Via Courage Campaign:

"I cried when I heard the news...  This straight ally will not give up the fight... I will do everything I can to see (that) your love gets the recognition it deserves... Until all of us are free, none of us are." -- John, who posted this comment on Courage's Prop 8 Trial Tracker web site, one of 463 comments shared by the P8TT community last night. 

Dear Daniel --
 
It breaks our hearts as well, John.

Late yesterday, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals announced an indefinite stay of Judge Walker's ruling striking down Proposition 8. No matter the legal justification for the stay, this news is deeply painful for millions of Americans.

The (very) good news is that the 9th Circuit expedited the case for a hearing on December 6 -- an unusual fast-tracking of the appeals process and a positive sign of what may come.

Still, this is a difficult reminder that the work to restore marriage equality to California -- and to make marriage equality the law across America -- will be a roller-coaster full of ups and downs.

That's why we're relaunching "It Breaks Your Heart" -- a 60-second version of an online video we released last year that was viewed by more than 1.3 million people. Featuring the hit song "Fidelity" by Regina Spektor, the video's message is crystal clear: fundamental civil rights should never be put up for a vote.

Please watch "It Breaks Your Heart" now. Then join more than 700,000 other Courage Campaign members in taking our "1 Million for Marriage Equality" pledge today. It only takes one minute to watch the video and 10 seconds to sign the short pledge. Click here now to join us:

http://www.couragecampaign.org/1Million

When you sign the pledge, you'll be joining a movement to change the conversation about equality across our country and bring the Prop 8 trial into the lives of Americans. It started with our Testimony: Equality on Trial campaign and it won't stop until a court ruling strikes down Prop 8. Forever.

In the coming weeks and months, we'll be launching several actions to give Americans -- straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender -- the opportunity to provide your own Testimony about the Prop 8 trial.

Whether in writing, video, or through family photos, your personal testimony will help us defend Judge Walker's ruling in the court of public opinion -- establishing his decision as the social and cultural foundation for victory in the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Just like John said above, we must stay in this fight until we win. That's why we're asking you to spend one minute watching "It Breaks Your Heart" -- and then 10 more seconds to sign our "1 Million for Marriage Equality" pledge. Click here to take action now:

http://www.couragecampaign.org/1Million

Thank you for staying in this fight until Prop 8 is gone. For good. We can't do it without you.

Rick Jacobs
Chair, Courage Campaign Institute 

 

Courage Campaign Institute is a part of the Courage Campaign's multi-issue online organizing network that empowers more than 700,000 grassroots and netroots supporters to push for progressive change and full equality in California and across the country. To get involved in the Courage Campaign Institute, visit "Testimony: Equality on Trial" -- our year-long campaign to bring the Prop 8 trial into the lives of Americans.

To power our campaign to defend Judge Walker's Prop 8 decision, please chip in what you can today:

Via Utne

Love and Marriage: Gay Couples Speak Out Zina Saunders creates powerful portraits of same-sex couples. Read More >>

Via Beyond the Chron: Out Christianing Each Other

James Lankford & Kevin Calvey

Out Christianing Each Other
by Tommi Avicolli-Mecca‚ Aug. 12‚ 2010

It’s not hard to court conservative Christian voters. All a politician has to do these days is spew lots of hatred towards the LGBT community and oppose abortion, national healthcare and of course gay marriage. Such is the case in Oklahoma with Republicans James Lankford and Kevin Calvey, who are in a heated runoff for their party’s nomination to fill the seat vacated by retiring Congress woman Mary Fallin, a right-winger who opposes abortion and believes in border fences and walls and the right of every man, woman and child (and possibly pet dog) to carry a gun. [more]->

Via EQCA:

August 16, 2010
Dear Daniel, Right-wing, anti-equality groups are targeting Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic Attorney General Brown, urging them to appeal Judge Walker’s historic decision. We need to make sure they don’t succeed. Email Gov. Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Brown and urge them to stand strong against right-wing attacks.  At a time when the state is strapped for cash, our leaders should be concentrating resources on keeping teachers, firefighters and police on the job, not defending discrimination in court. So far the Governor and Attorney General’s offices have stood with the majority of Californians who now support marriage for same-sex couples. Urge Governor and Attorney General to keep doing the right thing: not defending bigotry in court.  And urge your friends and family to do the same. www.eqca.org/standstrong On Wednesday evening, the U. S. Constitution’s promise of equality for all will hopefully be restored and couples will start getting married again. We need to protect their marriages by making sure the state stays out of the business of discrimination. Thank the Governor and Attorney General for standing on the side of equality, and urge them to continue to stand strong. Warmly, Geoff Kors Executive Director Equality California	Email the Governor and Attorney General: www.eqca.org/standstrong Call the Governor: 916.445.2841 Call the Attorney General: 916.324.5437

Via JMG: Here's Protect Marriage's Final Motion

Protect Marriage's final motion claims that the state's job of promoting "responsible procreation" would be irrevocably harmed by gay marriage. Because in California, there has been ABSOLUTELY no irresponsible procreation so far. Hilarious. Considering that the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference is kicking off today in Hawaii, don't be surprised if we get a ruling before the end of the office day in California. It's important to note that some anti-gay evangelicals don't want this appealed to the Supreme Court. They'd rather "sacrifice" California to the evil homos than risk losing at SCOTUS and seeing same-sex marriage become the law of the nation.
CA9Doc 11

Labels: California, marriage equality, Proposition 8, Protect Marriage

reposted from Joe

Target Ain't People

Via JMG: BREAKING: Ninth Circuit Court Grants Stay Of Prop 8 Overturn Pending Appeal

No same-sex marriage for California, for now. Via Rex Wockner, here's the legalese:

Filed order (EDWARD LEAVY, MICHAEL DALY HAWKINS and SIDNEY R. THOMAS) Appellants' motion for a stay of the district court's order of August 4, 2010 pending appeal is GRANTED. The court sua sponte orders that this appeal be expedited pursuant to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 2. The provisions of Ninth Circuit Rule 31-2.2(a) (pertaining to grants of time extensions) shall not apply to this appeal. This appeal shall be calendared during the week of December 6, 2010, at The James R. Browning Courthouse in San Francisco, California. The previously established briefing schedule is vacated. The opening brief is now due September 17, 2010. The answering brief is due October 18, 2010. The reply brief is due November 1, 2010. In addition to any issues appellants wish to raise on appeal, appellants are directed to include in their opening brief a discussion of why this appeal should not be dismissed for lack of Article III standing. See Arizonans For Official English v. Arizona, 520 U.S. 43, 66 (1997). IT IS SO ORDERED. [7441574] (JS)

This may get to the Supreme Court yet.

Labels: California, marriage equality, Ninth Circuit Court., Proposition 8, Supreme Court, Vaughn Walker

reposted from Joe

Via JMG: Prop 8 Plaintiffs Respond To Stay

From Ted Olson and the American Foundation for Equal Rights:

Today the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit set a highly expedited schedule for briefing and argument of proponents' appeal from the district court's August 4, 2010 decision striking down California's Proposition 8 as an unconstitutional violation of the rights of gay and lesbian citizens to due process and equal protection of the law under the Fourteenth Amendment, and it granted proponents' request to stay the judgment of the district court's order while the appeal is decided. This means that although Californians who were denied equality by Proposition 8 cannot marry immediately, the Ninth Circuit, like the district court, will move swiftly to address and decide the merits of Plaintiffs' claims on their merits.

"We are very gratified that the Ninth Circuit has recognized the importance and pressing nature of this case and the need to resolve it as quickly as possible by issuing this extremely expedited briefing schedule. As Chief Judge Walker found, Proposition 8 harms gay and lesbian citizens each day it remains on the books. We look forward to moving to the next stage of this case,” said Attorney Theodore B. Olson.

“Today’s order from the Ninth Circuit for an expedited hearing schedule ensures that we will triumph over Prop. 8 as quickly as possible. This case is about fundamental constitutional rights and we at the American Foundation for Equal Rights, our Plaintiffs and our attorneys are ready to take this case all the way through the appeals court and to the United States Supreme Court,” said Chad Griffin, Board President, American Foundation for Equal Rights.

Labels: AFER, California, marriage equality, Ninth Circuit Court., Proposition 8, Ted Olson

reposted from Joe

Via Marriage Equality USA:

Marriage Equality USA has just received word that Ninth Circuit has granted the stay but expedites appeal. 

Filed order (EDWARD LEAVY, MICHAEL DALY HAWKINS and SIDNEY R. THOMAS) Appellants’ motion for a stay of the district court’s order of August 4, 2010 pending appeal is GRANTED. The court sua sponte orders that this appeal be expedited pursuant to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 2. The provisions of Ninth Circuit Rule 31-2.2(a) (pertaining to grants of time extensions) shall not apply to this appeal. This appeal shall be calendared during the week of December 6, 2010, at The James R. Browning Courthouse in San Francisco, California. The previously established briefing schedule is vacated. The opening brief is now due September 17, 2010. The answering brief is due October 18, 2010. The reply brief is due November 1, 2010. In addition to any issues appellants wish to raise on appeal, appellants are directed to include in their opening brief a discussion of why this appeal should not be dismissed for lack of Article III standing. See Arizonans For Official English v. Arizona, 520 U.S. 43, 66 (1997). IT IS SO ORDERED. [7441574] (JS)

We were hoping that Wednesday would mark the day that marriage equality would return to California.  But there is some good news with this decision.

The Ninth Circuit has asked for opening briefs by September 17th and that parties must discuss why the appeal should not be dismissed due to lack of standing.  Also, the schedule for the briefs are similar to what Plaintiff attorneys Ted Olson and David Boies requested.  And oral arguments should begin by the end of this year.

So it's not what we wanted, but Harvey Milk would want us to keep hope alive.  We have an amazing legal team (including our friends with the City & County of San Francisco).  We have a fact-based district trial court decision that overwhelmingly explains why Proposition 8 is unconstitutional.  And we know that eventually we will win.

Stay engaged with Marriage Equality USA.  Join our facebook page, get involved with your local chapter, donate, and volunteer.  And go out an make every moment a marriage equality moment.

Founded in 1998, Marriage Equality USA is a national grassroots organization whose mission is to secure legally recognized civil marriage equality for all, at the federal and state level, without regard to gender identity or sexual orientation.  For more information go to www.marriageequality.org

Via JMG: This Week In Holy Crimes

Over the last seven days...

Israel: Rabbi Yitzhak Shapira arrested for incitement to kill non-Jews.
Arkansas: Pastor Joshua Wilson arrested in prostitution sting.
New York: Convicted child molester Rabbi Baruch Leibovits demands and gets special kosher meals in prison.
New York: Father Thomas Kresier resigns in embezzlement scandal.
Virginia: Pastor James Bolton arrested for statutory rape.
Ontario: Father Kenneth O'Keefe arrested for child molestation.
British Columbia: Father Philip Jacobs arrested on numerous counts of child molestation.
Ireland: Father Patrick McCabe arrested on numerous counts of child molestation. McCabe was transferred to the U.S. twenty years ago when the accusations first began.
Ontario: Father William Marshall charged with numerous counts of child molestation. Marshall was principal at a Catholic high school.
Pennsylvania: Diocese of Pittsburgh sued after molestation victim commits suicide.
North Carolina: Father William Casey pleads guilty to child molestation.
Illinois: Father Daniel McCormick sued by child molestation victim.
Ohio: Pastor James Blaine pleads guilty to embezzling over $100K from his parishioners.

This Week's Winner
Texas: Pastor Randy Scott has been arrested for meeting young men online and forcing them into sex. Posing as a young man, Scott would exchange emails with his victims, then appear at their homes pretending to be the step-father of the person they thought they'd been corresponding with. Scott would then threaten to call the police unless the young men gave him oral sex. At least one of the victims is underage. Scott, who is married with children, has resigned from his church.

Labels: Catholic Church, child abuse, prostitution, religion, This Week In Holy Crimes

reposted from Joe

Via JMG: PhoboQuotable - Pat Buchanan

"When did the Creator indicate that among these rights was for homosexuals to have their unions recognized as marriages? The author of that declaration, Thomas Jefferson, equated homosexual acts with rape and wrote that male homosexuals (they used the term sodomites in that time) should be castrated and lesbians should have a hole cut into their noses.

"Undeniably, homosexuals have the same constitutional rights of free speech, peaceable assembly and trial by jury. But what the judge has done is declare the life choices and lifestyles of gays and lesbians to be equal to the life choice of married men and women. This is nothing but Walker's personal opinion.

"But he is declaring it to be the only rational conclusion that can be reached. And having reached it, he has seized upon a phrase in the 14th amendment, 'equal protection,' distorted its meaning and dictated that this means his view and his values henceforth are the law in California, the voters be damned.

"And what the judge dismisses and rejects as irrational is a conviction rooted in the history of the human race, biblical truth, natural law and basic common sense. For, in recent decades, male homosexuality has been linked to enteric diseases, hepatitis, AIDS and early death. Historically, from the late Roman Empire to Weimar, flagrant homosexuality has been associated with sick societies, decadent cultures and dying civilizations. Today would appear to be no exception." - Pat Buchanan, writing for the Christofascist site World Net Daily.

Labels: bigotry, douchenozzles, fascists, Pat Buchanan, PhoboQuotable, Proposition 8, religion

 

reposted by Joe

I left the following at Sacbee:

I am so grateful to live in a country that has a system of checks and balances... I appreciate the constitution more now than ever... People who are so worried about gays and lesbians ruining their marriage should focus on making their own marriages exemplary. I hope and pray that religious people take a look at themselves, themselves, many churches have welcomed glbt people with open arms, other religious groups Catholics, Mormons, and Baha'i's seek to exclude glbt from their membership and are behaving disgracefully. All sides have been tested, and to my mind the communities that are inclusive have taught us so much, and I am very grateful to them. If a religious community doesn't want glbt members so be it, you are free to exclude us. To those communities who are open, loving and inclusive... I say thank you!

Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/08/13/2956069/gay-couples-ready-to-wed-if-higher.html?mi_pluck_action=comment_submitted&qwxq=271137#Comments_Container#ixzz0whO9IDKN

Via Belirico: The karate lessons ads, improved

Waymon posted some ads for karate lessons yesterday, and a few people pointed out in the comments that you can't really tell the message without more text, so I added some. The other ad is after the jump.

Continue reading "The karate lessons ads, improved" »

Vua Huffington: Why Jews Should Rejoice at the Overturning of Prop 8

Rabbi Michael Lerner: Why Jews Should Rejoice at the Overturning of Prop 8

The rights of homosexuals are supported by an overwhelming majority of the American Jewish community. That support is not only based on a memory of shared victimhood, but also on the core values of our own Jewish tradition.

Via Huffington: Prop 8 Ruling Exposes Democrats' Weak Support For LGBT Community

Prop 8 Ruling Exposes Democrats' Weak Support For LGBT Community Right now, LGBT citizens are trapped in a choice between a party that opposes their very existence and a party that, you know, kind of wishes them well. And so the typical policy among Democrats is to do as little as possible for as long as they can, figuring that if the Republican party never changes its position, they can string along the LGBT community for a long while before they have to lay their marker down and risk the vote of any single voter who opposes gay rights.

via huffington post

Fight OUT Loud Co-Founder Waymon Hudson's My New Essay on the Huffington Post~ The Everyday "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". Rate it, "like" it on Facebook, and share it!

The Everyday "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

www.huffingtonpost.com

So what is this "everyday" policy, you may ask? It's how so many of us live our lives. We don't let our friends or families know about the discrimination or legal barriers we face just for being who we are.

Prop 8 Fed Decision - Love Sweet Love

RELÓGIO / CLOCK

ESTE VEIO DA HOLANDA  E É UM NOVO TIPO DE RELÓGIO .... BASTANTE DIFERENTE E INTERESSANTE.

ESTUDA-O POR UM INSTANTE E COMPREENDERÁS RÁPIDO. FIXA-TE SÓMENTE NA LINHA "VERDE" QUE É A QUE INDICA TODA A INFORMAÇÃO.

               NA 1ª FILA OS SEGUNDOS
                NA 2ª OS MINUTOS
               NA 3ª. AS HORAS
                NA 4ª E 5ª OS DIAS
                NA 6ª. OS MESES E NA 7ª. OS ANOS

NÃO FAÇAS NADA POIS QUE ELE AJUSTA-SE AUTOMÁTICAMENTE À TUA ZONA DE TEMPO ..... UM PRODÍGIO, ...... MAS DO HOMEM ACTUAL.

http://home.tiscali.nl/annejan/swf/timeline.swf

via jmg: Here's AG Brown's Opposition To The Stay Request From Protect Marriage

Are you dizzy yet from all these legal docs? Protect Marriage has until 9am Monday to deliver their final response.
CA9Doc 8

Labels: California, Jerry Brown, marriage equality, Proposition 8, Protect Marriage

reposted from Joe

via JMG: Ninth Circuit Responds To Stay Motion

Things are moving VERY quickly. Brian Devine reports at Courage Campaign:

The Ninth Circuit just issued an Order stating that the Plaintiffs’ response to the Motion to Stay is due by 11:00 p.m. tonight. The Prop 8 supporters’ reply, not to exceed 15 pages, is due by 9:00 a.m. on Monday, August 16, 2010. This suggests that the Ninth Circuit is preparing to rule on the Motion to Stay before Judge Walker’s temporary stay expires on August 18th at 5:00 p.m. It’s surprising that the Court only gave the Plaintiffs about 9 hours to file their brief, and gave the Appellants until Monday to Reply. But I wouldn’t read too much into this. They know that everyone anticipated the Motion and that everyone’s briefs are essentially written already.

Sounds like everybody wants to get to Hawaii.

Labels: California, Proposition 8, Vaughn Walker

reposted from Joe

Via HRC:

Dear Daniel,  Yesterday, we learned that marriage equality could return to California next week. U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, who ruled Proposition 8 unconstitutional in the Perry v. Schwarzenegger case, lifted the stay on his decision as of August 18. If the federal appeals court does not intervene, marriages will resume at that time. Equality is returning to California, and the shameful specter of Proposition 8 is shrinking. That law must never return -- our Constitution says so.  Increasingly, so do our neighbors. On August 11, CNN released a national poll showing for the first time that a majority of Americans believe in a constitutional right to marriage equality for same-sex couples. As in previous polls, people under age 50 were far more likely to support equality than those over 50. What a change since 2004, when waves of anti-LGBT marriage amendments swept our nation in the election-year frenzy to enrage a right-wing base. Today, although some insist on fomenting hysteria around the Perry case (more on that in a moment), the issue of marriage equality is not at the top of the right wing’s list. Just look at what Glenn Beck had to say on The O'Reilly Factor:  O'REILLY: OK. Is [same-sex marriage] going to harm the country in any way? BECK: I believe -- I believe what Thomas Jefferson said. If it neither breaks my leg nor picks my pocket, what difference is it to me? Our community and those who support us have done so much to change hearts and minds in recent years. Most powerfully of all, we have been living our lives and raising our families in almost every community across this nation. I doubt that Glenn Beck will ever have particularly charitable thoughts about our families, but he and many others have finally learned that our nation has no business interfering with them.    Unfortunately, the ruling has generated some of the familiar anti-LGBT hate from certain quarters. The National Organization for Marriage’s summer bus tour -- a sham designed to help NOM challenge the requirements of neutral state campaign finance laws -- has been drawing miniscule crowds, but their supporters are showing the very worst of the anti-LGBT movement. At an Indianapolis event, one supporter carried a sign that read “the solution to gay marriage” with a picture of two nooses. At another event, Alveda King, niece of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., said "I don’t know about you, but I'm not ready to be extinct. None of us wants to be, so we don't want genocide." Fortunately, only a few dozen people attended the rally. A note to NOM and their followers: when Glenn Beck is calm about something… well, you figure it out.   Beck's muse Thomas Jefferson also famously said "Nothing is unchangeable but the inherent and unalienable rights of man." Our basic right to marry predates any litigation or ballot initiative; we have always had it. In the past few years, California families were all too briefly granted their basic human rights. Next week, if the appeals court does not intervene, California will once again recognize same-sex couples as equal citizens. Congratulations to California families and the Perry plaintiffs. Our nation took a step forward thanks to them. Joe Solmonese President, Human Rights Campaign

Via JMG: Karate Lessons Will Butch Up Your Nellie Son, Says Florida Martial Arts Academy

Above is one of the images from an ad campaign for the Academy Of Martial Arts in Key Biscayne, Florida. Via Copyranter:

Yeah, Pops. Nip that gaiety in the ass, and get junior kicking some ass and karate-chopping some wood, all while listening to Eye of the motherfucking Tiger. That'll knock those show tunes out of his head and some sense into him. Other tips: Make him change the oil in your pickup, naked. And take him deer hunting, naked. Better yet, queer hunting. You and your drinking buds can go to a local Miami gay bar and show him how to pound the dust out of some fairies, who hopefully haven't taken martial arts classes at Key Biscayne's RDCA.

And if karate doesn't work, you can always beat him to death for acting like a girl.

Labels: advertising, assholery, Copyranter, Florida

r

eposted from Joe

Via JMG: Might Mean Something, Might Not

If Protect Marriage's emergency motion to stay the overturn of Prop 8 is denied by the Ninth Circuit Court, they are expected to immediately appeal to the Supreme Court. The justice assigned to hear cases from the Ninth is swing voter Anthony Kennedy.

Interestingly, as the clock ticks down on Judge Walker's stay extension, Justice Kennedy will be in Hawaii to appear at the annual Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, which runs Monday through Thursday next week. Kennedy is the scheduled speaker at 10:45am the day after Walker's stay expires. The three judge panel that will hear Protect Marriage's motion has not yet been assigned (I don't think), but at least some of the Ninth Circuit judges will also be at the conference.

I don't what, if anything, this could mean for the case.

Labels: California, Proposition 8, Supreme Court, Vaughn Walker

reposted from Joe

Via Huffington: William K. Black: Algebra for Dummies: Mathematical 'Proof' of the Inferiority of Homosexuals

Most forms of open revulsion for despised minorities have been banished from academic literature. But the academic campaign against rights for gays is proud about its descent into ever more virulent attacks on gay people and homosexuality.

One stream of the attacks seeks to prove that gays and homosexual are inferior. The effort has been lead primarily by ultra-traditional Catholic scholars that have attempted to create a "new natural law" that would support the traditional Catholic positions on sex -- that masturbation, all gay sex, contraception, all sex between unmarried adult straights, and oral and digital sex by straight married couples are all grievous sins. However, George W. Dent, Jr., a law professor at Case Western Reserve University who believes that gay marriage is a threat to heterosexual marriage, points out what he views as disabling difficulties in these efforts by Catholic scholars.

The premise of natural law is that it is "natural." That implies that thoughtful people, regardless of cultural or ethnic background, will form a consensus in support of the natural law principles. The concept of natural law is that it arises from humans' intrinsic moral principles. But humans overwhelmingly reject many of the principles of the purported natural law. Dent explains:

Although this doctrine is not overtly religious, all its leading proponents are Roman Catholics, and it contains elements that most Protestants and Jews reject, such as treating sex with contraception or any sexual act other than vaginal intercourse within marriage as immoral.

Catholics' actual sexual practices overwhelmingly reject many of the principles of the purported new natural law. Most Catholics masturbate, use contraceptives before and during marriage, engage in heterosexual sex prior to marriage, and engage in oral and digital sex before and during marriage. Virtually all Catholics engage in forbidden heterosexual sexual practices during their lives. They do not, as a group, display disabling guilt despite violating Church doctrine. Gay Catholics virtually all engage in homosexual sex. Dent concludes that the "new natural law" is "arbitrary" (its convoluted structure arises from the imperative of accommodating a Catholic doctrine that Dent finds incoherent). Dent finds that the new natural law is not new, natural, or a sound basis for law.

jump here to read the rest of the article 

Get EQUAL Get NOM

Via JMG: And The Next Seven Too

Labels: hypocrisy, Newt Gingrich, Proposition 8, Rush Limbaugh

reposted from Joe

Via JMG: George Takei On Proposition 8 Being Overturned

Via JMG: an Ellen Surprize

This play loud! via JMG:

Scissor Sisters - Any Which Way

Dancing on the speakers, are you peaking with the tweakers, the bigots and the breeders on the scene? The night don't last forever, so get your shit together. Open arms are never what they seem.

Labels: dance music, gay artists, NYC, Scissor Sisters

reposted from Joe

Via JMG: Hot Topix With Michele Bachmann

"I like to be close to the word of God, whereas whores need hide themselves from the Lord's Holy Eyeball."

Labels: crazy people, humor, Michele Bachmann, Minnesota

posted by Joe

via JMG: Gay couples ready to wed if higher courts halt Prop. 8

By David Siders and Peter Hecht

Every day this week, Nicola Simmersbach, 47, a licensed marriage and family therapist, donned her white gown in anticipation that she be married that day.
- Read More

Via JMG: Ann Coulter to Blame for Gayest Wingnut Slapfight Ever

 

Ann Coulter to Blame for Gayest Wingnut Slapfight Ever

Did everybody hear about the big shame-party that the homosexual conservatives are throwing in New York City for Ann Coulter? If this news missed you, worry not, for there likely will be tickets...

Prop 8 Ruled Unconstitutional

On August 4, Federal Judge Vaughn R. Walker ruled that Proposition 8 -- the ban on gay marriage in California -- is unconstitutional. Walker ruled to overturn the gay marriage ban because it violated both the Equal Protection Clause and the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Thank the Plaintiffs of the Prop 8 Trial.

via 365gay: Support for marriage equality accelerating

By Celeste Lavin, 365gay.com 08.12.2010

Analysis finds that support for gay marriage is increasing at a quadrupled rate. Read more...

Visa 365gay: How do I get a marriage license in California?

By 365gay Newswire 08.12.2010

The West Hollywood city clerk posts the rules. Read more...

Via 365gay: Culhane: Prop 8 stay analysis

August 12th, 2010

Culhane: Prop 8 stay analysis

By John Culhane 08.12.2010
Professor of Law, Widener University
 
What happens after Thursday's explosive ruling. Read more...

Joe's Tweet of the Day:

Tweet Of The Day

Source.

Labels: Proposition 8, Tweet Of The Day

reposted from Joe

Via JMG: Reactions To Lifting Of Prop 8 Stay

Equality California

Monumental! U. S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker has denied Yes on 8 proponents their request that he stay his decision which declared that Prop 8 unconstitutional, paving the way for couples to get married. This is an incredibly joyful moment in our history, not only for all of the committed couples who will finally be able to get married, but also because a fundamental constitutional freedom has been restored in our great state. Our victory today is due in no small part to the State of California’s stance on the case. Governor Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown both asked the court to lift the stay and allow marriages to commence. Both have refused to defend Prop. 8 in court, preventing the State’s talented attorneys and vast legal resources from playing a role in this case.

National Gay & Lesbian Task Force

“We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the same-sex couples who will again be free to experience the joy and celebration of legally marrying in California. This is a remarkable moment, stemming from the landmark ruling declaring Proposition 8 unconstitutional. That decision came down to a simple yet profound principle: People should be treated equally under the law. Lifting the stay puts that principle into practice. We thank the judge for his continuing sense of fairness and sound reasoning in this case.”

Stonewall Democrats

"At a time when a majority of the American public believe that same-sex couples should have the legal right to marry, Judge Walker’s decision to lift the stay on marriage for same-sex couples is simply a natural expression of a Constitution that guarantees equality for all Americans,” said Michael Mitchell, Executive Director of the National Stonewall Democrats. “It only seems radical to a shrinking minority of people who are on the wrong side of history.” “As we head into midterm elections, it’s important to remember that in large part, it’s been the Republican party that has used marriage equality as a wedge issue, Republican governors who vetoed marriage equality measures and Republican Members of Congress who pushed for a Constitutional amendment that would forever keep LGBT people as second-class citizens. We, of course, welcome and applaud any elected official of either party who supports marriage equality, but time and again, it’s pro-equality Democrats who are doing the lion’s share of the work that will ultimately result in full marriage equality.”

Faith In America

"We applaud Judge Walker's responsible handling of the stay regarding Prop 8. Clearly his ruling that Proposition 8 violates Constitutional rights is a landmark opinion and it deserves careful deliberation. No longer will religious-based objections to marriage be a justification for the government to keep the right to marriage away from same-sex couples,² said Mitchell Gold, founder of Faith in America. Judge Walker¹s ruling last week in which he found that banning marriage between same-sex couples was unconstitutional, also acknowledged that religion has been misused to justify harm to gays and lesbians and their families. "We are so happy for the LGBT couples in California who wish to marry the love of their life, just as I was able to do a few short weeks ago in the State of Iowa," Gold continued. "Same-sex couples deserve the same freedom and rights allowed by the Constitution. Today is another historic day."

Lambda Legal

"Although we're disappointed that Judge Walker elected today to give the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals a chance to consider the issue of the stay, we are gratified that he has denied the request to put his historic ruling on hold during any appeals. He has applied the standard legal tests in the standard way and reached the only logical conclusions given the overwhelming evidence produced at trial: nobody is harmed - especially not the backers of Prop 8 - by restoring equality in marriage to California's same-sex couples. Nobody suffers when everyone is treated equally. There's enough equality to go around. "To maintain the stay, the Ninth Circuit will have to find that Prop 8's proponents are likely to win on appeal or will suffer irreparable harm if same-sex couples again are allowed to marry. But at this point, the truth is crystal clear, as last week's decision explains: the only people suffering harm are lesbian and gay couples whose constitutional rights are violated every day that Prop 8 remains in force, and who simply seek the same rights everyone else already enjoys."

Labels: Lambda Legal, LGBT History, NGLTF, Proposition 8, Stonewall Democrats

posted by Joe

Viva!