Cheating With Mike Rowe

Via Gawker:

Dirty Jobs host, Deadliest Catch narrator, and former opera singer Mike Rowe has yet another accomplishment to add to his already impressive resume. Readers at Gay.com have voted him the number one dude they'd like to cheat on their boyfriends and husbands with. Poor old silver fox Anderson Cooper's stock is on the decline, as he came in third place out of 25 nominees behind Fast and Furious robot Paul Walker. And in a heartening sign that he's only popular during the Olympics manfish Michael Phelps carried a mere two percent of the vote. As for Rowe, he sent this humble acceptance message:

"What can I say? I'm honored. I would, however, like to take a moment to clear something up. Even though I got my start in theater, sang for years in The Baltimore Opera, moved to San Francisco and never married, I must tell you all again, for the hundredth time ...

"I am NOT a celebrity.

"Not that there's anything wrong with that... "

A funny and great response, not to mention a HUGE improvement over the video Rowe posted on YouTube last November in which he expressed disgust over fawning emails from male fans.

Paul Newman Dead At 83

Paul Newman died of lung cancer yesterday at age 83, leaving behind one of the greatest acting legacies in history. For many, however, Newman will be more fondly remembered for a lifetime spent as a generous philanthropist. Newman's line of natural food products has donated over $250 million to numerous charities since he first came up with the idea of selling his salad dressing while standing in Martha Stewart's kitchen.

Dedicated to liberal and progressive causes, Newman's name appeared on Richard Nixon's famed enemies list, which Newman called "the highest single honor" he'd ever received. Newman was nominated for nine Academy Awards, winning Best Actor for 1986's The Color Of Money.

What's your favorite Paul Newman film? Mine, in order: Cool Hand Luke, Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, Absence Of Malice. Here's Paul Newman and James Dean's screen test from the 50's. The audio doesn't start for a few seconds, but Dean says to Newman: "Kiss me." Newman: "Can't here."

What Did You Think?

It wasn't the most stirring of debates, no single line jumped out at me right off the bat. Maybe something will come up during the coming endless analysis. But I wasn't too happy to hear Obama say over and over "John is exactly right," knowing that McCain's flacks would jump all over that. Sure enough, the ad is already out, less than an hour later.

Google Comes Out Against Prop 8

From Google co-founder Sergey Brin:

As an Internet company, Google is an active participant in policy debates surrounding information access, technology and energy. Because our company has a great diversity of people and opinions -- Democrats and Republicans, conservatives and liberals, all religions and no religion, straight and gay -- we do not generally take a position on issues outside of our field, especially not social issues. So when Proposition 8 appeared on the California ballot, it was an unlikely question for Google to take an official company position on.

However, while there are many objections to this proposition -- further government encroachment on personal lives, ambiguously written text -- it is the chilling and discriminatory effect of the proposition on many of our employees that brings Google to publicly oppose Proposition 8. While we respect the strongly-held beliefs that people have on both sides of this argument, we see this fundamentally as an issue of equality. We hope that California voters will vote no on Proposition 8 -- we should not eliminate anyone's fundamental rights, whatever their sexuality, to marry the person they love.

Wonderful! And thanks, Mr. Brin. Uh, where's the money?

Palin Unknowingly Accepts Book About Killed Openly Gay Priest, Mychal Judge

Yesterday when Sarah Palin visited a downtown 9/11 memorial, author Michael Daly was there signing copies of his book about Father Mychal Judge, the quietly gay yet celibate priest who was killed by falling debris outside the Twin Towers. When Palin approached Daly's table, his handlers suggested inscribing a copy for her. In the photo at left, Daly's book is in Palin's hand.

Michael Daly:

I thought of Mychal, who had bridged all differences. I recalled that Sen. Hillary Clinton, former Mayor Dave Dinkins and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani had all welled up while talking to me of their fallen friend. I now wrote in the title page what I felt sure to be true.

"For Governor Palin, who would have loved Mychal."

I was introduced to her and I handed her the book, not entirely sure she knew who Mychal was. I opened the book to what some have called the modern Pieta. Her eyes welled again as she gazed at the photo of the anguished first responders carrying him from the fiery ruins.

"Mychal always said, 'If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans for tomorrow,'" I told her, adding, "I guess a lot of people in this country have been feeling that way lately."

Would Palin have loved Mychal? Or would her church call him a witch and demand that she "stomp on the neck" of his "python spirit"?

Judge was the official chaplain of the NYFD and was the first recorded death of September 11th. By all accounts he was beloved by NYC's firemen and according to some reports, there are firemen who now pray to his photo in their lockers before heading out on a call. Daly's book discusses Judge's gay yet celibate life and one chapter goes at length about his never-consummated love for a much younger man. Some Catholic factions have called for his canonization, although others have vehemently denied his gayness, accusing the LGBT movement of attempting to co-opt his death and turn him into a homosexual icon.

But those that deny his gayness willingly ignore that Judge was a decades-long member of the LGBT Catholic group Dignity. In 1986 when the Vatican declared homosexuality an "intrinsic moral evil", most bishops and New York's Cardinal O'Connor banned Dignity from Catholic properties. It was Mychal Judge who welcomed their AIDS ministry to his church.

Here's the photo that Daly refers to above, the "American Pieta."

Fallout From Lawrence King?

In Hamilton, Ohio, an 8th grade boy is getting grief for wearing makeup to school. I'm guessing that this is only a story because schools are now terrified of having their own Lawrence King tragedy.

A Garfield Middle School student and his family are challenging the Hamilton City School District over his right to wear black eyeliner and lipstick to school.

Matt Allsup, a 13-year-old eighth-grader at the school, was told Monday, Sept. 22, to wash the makeup off his face. An administrator told Allsup it was "distracting" and therefore against the district's dress code. Allsup said the makeup "expresses who I am. I am not like other people. I like rock 'n' roll and this expresses that. I am discriminated against." Students in the Hamilton school district wear character badges that encourage acceptance and valuing the uniqueness of others, Allsup said. "Why make us wear the character cards if they are not going to let us be unique?" he asked.

"It's gender stereotyping and sexual discrimination," said his mother, Mindy Ball. "If he has to take off his lipstick, then so do the little girls in the school." Ball suggested to school officials that if the issue was the lipstick's color, she would buy her son pink.

Officials told her he couldn't "wear it because it's distracting because he's a male," she said. "He's a good kid and he is popular. The reason he wears eyeliner is because he is self-conscious and he thinks it makes his eyes look bigger."

No discipline was involved in the incident, said Joni Copas, district spokeswoman. "He washed it off and that was the end of it. The administrator didn't think it was conducive to the education process and the district believes it was handled appropriately. If makeup is too harsh — whether it's a girl or a boy — the student should be asked to wipe it off." Ball said her next stop is "to contact a lawyer. I want him to know that no matter who he is or what he chooses to do, I will always stand behind him."

He looks like a run of the mill goth/emo kid to me. Nowhere does the story suggest that this boy is gay or transgender like murdered California teen Lawrence King. However, the Freepers have filed it under Homosexual Agenda.

-"This boy and his mother have serious mental problems.The boy is obviously GAY and the mother would rather have a daughter than a son.I bet she makes him wear a pad once a month also.They should both be put away."
-"This little wimp wouldn’t last 2 minutes in West Texas."
-"When I saw the picture, I knew there was no father (or Father) in the house."

The South Shall Drink Again

Dan Savage unearthed this clip of a smashed Hillary supporter in Kentucky railing against Obama. "Black got nothin’ to do with it. These A-rabs are trying to sneak this guy into our country." This clip hits ALL the redneck talking points, including a couple of uses of the n-word. With Democrats like this...

McCain Wins Debate! And Invents Time Travel!

Via Washington Post:

Although the fate of tonight's presidential debate in Mississippi remains very much up in the air, John McCain has apparently already won it -- if you believe an Internet ad an astute reader spotted next to this piece in the online edition of the Wall Street Journal this morning.

"McCain Wins Debate!" declares the ad which features a headshot of a smiling McCain with an American flag background. Another ad spotted by our eagle-eyed observer featured a quote from McCain campaign manager Rick Davis declaring: "McCain won the debate-- hands down."

Here's the screenshot.

Time travel powers...PROACTIVATE!

Is Wachovia Next?

Now Wachovia is wobbling.

The seizure of Washington Mutual Inc. (WM) is quickly becoming a problem for Wachovia Corp. After federal regulators on Thursday night seized the West Coast thrift and its bloated book of failing home loans, investors have trained their focus on Wachovia, which itself holds piles of risky mortgages.

Wachovia shares recently traded down 23% to $10.58, while the cost of insuring Wachovia's debt against default quickly rose to distressed levels. Wachovia looks to be in substantially better shape than Washington Mutual before WaMu failed. Wachovia has a loyal and largely affluent banking clientele, and a sizable business of offering investment services to clients through financial advisors.

But Wachovia held more than $122 billion in so-called Pick-A-Pay or Option ARM mortgages as of July 22 - an unwieldy type of loan that has fast become notorious for producing high levels of losses, as well as high levels of risk for banks who wrote them.

We Call It "Maize"

Some Ohio farmer sacrificed 16 acres of farmland to draw Sarah Palin in corn. Later he mowed down a field of Metamucil to draw McCain.

Gaying Up The Tube

Here's CNN assessment of the rise of LGBT characters on television this season, with some soundbites from GLAAD's Neil Giuliano and the Family Research Council's Peter Spriggs, who of course says it's all part of the gay propaganda agenda. CNN's conclusion: "Things are changing in the right direction."

Letterman Rips McCain For Second Night

David Letterman did not let up on John McCain last night, devoting the first ten minutes of the show to again rip McCain for ditching his show and "suspending" his campaign.

CNN: Tonight's Debate Will Happen

CNN is reporting that University of Mississippi officials have received word that both candidates will appear for tonight's debate.

Broadway Friday

- Creepy, kooky, ooky. Workshops for The Addams Family: The Musical begin in January. Music by openly gay (and gay married) composer/lyricist Andrew Lippa (left), book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth have done a rehearsal as Gomez and Morticia. The show is an "original musical" and will not draw upon the TV or movie versions of the characters.

- Suddenly, the wheels are in motion. Citing the present "tough economic climate", the producers of Xanadu are closing the show two weeks earlier than previously announced. The final performance is now this Sunday.

- OMG, you guys! Legally Blonde closes on October 19th after 30 previews and 595 performances. A national tour launched last week and is booked through September 2009.

- Six inches forward, five inches back. Hedwig and the Angry Inch - Halloween Extravaganza will play at the Highline Ballroom on October 27th. Jonathan Whitton stars. Tickets $15.

- Magic wand. Rave review for Daniel Radcliffe's Equus from the Times' Ben Brantley.

- The Gay Agenda's Great Big Broadway Show plays this Saturday at 11pm at the 45th Street Theatre. "THE GAY AGENDA has a single goal: Complete and utter world domination through SHOWTUNES." Tickets $20.

- Rev up your chainsaw: the musical version of American Psycho is headed for Broadway. Will there be a "splatter zone" like with Evil Dead: The Musical?

- It was the worst of times. A Tale Of Two Cities is getting poor reviews from all corners.

- The Young Frankenstein national tour will begin in fall 2009. No cities or dates announced.

- Sans Madge. Previews for David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow begin Oct.2, starring Jeremy Piven, Raúl Esparza, and Elisabeth Ross. At the Barrymore.

- Budget White Way. The Broadway Hotel & Hostel is offering $38 beds from Oct. 1 - Dec. 31. Downside: four "dormitory" bunk beds to a room, but you could get lucky with your roommates. Book by midnight Wednesday for the deal. It actually looks OK in the pics.

Do Not Pass Congress, Go Directly To Jail

More Tragedy For Iraq's Gays

The Baghdad coordinator of Iraqi LGBT, the group that organizes underground safe houses for gays in Iraq, was machine-gunned to death yesterday in a Baghdad barber shop. The announcement was made by UK-based activist Peter Tatchell.

This morning, I received news from Iraq that the coordinator of Iraqi LGBT in Baghdad, Bashar, aged 27, a university student, has been assassinated in a barber shop. Militias burst in and sprayed his body with bullets at point blank range. He was the organiser of the safe houses for gays and lesbians in Baghdad. His efforts saved the lives of dozens of people. Bashar was a kind, generous and extremely brave young man – a true hero who put his life on the line to save the lives of others. My thoughts go out to his loved ones and to the other members of Iraqi LGBT. Their courage is an inspiration to all people everywhere fighting against injustice.

A sad, horrifying, and chilling tragedy. I last mentioned Iraqi LGBT several weeks ago and again I ask you to consider donating to their PayPal account.

A separate story by Peter Tatchell, apparently written before the above news was received, was published in yesterday's Guardian UK. A short excerpt:

My friends in Iraq have relayed to me the tragic story of five gay activists, who belonged to the underground gay rights movement, Iraqi LGBT.

Eye-witnesses confirm that they saw the men being led out of a house at gunpoint by officers in police uniform. Yes, Iraqi police! Nothing has been heard of the five victims since then. In all probability, they have been executed by the police – or by Islamist death squads who have infiltrated the Iraqi police and who are using their uniforms to carry out so-called honour killings of gay people, unchaste women and many others.

The arrested and disappeared men were Amjad 27, Rafid 29, Hassan 24, Ayman 19 and Ali 21. As members of Iraq's covert gay rights movement, for the previous few months they had been documenting the killing of lesbians and gays, relaying details of the murders to the outside world, and providing safe houses and support to other gay people fleeing the death squads.

Their abduction is just one of many outrages by anti-gay death squads. lslamist killers burst into the home of two lesbian women in the city of Najaf. They shot them dead, slashed their throats, and also murdered a young child who the women had rescued from the sex trade. The two women, both in their mid-30s, were members of Iraqi LGBT. They were providing a safe house for gay men on the run from death squads. By sheer luck, none of the men who were being given shelter in the house were at home when the assassins struck. They have since fled to Baghdad, and are hiding in an Iraqi LGBT safe house there.

Below is a short film, Queer Fear - Gay Life, Gay Death in Iraq, featuring Peter Tatchell and the stories of murdered Iraqi queers. It's not easy to watch, but watch it.

Obama Mama

This is writer/comedian Greg Scarnici and SNL musical director Katreese Barnes, who debuted her smash club hit Alright, Alright at this year's Black Party. Does this remind anyone else of Gwen Guthrie's Ain't Nothing Going On But The Rent?

Catholic League Defends Sarah Palin's Church: Witches Are REAL, People!

The Catholic League's Vice President of Spooky Things, Bill Donahue, rushed out a press release yesterday to defend Sarah Palin's church after a 2005 video surfaced showing a minister performing an anti-witchcraft incantation over her bowed head.

“Witchcraft is a sad reality in many parts of Africa, resulting in scores of deaths in Kenya over the past two decades. Bishop Muthee’s blessing, then, was simply a reflection of his cultural understanding of evil. While others are not obliged to accept his interpretation, all can be expected to respect it. More than that—Muthee should be hailed for asking God to shield Palin from harmful forces, however they may be manifested. And for this he is mocked and Palin ridiculed? We know that many cultural elites have a hard time embracing religion, but is it too much to ask that they at least show some manners when discussing subjects which most Americans hold dear?”

Damn you elitists and your witch denying ways! Don't you know most Americans hold witches dear? Damn you!

G-A-Y's In Heaven

The owners of London's famous G-A-Y nightclub, which closed in July, have purchased the possibly more famous Heaven.

"MAMA Group Plc is pleased to announce that through its jointly owned subsidiary, G-A-Y Group Limited, it has acquired Heaven, the company which owns the leasehold of Heaven Nightclub and owns, operates and manages the business of promoting events at the venue," the group said in a statement.

Heaven has been a favourite London venue with the gay community since it opened in 1979. It is currently the only club in Westminster licenced to sell alcohol until 6am every day.

Adam Driscoll and Dean James, Co-Chief Executive Officers of MAMA, said: "We are delighted that the acquisition of Heaven (London) Limited has enabled us to add this unique venue to our expanding live music portfolio. The transfer of the G-A-Y club nights to Heaven together with other popular club nights currently staged at the venue will ensure the continued growth and development of Heaven. " The Astoria had been the venue for G-A-Y club nights for 15 years. It is to be demolished to make way for the Crossrail project and a redevelopment of Tottenham Court Road station.

Never went to G-A-Y, but no trip to London is complete without a stop at Heaven.

Morning View - Starret-Lehigh Building

It may not look like much from this angle, but this is the home of Martha Stewart Omnimedia. In 1931 the block-sized Starret-Lehigh was built on West 26th Street as an innovative "modernist experiment in industrial architecture" because it featured train tracks so that freight cars brought by boat from New Jersey could be driven into the building and lifted in giant elevators to the upper floors.

However, the George Washington Bridge and Lincoln and Holland tunnels were all completed at about the same time and long-haul trucking replaced most rail deliveries to Manhattan. The trucking industry then took over the nearby waterfront. You can tour Martha's offices on her blog. Other current tenants include Hugo Boss, Club Monaco, and School of Visual Arts.

Washington Mutual: Gone In Largest Bank Failure In American History

At least we won't be paying for this one. Maybe.

Washington Mutual, the giant lender that came to symbolize the excesses of the mortgage boom, was seized by federal regulators on Thursday night in the largest bank failure in American history.

Regulators simultaneously brokered an emergency sale of virtually all of Washington Mutual to JPMorgan Chase. The remainder of WaMu, the nation’s largest savings and loan, will be operated by the government. Shareholders and some bondholders will be wiped out. WaMu deposits are guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to the $100,000 limit for each account. WaMu customers are unlikely to be affected.

JPMorgan Chase is to take control on Friday of all of WaMu’s 2,300 branches, which stretch from New York to California, and will oversee its big portfolio of mortgage and credit card loans. It will also acquire all of WaMu’s deposits with the sale.

For weeks, the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department had been nervous about the fate of WaMu, among the worst-hit by the housing crisis, and pressed hard for the bank to sell itself. As panic gripped financial markets last week following the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the government stepped up its efforts, working behind the scenes and at points going behind WaMu’s back to work privately with potential bidders on a deal.

Indeed, the seizure and the deal with JPMorgan came as a shock to Washington Mutual’s board, which was kept completely in the dark: the company’s newly minted chief executive, Alan C. Fishman, was in midair, flying from New York to Seattle at the time the deal was finally brokered, according to these people.

The action removes one of America’s most troubled banks from the financial landscape, and helps to avoid sticking taxpayers with a huge bill for the rescue of another failing institution.

Via Calculated Risk:

"For all depositors and other customers of Washington Mutual Bank, this is simply a combination of two banks," said FDIC Chairman Sheila C. Bair. "For bank customers, it will be a seamless transition. There will be no interruption in services and bank customers should expect business as usual come Friday morning."

JPMorgan Chase acquired the assets, assumed the qualified financial contracts and made a payment of $1.9 billion. Claims by equity, subordinated and senior debt holders were not acquired. "WaMu's balance sheet and the payment paid by JPMorgan Chase allowed a transaction in which neither the uninsured depositors nor the insurance fund absorbed any losses," Bair said.

Washington Mutual Bank also has a subsidiary, Washington Mutual FSB, Park City, Utah. They have combined assets of $307 billion and total deposits of $188 billion. Thursday evening, Washington Mutual was closed by the Office of Thrift Supervision and the FDIC named receiver.

Where will this madness end?

Dingbatting A Thousand

COURIC: You've cited Alaska's proximity to Russia as part of your foreign policy experience. What did you mean by that?

PALIN: That Alaska has a very narrow maritime border between a foreign country, Russia, and on our other side, the land-- boundary that we have with-- Canada. It-- it's funny that a comment like that was-- kind of made to-- cari-- I don't know, you know? Reporters--

COURIC: Mock?

PALIN: Yeah, mocked, I guess that's the word, yeah.

COURIC: Explain to me why that enhances your foreign policy credentials.

PALIN: Well, it certainly does because our-- our next door neighbors are foreign countries. They're in the state that I am the executive of. And there in Russia--

COURIC: Have you ever been involved with any negotiations, for example, with the Russians?

PALIN: We have trade missions back and forth. We-- we do-- it's very important when you consider even national security issues with Russia as Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where-- where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border. It is-- from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there. They are right next to-- to our state.

(Transcript via - Pam Spaulding)

The Palin Principle

The Palin Principle: A theory of workplace economics which postulates that one can be vaulted several rungs above their level of incompetence when it suits the demands of the Religious Right.

The Bush Corollary: Sometimes people rise to their level of incompetence by manipulation of the Supreme Court.

(Image via - Chris Glass)

Sarah Silverman: The Great Schlep

Go To The 1:10 Mark

You'll be glad you did.

ESB Via Chinatown

Thursday, 8:30am, 6 train, 68th Street

Woman: Does this train go to the Empire State Building?
Man: Yeah, just get off at 33rd and walk west to Fifth Avenue.
Woman: Oh. But which one GOES to the Empire State Building?
Man: There isn't one.
Woman: Yes there is. Which one is it?
Man: None of them GO there, but this one comes close.
Woman (turns to friends): He doesn't know what he's talking about.

The woman and her friends look at the map on the wall, and eventually she returns to the man.

Woman: Which stop did you say?
Man: Canal Street.
Woman: Right, thanks.

Glossolalia, Alaska

Max Blumenthal visited Sarah Palin's church last weekend, where Kenyan evangelist Thomas "Witch Fighter" Muthee was holding forth.

On the first night of services, Muthee implored his audience to wage “spiritual warfare” against “the enemy.” As I filmed, a nervous church staffer approached from behind and told me to put my camera away. I acceded to his demand, but as Muthee urged the church to crush “the python spirit” of the unbeliever enemies by stomping on their necks, I pulled out a smaller camera and filmed from a more discreet position. Now, church members were in deep prayer, speaking in tongues and raising their hands. Muthee exclaimed, “We come against the spirit of witchcraft! We come against the python spirits!” Then, a local pastor took the mic from Muthee and added, “We stomp on the heads of the enemy!”

Yep, just the people you want with their fingers on the button. You can see Muthee casting demons or whatever out of Palin in a clip further down on the blog. Blumenthal will post his own video next week.

Pepsi Gives $500K To PFLAG

Ah, finally some GOOD news today! PepsiCo has donated $500K to Straight For Equality, PFLAG's program to reach straight allies of the LGBT community who don't have a traditional family connection to an LGBT person.

In a move that may upset conservative organizations and leaders, the PepsiCo Foundation has given a grant of $500,000 to Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays to support Straight for Equality, a national education campaign, and to fund training and chapter support.

PFLAG is a national organization made up of chapters of parents of members of the LGBT community. Chapters serve multiple roles, including support for parents who have recently learned a child is gay, community education, and engaging parents and friends in the struggle for LGBT equality.

"PepsiCo has provided PFLAG with an enormous gift, and an unparalleled opportunity, to demonstrate the power we have to create change, no matter where we are, or who we are," PFLAG executive director Jody M. Huckaby said in a statement released earlier today. "Because of the Foundation's generosity and commitment, we now have the resources to produce materials for our chapters to use in their communities, and to create critically important conversations, in every corner of our country."

"We are delighted to continue our partnership with PFLAG," Jacqueline Millan, Director of PepsiCo Corporate Contributions, said in the same statement. "The Straight for Equality in the Workplace training program is unique in that it is promoting the necessary message of inclusion to untapped groups within the local community, and that is a crucial step towards building a healthy working environment."

Expect the wingnuts to add Pepsi to their lengthy list of boycotts: Ford, Hallmark, Miller, electricity, oxygen, peristalsis.

(Via - PageOneQ)

On "Christianists"

I've gotten a number of emails inquiring and/or complaining about my use of the word "Christianists" to describe the Christian right. The word's origin is not, as some have suggested, a portmanteau of "Christian" and "activist", although that seems a logical conclusion. If I recall correctly, I first saw the term in a 2006 article by Andrew Sullivan in TIME.

[L]et me suggest that we take back the word Christian while giving the religious right a new adjective: Christianist. Christianity, in this view, is simply a faith. Christianism is an ideology, politics, an ism. The distinction between Christian and Christianist echoes the distinction we make between Muslim and Islamist. Muslims are those who follow Islam. Islamists are those who want to wield Islam as a political force and conflate state and mosque. Not all Islamists are violent. Only a tiny few are terrorists. And I should underline that the term Christianist is in no way designed to label people on the religious right as favoring any violence at all. I mean merely by the term Christianist the view that religious faith is so important that it must also have a precise political agenda. It is the belief that religion dictates politics and that politics should dictate the laws for everyone, Christian and non-Christian alike.

I'm uncertain whether Sullivan actually coined the term or merely launched its widespread usage, but I think it's a fair way to denote a difference between the personally, privately devout and those other people.

Christianists To Defy IRS Ban On Policial Speech And Sermonize For John McCain

Sigh. More wingnuttery from the pulpit.

Setting the stage for a collision of religion and politics, Christian ministers from California and 21 other states will use their pulpits Sunday to deliver political sermons or endorse presidential candidates -- defying a federal ban on campaigning by nonprofit groups.

The pastors' advocacy could violate the Internal Revenue Service's rules against political speech with the purpose of triggering IRS investigations.

That would allow their patron, the conservative legal group Alliance Defense Fund, to challenge the IRS' rules, a risky strategy that one defense fund attorney acknowledges could cost the churches their tax-exempt status. Congress made it illegal in 1954 for tax-exempt groups to publicly support or oppose political candidates.

"I'm going to talk about the un-biblical stands that Barack Obama takes. Nobody who follows the Bible can vote for him," said the Rev. Wiley S. Drake of First Southern Baptist Church of Buena Park. "We may not be politically correct, but we are going to be biblically correct. We are going to vote for those who follow the Bible."

Drake was the target of a recent IRS investigation into his endorsement last year of former Arkansas governor and Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. In the end, Drake was cleared.

These critics, such as Americans United for Separation of Church and State, argue that Sunday's sermons at churches in Oregon, Texas, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and other states will violate federal tax law by politicizing the pulpit. That, they believe, will undercut the independence churches have long enjoyed to speak out about moral and ethical issues in American life, including women's suffrage, child labor and civil rights.

Of course, this bit about Obama's "non-biblical" stands are about his support for LGBT rights. The Alliance Defense Fund (which recently lost a challenge to NY Gov. Paterson's recognition of out-of-state gay marriages) plans to sue the IRS if the agency challenges any church in order to "restore the right of each pastor to speak scriptural truth from the pulpit." Spiritual truths like John McCain being an adulterer?

HomoQuotable - Barney Frank

“All of a sudden, now that we’re on the verge of making a deal, John McCain drops himself in to make a deal. I really worry about this politicization of it. Frankly, we’re going to have to interrupt a negotiating session tomorrow between the Democrats and Republicans on a bill, where I think we’re getting pretty close, and troop down to the White House for their photo-op, and then come back and get on to it. We’re trying to rescue the economy, not the McCain campaign." - Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), complaining about John McCain's theatrics.

Anti-Gay Freak Peter LaBarbera Will Be Stalking The Folsom Street Fair

Porno Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality will again be trolling the grounds of the Folsom Street Fair this Sunday, camera in hand, looking for the most sordid examples of gay sex he can find to post on his website and use to fight marriage equality in California. LaBarbera will join with other wingnuts to hold a press conference at SF City Hall tomorrow. (Links below may be NSFW)

Americans for Truth (AFTAH) will join other pro-family groups on the steps of the San Francisco City Hall Friday, Sept. 26, to confront Mayor Gavin Newsom for welcoming a sadistic homosexual street fair to the city — featuring hundreds of men walking around fully naked and engaging in public sex acts, as police stand idly by without enforcing decency laws.

The 25th annual “Folsom Street Fair” will be held this Sunday, Sept. 28, in San Francisco. AFTAH President Peter LaBarbera will join other pro-family leaders in pre- and post-Folsom press conferences on the steps of San Francisco City Hall to highlight the public depravities that could only happen in San Francisco – home to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (third in line to be President):

WHAT: Two press events denouncing and exposing the Folsom Street Fair and the politicians who enable it;
WHERE: San Francisco City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, San Francisco
WHEN: Friday, Sept. 26, 11:00 AM – prior to Folsom; and Monday, Sept. 29, 10:00 AM – post-Folsom;
WHO: Peter LaBarbera, AFTAH; Linda Harvey, Mission America; Diane Gramley, American Family Association of Pennsylvania; and Anthony Gonzalez, St. Joseph’s Men’s Society

Said LaBarbera: “Mayor Newsom sent a welcome letter to Folsom participants. When AFTAH published it on our website, Folsom organizers sent a cease-and-desist letter demanding that we take it down. So it appears that either Mayor Newsom or Folsom organizers are not so ‘proud’ of this vile ‘street fair’ after all.”

LaBarbera said most Americans would be stunned to learn what goes on at Folsom under the cover of police protection:

• Rampant public nudity including men walking the streets in nothing but their socks and sneakers;
• Public street orgies in which men engage in heinous sex acts as thousands of fairgoers walk by;
• Public sadistic whippings, acts of “consensual” degradation and “master-and-slave” partners;
• Blatant anti-Christian bigotry – e.g., the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” — transvestite mock “nuns” who work closely with Folsom; and religious-themed “sex toys” sold by vendors.
• Public health hazards: Folsom promotes local gay sex clubs where unsafe, anonymous sodomies (e.g., “barebacking”) occur that spread diseases.
• Police blame their inaction on politicians who tell them not to intervene or enforce the law.

LaBarbera will be joined by wingnut anti-gay minister Linda Harvey of Mission America (left) and pruned-faced anti-porn activist Diane Gramley of the American Family Association (right).

It's fascinating that millions of heteros are getting their freak on every single night of the year at thousands of titty bars across the nation, and these fuckwads are zeroing in on a one-day, six hour event in which a minuscule percentage of attendees carry on in public.

I'm not going to suggest that folks rein in their behavior at the Folsom Street Fair, but LaBarbera does present a potential damage to the marriage equality campaign. I certainly recommend keeping an eye out for him and his crew. Hopefully somebody will recognize him as he comes in through the gates (get the Sisters on this!) and follow him around all day. Better yet, find out which hotel he's at and tail him (heh) from the minute he leaves that morning. Surely there must be a handful of good people willing to sacrifice their day at the fair in order to follow this twat around.

And hey, if you happen to catch him pushing in to film some watersports scene (which seems to be his favorite), you should totally bring ole Pete into the action by pissing on that fucker. He'd probably secretly dig it as much as the average fairgoer anyway.

Violence Rocks Sarajevo Pride

Shouting "Kill the gays" and "Allah Akbar", Islamic rioters attacked participants in yesterday's first-ever gay pride event in Sarajevo, Bosnia.

Dozens of homophobic hooligans attacked participants of Bosnia's first-ever gay rights festival in Sarajevo on Wednesday, leaving at least two journalists and one police officer injured. The scuffle broke out at the end of the opening ceremony of the four-day festival in front of the Academy of Fine Arts in downtown Sarajevo.

"When I was getting out of the academy, I was suddenly struck in the back," Pedja Kojovic, a local journalist, told AFP. "Three other people then came running and beat me up." Emir Imamovic, a journalist who tried to help Kojovic, was severely beaten, police said.

A heavy police deployment prevented more violence from spoiling the event, with a security cordon keeping protestors shouting "kill the gays" and "Allahu Akbar" (a Muslim expression meaning God is Great) at bay. A police officer on the scene said groups of anti-gay protestors had spread to nearby streets and were attacking people. A police officer was struck in the head during the clashes.

The hooligans, some with their faces covered, and other with long beards, were yelling insults at the festival participants and shouting, “Allahu Akbar!” They also dragged people out of their cars and physically attacked others in the festival on the street. Six people were taken to the hospital with head injuries. The person suffering the most serious wounds was a Danish citizen. One police officer was also injured in the clashes with the hooligans. Police arrested eight attackers.

Last week, "Death To Gays" posted began to appear around Sarajevo, placed by Islamicists who were angry that gay pride was to occur during Ramadan.

California: Christianists Call For Statewide Fast Against Marriage Equality

This is the madness that we're up against. Pastors across California and the nation have called upon hundreds of congregations to pray and forego solid food until Proposition 8 is passed.

Hundreds of pastors have called on their congregations to fast and pray for passage of a ballot measure in November that would put an end to gay marriage in California.

The collective act of piety, starting Wednesday and culminating three days before the election in a revival for as many as 100,000 people at the San Diego Chargers' stadium, comes as church leaders across California put people, money and powerful words behind Proposition 8.

Some pastors around the state and nation are encouraging their flocks to forgo solid food for up to 40 days in the biblical tradition.

Jim Garlow, the pastor of the evangelical Skyline Church in San Diego County, said he expects up to 100 young adults to spend five-plus weeks on his campus, subsisting on soup, juice and the promise of societal salvation.

"This is not political to us. We see it as very spiritual," said Garlow, a leader of an interfaith coalition that has held monthly teleconferences, shared sermons and solicited donations for the ballot measure.

You can't make it up, people. The scourge of religion is relentless and unending.

Coming Out Pays Off

Letterman's Ten 10 Questions People Are Asking John McCain

10. I just contributed to your campaign - how do I get my money back?
9. Hi, this is Sarah Palin. Does this mean I'm Parsi'dent?
8. Can't you solve this by selling some of your homes?
7. Hi, this is Clay Aiken. Is McCain single?
6. Do you still think the fundamentals of our economy are strong, genius?
5. Are you doing all of this just to get out of going on Letterman?
4. What would Matlock do?
3. Hillary here, my schedule is free Friday night.
2. Is this just an excuse to catch up on napping?
1. This is President Bush, what's all this trouble with the economy?

Morning View - Interborough Subway Sign

There's still a few places around town where you can find these groovy old deco signs for the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) subway lines, like this one on the New York Life building. All of the numbered train lines were originally owned by the IRT. Via Wikipedia:

The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) was the operator of the original underground New York City Subway line that opened in 1904, as well as earlier elevated railways and additional rapid transit lines in New York City. The IRT was purchased by the City in June 1940. The former IRT lines (the numbered lines in the current subway system) are now the A Division or IRT Division of the Subway. The first IRT subway ran between City Hall and 145th Street at Broadway, opening on October 27, 1904. It opened following more than twenty years of public debate on the merits of subways versus the existing elevated rail system and on various proposed routes.

I fondly recall my late aunt telling me on one of my first visits to NYC as an adult, "All ya gotta know is that the lettered trains don't go anywhere good." A Manhattan snob, through and through.

Open Thread Thursday

Let's talk about what IS right in this country.

Palin Gets Protection From Witchcraft

Via YouTuber NY Progressive: "In this new video, available only as of today (September 23, 2008), Sarah Palin is shown accepting a special supernatural protection from witchcraft from Thomas Muthee, who also promoted Palin's campaign for Governor as a way to infiltrate the government with the right wing religious agenda of the Assembly of God. Really crazy stuff!"

If the believers had not done something in this country, your president would not be in office today.

We need believers who are educationists. If we hired them today, we would not be talking about the ten commandments being kicked… out of the schools. They would still be there. We need god taking over our education system. If we have God in our schools, we will not have our kids being taught how to worship Buddha, how to worship Muhammad. We will not have in the curriculum witchcraft and sorcery. …

We need believers [in government]. We need men and women of integrity… people that are born-again, spirit-filled people who know God and people who are serious with God. So in a moment… I’ll ask Sarah to come up. Please let’s stand up, and let’s hold hands all over this house.

[Palin walks up to the front of the chapel; two men flank her and lay hands on her, as does Muthee.]

Give her the personnel. Give her men and women that will buck her up. In the name of Jesus, we want righteousness in this state, we want righteousness in this nation… so that the curse that has been on them can be broken. … In the name of Jesus, every form of witchcraft is what we rebuke.

(Transcript via - Slog)

Letterman Rips Into McCain

Leaked in advance of tonight's show.

"Something is starting to smell. That's not the John McCain I know. This is not the way a tested hero behaves. Somebody's putting something in his Metamucil."

Late in the clip, Letterman cuts to live shot of McCain sitting a couple of blocks away in an interview with Katie Couric. NOT rushing to the airport as he told the Letterman people when he canceled.

Palin On Couric: Here's Why They Won't Let Her Speak To The Press

Couric: You've said, quote, "John McCain will reform the way Wall Street does business." Other than supporting stricter regulations of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac two years ago, can you give us any more example of his leading the charge for more oversight?

Palin: I think that the example that you just cited, with his warnings two years ago about Fannie and Freddie - that, that's paramount. That's more than a heck of a lot of other senators and representatives did for us.

Couric: But he's been in Congress for 26 years. He's been chairman of the powerful Commerce Committee. And he has almost always sided with less regulation, not more.

Palin: He's also known as the maverick though, taking shots from his own party, and certainly taking shots from the other party. Trying to get people to understand what he's been talking about - the need to reform government.

Couric: But can you give me any other concrete examples? Because I know you've said Barack Obama is a lot of talk and no action. Can you give me any other examples in his 26 years of John McCain truly taking a stand on this?

Palin: I can give you examples of things that John McCain has done, that has shown his foresight, his pragmatism, and his leadership abilities. And that is what America needs today.

Couric: I'm just going to ask you one more time - not to belabor the point. Specific examples in his 26 years of pushing for more regulation.

Palin: I'll try to find you some and I'll bring them to you.

Unbelievable.

(Transcript via - Pam Spaulding)

McCain: I Am Suspending My Campaign Until I Have A Better Chance To Win

Via CNN:

Republican presidential candidate John McCain announced Wednesday that he is suspending his campaign to return to Washington and focus on the "historic" crisis facing the U.S. economy.

McCain said it was time for both parties to come together to solve economic crisis. McCain said it was time for both parties to come together to solve economic crisis.

The Arizona senator called on his Democratic rival, Barack Obama, to do the same. He also urged organizers of Friday's presidential debate at the University of Mississippi to postpone the event. "I am calling on the president to convene a meeting with the leadership from both houses of Congress, including Senator Obama and myself," McCain told reporters in New York. "It is time for both parties to come together to solve this problem."

There was no immediate response from the Obama campaign.

McCain and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, were in New York to meet with world leaders at the United Nations. They had met with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili and Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko.

John McCain knows that Obama would EVISCERATE him in the debates.

UPDATE: Barney Frank reacts to McCain's announcement: "It's the longest Hail Mary pass in the history of either football or Marys." Priceless.

Enquirer: Palin Cheated With Her Husband's Business Partner

From the Enquirer:

No less than three members of the man’s family including one by sworn affidavit have claimed that Sarah Palin engaged in an extramarital affair with hus­band Todd’s former business partner, Brad Hanson. These sources have named Hanson as Palin’s secret love, and say their affair nearly wrecked both their marriages.

Hanson owned a snowmobile dealership with Palin’s husband Todd, who immediately dissolved the partnership after he heard stories about the affair, which occurred around 1996, according to the sources. At the time, Palin was mayor of Wasilla.

Palin has vehemently de­nied cheating on her hus­band, and Hanson insisted to The NATIONAL ENQUIRER that he was never romantically in­volved with the 44-year-old Republican vice presiden­tial candidate.

The Enquirer says that one of their sources has passed a lie detector test, but as Gawker notes, he's an ex-con, so there's that. And yes, it WOULD be nice to confront Palin on the actual issues and her positions, but since THEY WON'T LET HER TALK, this junk is all we've got.

Salome At The Met

Last night Aaron and I attended opening night of Salome at the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center. I know less than zero about opera, so all I had to go on was a quick glance at the Playbill synopsis before the chandeliers went up. It was all in German, so with my seatback subtitle thingy, here's what I got:

-Slutty princess gets bored at stepdad and mom's fancy cocktail party at the Apple Store
-Slutty princess sings to man in well who calls her mom a ho
-Slutty princess does a strip-tease for stepdad, shows titties
-Slutty princess asks stepdad to kill the man in the well for dissing her
-Slutty princess makes sweet necrophiliatic love to severed head of man in well
-Slutty princess killed by freaked out stepdad

The Met's production is set in the present day, so the one thing from the opera that I knew about, The Dance Of The Seven Veils, was more like The Dance Of The Two Hermes Scarves. I guess I enjoyed it, but mostly for the orchestra, not the songs by Salome, as I find opera sung by women to be rather shrieky. However, the audience went all ape shit for the title lead, Karita Mattila, bringing her back for several curtain calls (although by the fourth time, I was like, "she's milking it."). Anway, it was short, with no intermission, and the severed-head-love was nicely freaky. The show runs through October 16th.

Obama's Golden Poll-achute

Holy cow, check out what this financial mess has done to the latest polling! Obama has lept to a NINE point lead in the latest Washington Post poll.

Sully Won't Let Up On Baby Trig

The McCain campaign has leaked an email Andrew Sullivan sent them to the Washington Post in which Sullivan demands proof that Sarah Palin really, really DID give birth to baby Trig. WaPo's Howard Kurtz quotes the email and responds:

"I'm very sorry to say, it's come to this: can you confirm on the record that Trig Palin is Sarah Palin's biological son? . . . Since this is a crazy idea, it should be easy for you or someone to let me know, the most popular one-man political blog site in the world, what the truth is."

A day later, he followed up with a second note: "I asked a simple question akin to asking whether you can confirm that the sky is blue. Here's the question in case it got lost: can you confirm on the record that Trig Palin is Sarah Palin's biological son? Can I please get a response of some sort, even if it is that you will not respond?" The McCain camp, which provided the messages to The Washington Post, did not reply.

Why ask that question, with no supporting evidence? "Like any human being," Sullivan told me by e-mail, "I assume that this baby is hers. Of course I do. But as a journalist, my job is also to ask for confirmation or for evidence. And that is all I have done. By e-mail. Not on my blog. I would be remiss if I did not ask them to confirm it. At least that's my view of my responsibility. And I have published every single piece of evidence we have that he is. What else can I do?" He added that McCain aides "won't respond" but "seek to target the blogger asking the question."

Sullivan did post photos of a pregnant-looking Palin when the pictures surfaced.

Is this a case of the McCain folks trying to marginalize a critic, as in Monday's blast at the New York Times as being in the tank for Obama?

"These e-mails show two things," McCain spokesman Michael Goldfarb told me. "One, Andrew Sullivan has the biggest one-man ego on the planet. And two, the insanity that this campaign has had to put up with for the last month."

Why not release the hospital records and put this matter to rest?

"Governor Palin has no history of health problems," Goldfarb says. "We believe that a candidate should be able to preserve some privacy in this process, and we're confident the American people will validate that judgment come election day."

Sullivan, one of the earliest bloggers, has been on a tear about Palin lately, calling her "a compulsive, repetitive, demonstrable liar." But it is the Trig question that has his critics, especially on the right, up in arms. For instance, the Weekly Standard's Jonathan Last, on his Galley Slaves blog, says: "Andrew Sullivan is once again openly using The Atlantic as a platform to demand that Sarah Palin 'prove' that she is mother of her youngest child. It is a disgrace for the magazine and everyone associated with it. One hundred and fifty years of storied history set ablaze in fortnight by a single writer."

There's a difference, obviously, between the fact-checked copy that goes into the magazine and the free-wheeling platform that Atlantic gives its bloggers. But Sullivan's Trig postings have troubled some of his colleagues, and he has been in a veiled debate with fellow Atlantic writer Ross Douthat, who wrote:

"If you think that many of the same people who bleat the loudest about the evils of 'Rove-style' politics aren't happy to similarly dirty their hands for the sake of their own causes and candidates -- well, you need only look at some of the coverage of Sarah Palin's family to see how quickly principle gives way to expedience when power is at stake."

Sullivan responded to his detractors last week:

"All this blog has done is ask for facts and context about a subject that the Palin campaign has put at the center of its message, facts about a baby held up at a convention as a political symbol for the pro-life movement, and cited in Palin's acceptance speech. You do that, you invite questions about it. I make absolutely no apologies for doing my job. I find the account of her pregnancy and labor provided by Palin to be perplexing, to put it mildly, and I have every right to ask questions about it, especially since we have discovered that this woman lies more compulsively and less intelligently than the Clintons."

It has always seemed fishy to me, what with Palin supposedly in leaky labor with a known-to-be birth defect baby, yet getting on a plane in Texas to fly all the home to Alaska to give birth.

Ahmadinejad: Like Traffic Offenders, Laws Against Gays Must Be Enforced

Iran President Ahmadinejad was interviewed by Larry King last night, where he said he didn't think the US or Israel would make the "big mistake" of attacking. Then King steered the conversation to gays and human rights. (Around the 1:40 mark.)

AHMADINEJAD (through translator): What do you mean by human rights problems?

KING: People protesting that they don't have the same rights as other people? Homosexuals -- you said last year, you denied there were homosexuals. There's homosexuals everywhere.

AHMADINEJAD (through translator): I said it is not the way it is here. In Iran this is considered a very -- obviously most people dislike it. And we have actually a law regarding it and the law is enforced. It is a law that was passed. It was legislated. And it is an act that is against human principles. A lot of things can happen. It can cause psychological problems, social problems that affect the whole society. Remember that God rules are to improve human life. In our religion, this act is forbidden and the Parliament has legislated about it. Not now, 70 years ago. This is something that happened 70 years ago, before the Islamic Republic became --

KING: So what happens to gay people?

AHMADINEJAD (through translator): Let me -- well, of course, nobody has held protests. You are -- are you concerned for 70 million Iranian people or a few homosexuals? Let's assume in Iran -- let's assume in the United States that 200 million people drive cars and a million violators are rounded up and they just basically violate driving laws. Should we be worried for the 199 million people whose safety you must be concerned about or the one million violators? The law is the law. It's law. And it must be enforced, of course. Of course we do pay attention that in Iran nobody interferes in the private lives of individuals. We have nothing to do with the private realm of people. This is at the not private, public morality. In their own house, nobody ever interferes.

"In their own house, nobody even interferes." Yes, when gays are publicly hanged, nobody interferes.

(Via - Towleroad)

Clinton On Obama

You may have heard some criticism of Bill Clinton after he appeared on Letterman on Monday and praised Hillary, but failed to mention Obama by name. Letterman's next guest was Chris Rock who hilariously called Clinton out on that. Clinton appeared on the Daily Show last night and more than made amends, at Jon Stewart's urging.

LCR Cries Foul On Mark Buse

Log Cabin's Scott Tucker is crying wah-wah-wah because the evil lefty gay bloggers have been talking about McCain's chief of Quislings, Mark Buse.

Mark Buse has been openly gay for years and has acknowledged as much. So the notion that he has been “outed” is simply false. But secondly–and this is the bigger point–this political stunt by Mike Rogers just proves what Log Cabin has been saying for years. John McCain is an inclusive Republican who hires the best people, regardless of sexual orientation.

Also, can we please stop childishly lobbing the “homophobic” insult at Republicans who don’t agree with us on every issue? Rogers and his crowd keep saying McCain is “homophobic” or “anti-gay.” Words mean things. Calling John McCain homophobic doesn’t make it so. The truth is, Sen. John McCain is anything but homophobic. This is a man who has a record of hiring gay staff members–as evidenced by this recent “bombshell.”

Pam Spaulding responds:

Then what is the "personal destruction" you are talking about? If Buse is out, then discussing the fact that Mark Buse is gay shouldn't be of any consequence -- unless there is something wrong with being out of the closet to the Republican base.

Isn't that the real problem here? If John McCain is personally inclusive, why can he not be so as a candidate? McCain might consider Buse a family friend and not fire him for being gay, but what about the young gay person working at a DQ with an anti-gay boss -- he has no protections from getting axed if that boss learns of his employee's orientation. It's not inclusion when it only means the people in your inner circle.

Homophobia ("irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals") -- well, McCain's clearly not afraid of the homos. He's certainly willing to institutionalize discrimination of teh gayz, so what part of that "meaning" is misunderstood?

Even cutting Scott Tucker some undeserved slack -- what are you supposed to call someone who believe in tolerance on a one-to-one basis, but campaigns in support of anti-gay state marriage amendments, the continuation of DADT ("open homosexuality within the military services presents an intolerable risk to morale, cohesion, and discipline."), hate crimes expansion, ENDA, etc.? A professional anti-gay personal homosexualist? Is that more accurate? Or perhaps...um, a hypocrite?

This is why this story is newsworthy. The apparent fealty to the fringe anti-gay right by the McCain campaign -- from the opposition to basic LGBT rights to the selection of the real-deal fundie Palin -- does not project anything remotely resembling inclusion on our issues from my POV. It would be illuminating for the mainstream media to take a look at the public positions and personal practices of the Republican party generally, and specifically the McCain/Palin ticket to clear up any misconceptions people have -- both the "gay left" and the social conservatives on the right -- about where they truly stand.

Would the Log Cabin organization support some clarifying reporting on the matter?

From Daily Kos:

Who is the bigger hypocrite here?

Mark Buse, an openly gay man who is spending his life helping John McCain block important gay civil rights issues like marriage and adoption?

Or John McCain, who obviously has no problem with gay folks, but has adopted an anti-gay platform out of political expediency and a desire to court people like Sarah Palin, who think that if they just hate enough, they'll be Raptured into the love of Jesus when the End Times come.