All adults should have the right to marry and divorce as they see fit. That’s why, in another set of circumstances, I wouldn’t bring up Attorney General Pam Bondi’s two marriages and divorces – and her current relationship with a Tampa ophthalmologist, this time sealed, not with legal ribbon but in a well-publicized “non-binding” celebration in the Cayman Islands in 2012. Her marriages, divorces, and out-of-wedlock relationships are her business – not state business. But it’s hypocritical of this serial bride to use sanctimonious arguments to try to convince a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union and SAVE on behalf of gay and lesbian couples seeking to have their out-of-state marriages recognized in Florida.Bondi responded to the criticisms with a statement: “The brief does not argue for or against same-sex marriage as a matter of policy, wisdom, or fairness. Those decisions are for the voters of each state, not for lawyers or courts. It is my duty to protect Florida from the ‘harm’ of a federal injunction overriding the will of Florida voters.”
Bondi was scheduled to speak at the Florida Network of Youth and Family Services annual awards banquet in Sarasota and receive special recognition from the group for her work on fighting human trafficking. But shortly before she was scheduled to speak, the Florida Network organizers announced Bondi had cancelled her appearance. Bondi’s Tallahassee press office did not respond to questions about the cancellation. The Florida Network is a nonprofit statewide association representing agencies that serve homeless, runaway and troubled youths and their families.Did she really cancel or was she disinvited?
In the Western U.S., Buddhists represent the largest non-Christian religious bloc in most states. In 20 states, mostly in the Midwest and South, Islam is the largest non-Christian faith tradition. And in 15 states, mostly in the Northeast, Judaism has the most followers after Christianity. Hindus come in second place in Arizona and Delaware, and there are more practitioners of the Baha’i faith in South Carolina than anyone else. All these data come from the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, which conducts a U.S. Religion Census every 10 years.Hit the link for a breakdown by every US county. Christianity dominates in all but one of the 3143 counties in the nation.
The "Star Trek" actor also known for his gay and civil rights activism, said he was encouraged to have met with Japanese activists for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights, and even some of their parents fighting for their children. "They have to have courage to come out and share their lives honestly," Takei said. Once they get a ball rolling, more movement would follow, like "a ripple effect" that spreads, he added. "So I'm optimistic. I do think that Japan will be one of the nations that have equality and that too will serve as an example for other Asian nations."The event was hosted by Ambassador Caroline Kennedy. From her opening speech:
"African-Americans, women, people with disabilities, and gay men and lesbian have reminded all Americans that we are each entitled to the same rights, liberties, responsibilities and opportunities. Those struggle to transform our society, here tonight we celebrate the countless acts of courage and commitment and reaffirm that LGBT rights are human rights."RELATED: In April, Akie Abe rode in Tokyo's pride parade.
The Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) and the Alliance of Baptists have made it official that they are joining as plaintiffs in a Federal District Court lawsuit opposing North Carolina’s same-sex marriage ban. The United Church of Christ filed the lawsuit in April, challenging North Carolina’s state ban on same sex marriage. The suit is said to be the nation’s first faith-based challenge to same-sex marriage bans. “This precludes rabbis from participating in one of the fundamental aspects of our Jewish religious traditions with respect to a specific segment of their congregations and communities,” said Rabbi Steven Fox, Chief Executive of the CCAR, in a statement. “Depriving rabbis of the freedom to conduct same-sex marriage ceremonies in North Carolina stigmatizes our religious beliefs and relegates many of our congregants and community members to second-class status.”The Alliance of Baptists: "By the joining the lawsuit in North Carolina, we are living deeply into our Christian values and offering a clear, Baptist voice for justice and religious liberty."
The Supreme Court denied the National Organization for Marriage’s attempt to stop same-sex couples from marrying in Oregon. NOM has appealed the trial judge’s decision not to let the group, which is opposed to same-sex couples’ marriage rights, to intervene in the lawsuit challenging Oregon’s ban on such marriages. The 9th Circuit, which is hearing that appeal, denied NOM’s request to stop the trial court decision striking down the ban from going into effect during the appeal. NOM then went to Justice Anthony Kennedy to ask him to stop the marriages while that appeal is pending before the 9th Circuit.The ACLU reacts via press release:
The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to halt new marriages between same-sex couples in Oregon. The National Organization for Marriage (NOM), sought a stay of a lower court’s decision allowing marriages to take place, and after the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denied a similar request two weeks ago. Both the American Civil Liberties Union and the state of Oregon filed briefs opposing NOM’s request.
“With marriages continuing in Oregon, we have 44 percent of the country living in a freedom-to-marry state: same-sex couples are now part of marriage in America today,” said James Esseks, director of the ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Project. “Across the country, more and more Americans are embracing the truth that their friends, family, and neighbors in same-sex couples deserve the protection and dignity that only come with marriage.”
According to a new report by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the hardest-drinking state turns out to be New Hampshire. The study calculated per capita consumption of ethanol from alcoholic beverages and found that the average New Hampshire resident consumed 4.65 gallons in 2012 — nearly twice the national average of 2.33 gallons. Among the New England states, Connecticut was the only one that didn't make the top 20 list for per capita alcohol consumption. Alaska, Louisiana, Florida, Delaware and Washington, D.C. are all big drinking regions, as are the Northern states, with the average resident consuming over 2.5 gallons of ethanol in alcohol per year. The NIAAA report also found that overall, per capita ethanol consumption increased by 2.2% — only seven states experienced a decrease.(Tipped by JMG reader Win)
The Oregon Catholic Conference will continue to uphold the true meaning of marriage and advocate for genuine marriages and families in Oregon[.]None of us would be surprised at their statement that same-sex marriages are not genuine. But saying that families with gay parents are not genuine families shows how little shame they have. Their message to gay parents is that your efforts to raise children in a loving home with parents who love them is not genuine. The message to their children is that your parents aren't genuine parents, and that you don't live in a genuine family. Their message to both is that your families are lesser than other families, not deserving of our advocacy or legal protections to strengthen them.
Newt Gingrich called it an “open, blatant example of the new fascism,” Charles Krauthammer called it “totalitarian,” Pat Buchanan labeled it “the new blacklist” and RedState headlined it as “a fascist purge.” And it wasn’t just conservatives sounding the alarm. Leftist comedian Bill Maher called the perpetrators the “gay mafia,” and even well-known “gay” media personalities condemned it, Andrew Sullivan saying it “disgusts me” and radio talker Tammy Bruce calling out the “gay gestapo.”The issue includes articles by Pat Buchanan, Phyllis Schlafly, Linda Harvey, Scott Lively, and a cavalcade of other crackpots.
They were referring, of course, to the forced resignation of tech prodigy Brendan Eich as CEO of the company he co-founded, Mozilla, developer of the popular Firefox Web browser, all because he had donated $1,000 to California’s Proposition 8 upholding traditional marriage. Everyone knows the Eich story – and almost everyone, it seems, condemns it, as though it were a singularly egregious injustice in today’s America.
But, as revealed in the May issue of WND’s acclaimed monthly Whistleblower magazine, Brendan Eich, far from being a unique or especially shocking case, is just one of a growing multitude of Americans whose lives and livelihoods are being intentionally crushed by “THE NEW FASCISM.”
