Pastor Kevin Swanson in between his calls for the genocide of LGBT Americans. Today Michelangelo Signorile calls out the rest of the mainstream media. He writes:
Where is The New York Times? The Washington Post covered the conference and the candidates’ comments, but didn’t mention the “kill the gays” speech. Not news to them apparently. Several online sources that did focus on the conference placed more attention on Cruz telling Swanson that an atheist shouldn’t be president, or on the unhinged Swanson’s advice to parents that they should drown their children rather than let them read Harry Potter, than on Swanson calling for the extermination of an entire group of people at an event at which presidential candidates spoke.
It’s 2015 and much of the media seem to accept, still, that LGBT people can be talked about this way at an event attended by presidential candidates and that it’s not news. They view it as par for the course, religious conservatives doing what they do. It’s as if they have blinders on. Indeed, if Ted Cruz — or Huckabee or Jindal — attended an event at which the host hinted at mass murder of Jews, African-Americans or any other group it would be a massive media story. He’d be forced to answer questions about it, at debates (and it didn’t come up at the last debate), in press conferences and in interviews non-stop. He’d be pressured to condemn both the comments and the pastor — as when John McCain had to dump Pastor John Hagee in 2008 because of his ugly comments about Catholics — or he’d face the consequences.
Signorile goes on to note that the mainstream media is “running for cover” lately after the ridiculous “gotcha” questions whining made by GOP candidates after a recent debate. Hit the link and read his full piece.

Via Religion Poisons Everything / FB:


Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day 13/11/2015

“Quando a relação amorosa se torna eminentemente destrutiva e não há mais espaço para crescimento, perdão liberdade, é preciso ter coragem de parar e tirar umas férias. É preciso ter coragem para olhar de frente para a situação e assumir que, desse jeito, você está cavando a sua própria cova. Só você pode fazer algo por você. Tenha coragem de ir além do medo da solidão. Você tem pavor de ficar consigo mesmo. Você não se suporta, mas acha que o outro tem obrigação de suportar você. Você não se ama de forma alguma, mas acha que o outro tem obrigação de te amar. Isso não é amor, é carência.”

“Cuando la relación amorosa se torna eminentemente destructiva y no hay más espacio para el crecimiento, perdón y libertad, es necesario tener coraje para parar y tomarse unas vacaciones. Es preciso tener coraje para mirar de frente a la situación y asumir que, de ese modo, estás cavando tu propia fosa. Sólo tú puedes hacer algo por ti. Ten coraje de ir más allá del miedo a la soledad. Tienes pavor de quedarte contigo mismo. No te soportas, pero crees que el otro tiene la obligación de soportarte. No te amas de ningún modo, pero crees que el otro tiene la obligación de amarte. Eso no es amor, es carencia.”

“When loving relationships become highly destructive and there is no more space for growth, forgiveness, and freedom, it is time to have the courage to take a break. We must be brave enough to look at the situation we are in straight on and accept that we are just digging our own graves. We are the only ones who can do something for our own well being. We must find the courage to go beyond the fear of loneliness, as we dread being on our own. On the one hand, we can’t stand ourselves, yet we believe that the other is obliged to withstand us. We do not love ourselves at all, yet we believe the other must love us. This is not love;it’s sheer neediness.”

Today's Daily Dharma: Time with Your Own Mind

Time with Your Own Mind
Spending time with your own mind is humbling and broadening. One finds that there's no one in charge, and is reminded that no thought lasts for long.
—Gary Snyder, "Just One Breath"
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Thursday, November 12, 2015

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day 12/11/2015

“O que te impede de querer ver o outro feliz? Quando falo do ‘outro’ me refiro a todos os seres sencientes, incluindo animais e vegetais. Porque assim como fechamos o coração para o ser humano, também fechamos o coração para a natureza. Assim como nos tornamos amortecidos e insensíveis em relação ao ser humano, nos tornamos insensíveis em relação ao meio ambiente e aos animais. E ao invés de nos tornar canais de amor, nos tornamos canais de destruição. Portanto é de grande valia tomar consciência do que te mantém separado, querendo ver o outro sofrer.”

“¿Qué te impide querer ver al otro feliz? Cuando digo el ‘otro’ me refiero a todos los seres sensibles, incluyendo animales y vegetales. Porque así como cerramos el corazón para el ser humano, también cerramos el corazón para la naturaleza. Así como nos volvemos anestesiados e insensibles en relación al ser humano, nos volvemos insensibles en relación al medio ambiente y a los animales. Y en lugar de volvernos canales de amor, nos volvemos canales de destrucción. Por lo tanto es de gran valor tomar consciencia de lo que te mantiene separado, queriendo ver al otro sufrir.”

“What prevents us from wishing to see the other happy? When I speak of the other, I am referring to all sentient beings, including the animal and plant kingdoms. If we close our hearts to human beings, we also close our hearts to mother nature. As we become numb and insensitive to humans, we become numb towards the environment and to animals. Instead of becoming channels of love, we become channels of destruction. Therefore, it is extremely important that we become aware of what keeps us separate andwanting to see the other suffer.”

Today's Daily Dharma: Relating to Our Emotions

Relating to Our Emotions
When anger arises, or sorrow or love or joy, it is just anger angering, sorrow sorrowing, love loving, joy joying. Different feelings arise and pass, each simply expressing its own nature. The problem arises when we identify with these feelings, or thoughts, or sensations as being self or as belonging to 'me': I’m angry, I'm sad.
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Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Protect: LGBT couples share their stories


Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day 11/11/2015

LOKAH SAMASTAH SUKHINO BHAVANTHU

~ Que todos os seres, em todos os mundos, sejam felizes. ~
“Amar a ponto de desejar que todos sejam felizes. Essa é a essência do ser humano, o amor. O amor é a seiva da vida; é a fragrância principal do Ser. O amor habita o núcleo mais profundo da sua interioridade.”

~ Que todos los seres, en todos los mundos, sean felices. ~
“Amar al punto de desear que todos sean felices. Esa es la esencia del ser humano, el amor. El amor es la savia de la vida, es la fragancia principal del Ser. El amor habita el núcleo más profundo de tu interioridad.”

~ May all beings, in all worlds, be happy ~
“Love all, to the point oftruly wishingfor everyone to be happy. The essenceof human beings is to love. Love is the nectar of life, and the main fragrance of the Being. Love dwells in the deepest corewithin us.”

Today's Daily Dharma: Freeing the Heart

Freeing the Heart
Practice is facing the truth of suffering, seeing its cause, and abandoning that cause so the heart can be released.
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Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Via JMG: BREAKING: White House Backs Equality Act

whitehouserainbow



The Washington Post reports:
The White House endorsed legislation Tuesday that would amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, plunging into the next front in the national battle over LGBT rights. Speaking to reporters, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the administration “has been reviewing for several weeks” the bill. “It is now clear that the administration strongly supports the equality act,” he said, adding it would advance the civil rights of “millions of Americans.”
Earnest added the White House would “work to ensure that the legislative process produces something that balances “the bedrock principles of civil rights with the religious liberty that we hold dear in this country.” Although there is little chance that this Congress will approve the legislation — which was introduced in July by Democratic Sens. Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Tammy Baldwin (Wis.) and Cory Booker (N.J.) — President Obama’s support elevates to greater prominence the question of whether lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans need greater legal safeguards.
The Human Rights Campaign reacts:
The unfortunate reality is that, while LGBT Americans can legally get married, millions remain at risk of being fired or denied services for who they are or who they love because the majority of states still lack explicit, comprehensive non-discrimination protections,” said HRC President Chad Griffin. “By endorsing the Equality Act, the White House sent a strong message that it’s time to put the politics of discrimination behind us once and for all. Now it’s time for Congress to act. Everyone should be able to live free from fear of discrimination and have a fair chance to earn a living and provide for their families, including people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender.”
Note that today’s move comes on the same day that President Obama’s Out Magazine “Ally Of The Year” cover story was issued.

Read this and more at JMG here

Via JMG: Obama Becomes First Sitting President To Pose For Gay Title As Out Magazine Names Him Ally Of The Year

ObamaOut2


 


Out Magazine has named President Obama its “Ally Of The Year” in their annual Out 100 issue. They write:
The 44th President of the United States is our Ally of the Year—a president who came to office on a wave of euphoria, appeared to lose momentum halfway through, and has since rallied, helping us secure marriage equality, among other landmark initiatives that are transforming our place in America.
This is the first time a sitting president has been photographed for the cover of an LGBT title, a historic moment in itself, and a statement on how much his administration has done to advance a singularly volatile issue that tarnished the reputations of both President Clinton and President Bush. It might have tarnished this president, too, but for his late-hour conversion in 2012, which set the stage for the extraordinary succession of events that led to this year’s Supreme Court ruling, on June 26, making it unconstitutional to deny same-sex couples the right to wed.
Many things led up to that decision—“decades of our brothers and sisters fighting for recognition and equality” as the president notes—but once his administration decided to join that fight it created what people like to call a “transformative” moment. It helped tip the balance, and it put our elected leader on the right side of justice.
A slideshow of this year’s Out 100 honorees is here.

Via Sri Prem Baba: Flor do dia - Flor del día - Flower of the day 10/11/15

“O verdadeiro seva ou serviço desinteressado, é um fenômeno que ocorre quando você pode seguir o programa estabelecido pela sua alma. Porém, muitos ainda não têm clareza sobre esse programa ou propósito da alma. Isso ocorre simplesmente porque ainda não chegou a hora de ter essa consciência. Mas tudo nesse mundo tem seu tempo. Enquanto isso eu sugiro que se dedique ao seva, seja ele qual for, até que tenha a humildade suficiente para perguntar: Como posso ajudar?”

“El verdadero seva o servicio desinteresado, es un fenómeno que ocurre cuando puedes seguir el programa establecido por tu alma. Sin embargo, aún muchos no tienen claridad sobre ese programa o propósito del alma. Esto ocurre simplemente porque aún no llegó el momento de tener consciencia. Pero todo en este mundo tiene su tiempo. Mientras tanto, sugiero que te dediques al seva, sea cual fuere, hasta que tengas la humildad suficiente para preguntar: ¿Cómo puedo ayudar?”

“True seva, selfless service, is a phenomenon that happens when we are able to follow our soul’s purpose. Many people still lack clarity as to what their purpose truly is. This happens simply because the time has not yet come for them to have this consciousness. But everything in this world has its time. Until that moment arrives, I suggest that we dedicate ourselves to seva, in whatever form that may be, until we are humble enough to ask: ‘How may I be of help?’ ”

Today's Daily Dharma: What Meditation Is About

What Meditation Is About
One must learn how to do [meditation] properly. It’s not just about trying to find a comfortable quiet corner to hide in. There is more to it than that. It is about wisdom awareness, knowing, seeing clearly.
—His Holiness the Twelfth Gyalwang Drukpa, "Awareness Itself"
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