You
deal with your shit in Zen by sitting with it. By breathing right into
it. You don’t try and ignore it with pleasant thoughts or lofty ideas,
and you don’t try and bury it with solutions. You deal with it, you work
with it, one breath at a time.
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The Court of Appeals ruled 7-0 that couples who have a valid marriage from another state can divorce in Maryland. The case involved two women who were married in California and denied a divorce in 2010 by a Maryland judge. “A valid out-of-state same-sex marriage should be treated by Maryland courts as worthy of divorce, according to the applicable statues, reported cases, and court rules of this state,” the court concluded in a 21-page ruling. It said Maryland courts should withhold recognition of a valid foreign marriage only if that marriage is “repugnant” to state public policy. The court says the threshold is a high bar that has not been met in the case that it ruled on.
Sit down, there's good news from Africa. President Joyce Banda has said she wants Malawi to overturn its ban on homosexual acts - the first African country to do so since 1994. Two Malawian men were sentenced to 14 years in prison in 2010 after saying they were getting married. Several Western leaders have recently said they would cut aid to countries which did not recognise gay rights. In her first state of the nation address to parliament, Mrs Banda said: "Some laws which were duly passed by the august house... will be repealed as a matter of urgency... these include the provisions regarding indecent practices and unnatural acts." The BBC's Raphael Tenthani in the main city, Blantyre, says the president has the support of a majority of MPs and so should be able to get parliament to overturn the law.Religious groups are expected to loudly oppose Banda's plan.
France's
new prime minister yesterday vowed to fulfill the promise of
just-elected President Francois Holland (above right) and implement full civil marriage equality for same-sex couples. A communiqué issued by the office of the prime minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, who took office on 15 May, marked the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia yesterday with a pledge to put the president’s manifesto promise into law. It said: “On the occasion of International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, the Prime Minister reaffirmed the Government’s commitment against violence and discrimination perpetrated as a result of sexual orientation or gender identity. The Government is determined to challenge prejudice and to put an end to discrimination and violence. It will implement the commitment of the President of the Republic to the right to marriage and adoption to gay couples.”How soon the process might begin is not yet known.
