Thursday, June 07, 2012

Rep. Tammy Baldwin Speaks At Netroots

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Richard Socarides And Wayne Besen Discuss Marriage Equality And SCOTUS

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SiriusXM's Michelangelo Signorile Interviews Zach Wahls At Netroots

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CALIFORNIA: Homocon Mayoral Candidate Divides San Diego's LGBT Community

On Tuesday Carl DeMaio won the mayoral primary, becomes San Diego's first-ever openly gay finalist for the office. But his candidacy has divided the city's LGBT population.
Despite his sexual orientation, DeMaio has not won the full support of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, in part because he never took a stance on Proposition 8, the ballot measure which defined marriage as between a man and a woman. "He's made a statement that almost denies that he's willing to be the ambassador," said LGBT voter Robert Bettinger. However, DeMaio's plan to trim city spending has won him the support of some in the LGBT community. "If you're asking me if a couple of years ago if I'd be supporting a Republican mayor, I'd probably have said no," said Dave McCulloch, an LGBT voter. "He has accepted financial support, both in his council race in 2008 and in his mayoral campaign from individuals who are openly hostile to the LGBT community," said Craig Roberts, who is with San Diego Democrats for Equality.

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NEA Hosts Netroots Anti-Bullying Panel

Lots of teachers are in the audience.

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Mister Rogers: Remixed

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Afternoon View - Providence City Hall

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On Sale At Netroots Nation

Copies signed by the artist: $15.

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Today's Message From Coach Dave

"We are taking the Gospel to the Gay Pride parade in Columbus on June 16. We need your financial support for our Living Waters Project. Here is how it works. Columbus has the largest homosexual community in the Midwest. Every year they parade their debauchery on our streets. Because 'the church' is so confused about how God feels about sodomy, there is very little Christian presence at the parade. Last year over 20,000 homosexuals took part in the march.

"We always try to make it a point to rain the Gospel on their parade. I often tell church leaders that they don’t have to go over-seas for a mission trip. Every Father’s Day weekend there are 20,000 profoundly lost souls walking down the streets in downtown Columbus. Very few join us. They tell us that 'God hasn’t called them to that.' He called, but their line was busy. Until you have been to a Gay Pride Parade you cannot understand the depth of depravity into which some will plummet." - Coach Dave Daubenmire, who is begging for money to enable his disruption of Columbus Pride. (Tipped by JMG reader Steve)

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SLIDESHOW: Netroots Convention Hall

Things are really just now getting kicked off at Netroots Nation, although the LGBT contingent was here a day early yesterday for our all day series of panels. Here's just a few of the participating groups with booths in the main convention hall. You'll see a healthy sprinkling of LGBT causes in there, with more photos to be added later today as the booths get staffed and opened.

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British Olympian Goes Nude For Cosmo

Details. (Via Boy Culture)

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New From The Obama Campaign

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Joan Rivers On Glee

"You know that cute Asian boy who plays a freshman? In real life he's a thirty-year-old man and he's upside down on a mortgage in Burbank. The only way Lea Michele is in high school is if she's part of some bizarre religious cult and she's come back to school with bombs strapped to her boobs. The only true character on Glee is the fat girl because in real life she is a fat girl. On Glee all the homo kids are smiling and giggly and they spend every day singing in the halls. When I went to high school, the homos spent most of their days hiding in their lockers, crying!" - Joan Rivers, in her new book, I Hate Everybody Including Me.

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Goes Wisconsin, Goes.....

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Anti-Unions Group Places NYT Ad

Full-page in today's New York Times. Source.

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Headline Of The Day

Details.

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Pee Etiquette At Netroots Nation

Via Jillian Weiss.

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DENMARK: Gay Marriage Vote Today

Denmark's legislature is expected to approve same-sex marriage today.
Members of the sole house of the Danish parliament are expected to approve the legislation today after an amendment creating a separate system of marriages for gay couples was rejected yesterday. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark, to which 80 percent of the Danish population belongs, will be able to perform marriage ceremonies under the new laws. New rites were written up by ten of the Church’s eleven bishops in a spirit of “good cooperation”, Bishop Kjeld Holm said.
UPDATE:The bill has passed.
Lawmakers voted 85-24 on Thursday to change Denmark's marriage laws. The law takes effect June 15 and will put Denmark on par with countries such as Iceland and Sweden that allow full wedding ceremonies for gay and lesbian couples. In 1989, Denmark became the first country to allow the registration of gay partnerships. Since 1997 gay couples in Denmark can be wed in special blessing ceremonies at the end of regular church service.

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Latinos For Obama

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People On Welfare Don't Read The Bible

"Wouldn't it be interesting to do a study between those that are on welfare and see how much and how often they read the Bible. You know, if Booker T. Washington is right that Christianity and reading the Bible increases your desires and therefore your ability for hard work; if we take that as an axiom, does that mean that the people who are getting government assistance spend nearly no time in the Bible, therefore have no desire, and therefore no ability for hard work? I could go a lot of places with this. I would love to see this proven out in some kind of sociological study, but it makes perfect sense." - Historical revisionist David Barton, quoted by Right Wing Watch.

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Open Thread Thursday

How are you accessing the web right this moment?

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Boy Scouts To Review Ban On Gays


But don't hold your breath.

The Boy Scouts of America will review a resolution that would allow individual units to accept gays as adult leaders, but a spokesman says there's no expectation that the ban on gay leaders will in fact be lifted any time soon. The resolution was submitted by a Scout leader from the Northeast in April and presented last week at the Scouts' national meeting in Orlando, Fla., according to BSA spokesman Deron Smith.

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Did The President Make A Blowjob Joke?

"I want to thank my wonderful friend who accepts a little bit of teasing about Michelle beating her in pushups -- (laughter) -- but I think she claims Michelle didn’t go all the way down. (Laughter.) That's what I heard. I just want to set the record straight -- Michelle outdoes me in pushups as well. (Laughter.) So she shouldn’t feel bad. She's an extraordinary talent and she's just a dear, dear friend -- Ellen DeGeneres. Give Ellen a big round of applause." - President Obama, making what some thought was a blowjob joke during a speech to an LGBT fundraiser in Los Angeles yesterday.

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Morning View - Superman Building

Locals call this the Superman Building because it's rumored to have been the model for the Daily Planet building. Wikipedia has more: "The Bank of America Building is the tallest building in the city of Providence and the state of Rhode Island, and the 28th tallest in New England. Standing at 428 feet (130 m) and comprising 26 floors, it was the third tallest building in New England when completed."

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Australia Says "I Do"

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Tony Perkins: Marriage Won Wisconsin

"After tasting the success of Walker's policies, Wisconsin handed its leader an even bigger victory this time (140,000 more votes) than it did in 2010. What changed? No doubt Mayor Barrett's shift on marriage had something to do with it. During the May debate, the Mayor was asked about his stance on same-sex 'marriage'--which Barrett had opposed during his congressional career. Have his own views 'evolved,' the moderator asked, and would he sign a civil unions bill if one were passed in the legislature? 'I believe in marriage equality,' Barrett responded. 'It is an issue where opinions have evolved. And for younger people in particular, they understand the need to respect relationships. I do respect them.'

"Unfortunately for him, voters do respect marriage--so much so that they enshrined it in the state constitution just six years ago. If the Mayor thinks public opinion has changed that quickly, he (and the rest of his party) needs to pay more attention to what's happening in the states: a 22-point victory on marriage in North Carolina, record petition numbers for referendums in Maryland and Washington State, and even marriage-driven defections from the Democratic Party. This was the third gubernatorial recall in history--and Scott Walker is the only one to survive. Could it be that social values were the tipping point in a race that was supposed to be about government spending and the economy? We don't have the hard data yet, but once again, it seems so." - Hate group leader Tony Perkins, via press release.

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Wednesday, June 06, 2012

RHODE ISLAND: JMG Meet-Up This Friday At Providence's The Stable Bar 10pm

The JMG meet-up for Providence will be at 10PM this Friday at The Stable. We'll likely be in the back patio area where the locals tells us there's a bit more room and where the music isn't so loud. The Stable is easily walkable from the Netroots Nation host hotel and some of us will be coming from that evening's Obama campaign party at a nearby club. The Stable is reportedly "girl friendly." Looking forward to meeting lots of you there!

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NEW YORK: Another Anti-DOMA Ruling

Metro Weekly's Chris Geidner has the details:
Echoing several other recent court opinions, U.S. District Court Judge Barbara Jones today ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act's federal definition of marriage is unconstitutional insofar as it forced Edie Windsor to pay estate taxes after the death of her wife, Thea Spyer, that would not have been owed had she been married to a man.

The ruling in Windsor's case, which was filed in the Southern District of New York, comes less than a week after a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit unanimously found DOMA unconstitutional under a type of rational basis analysis, affirming a decision earlier reached on more expansive reasoning by U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Tauro.

In a statement reacting to the decision released by her lawyers at the ACLU, Windsor said, "Thea and I shared our lives together for 44 years, and I miss her each and every day. It's thrilling to have a court finally recognize how unfair it is for the government to have treated us as though we were strangers."

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Sydney Convicts Win 2012 Bingham Cup

The Sydney Convicts rugby team has won the 2012 Bingham Cup in Manchester, England. Outsports reports:

The Sydney Convicts are bringing the Bingham Cup rugby trophy back to Australia. The Convicts completed a sweep of the tournament this weekend in Manchester, England, winning the A division, 22-5, over the San Francisco Fog and the B division, 13-3, over the Dallas Diablos. "A great day of finals rugby at Bingham cup. Great to see the spirit. Sure the party is gonna be a wild one!!!” tweeted Gareth Thomas, the pro rugby player who came out two years ago. Thomas attended the event along with Ben Cohen, a former elite rugby player and gay ally.

(Via Towleroad)

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Washington Haters Turn In Petitions

They met the minimum and then some.
Opponents of same-sex marriage on Wednesday submitted an estimated 232,000 signatures to the Secretary of State -- all but guaranteeing that the question of whether gays can marry in Washington will now be decided by voters. Preserve Marriage Washington, the campaign's sponsors, planned to bring in at least 9,000 more signatures by the end of the day. The number of signatures Preserve Marriage Washington gathered for Referendum 74 far exceeds the minimum 120,577 the campaign needs to qualify the measure for the November ballot, and is well above the 150,000 that had been recommended.

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California To Investigate NOM

Thank to a persistent campaign of complaints by GOP presidential candidate Fred Karger, the California Fair Political Practices Commission will investigate NOM for campaign finance violations. Via press release from Fred Karger:
In his sworn complaint of May 17th, Karger alleged that NOM did not report over $340,000 that it raised to pass Proposition 8 four years ago. California joins the state of Maine which is in its third year of its investigation of NOM, the leading anti-gay marriage organization in the country.One of the 11 missing contributions was $10,000 from presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s Alabama PAC. In addition to the Romney money there were 10 more contributions NOM did not report, including: $150,000 from Michael Casey of Jamestown, RI, $100,000 from Sean Fiedler of New York, NY and $25,000 from NOM Board member Craig Cardon of Mesa, AZ, a General Authority in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church).

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Obama Is Making Kids Gay

So says 14 year-old radio host Caiden Cowger, the latest darling of the anti-gay hate industry.

(Tipped by JMG reader Jimmer)

UPDATE: The kid has deleted his YouTube account, but JMG reader Mike has found us a mirrored copy.

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NGLTF Launches Queer The Vote 2012

Today the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force launched Queer The Vote 2012. Visit their voter guide and educate yourself on the many issues facing LGBT Americans this November.

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SLIDESHOW: Netroots LGBT 2012

I ran around at lunch and grabbed photos of some of the folks attending Netroots Connect, the LGBT-specific portion of Netroots Nation. (More photos will be added to this slideshow later today.) Below you'll find Zach Wahls, Pam Spaulding, Mike Rogers, Wayne Besen, Ryan Davis, Michael Crawford, Jeremy Hooper and lots more folks who devote their lives to making things better for LGBT Americans.

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AFA's Poll Of The Day

Results.

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Anti-Zombie PSA

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Quote Of The Day - Miss Loser USA

"Effective immediately I have voluntarily, completely, and utterly removed myself from the Miss Universe Organization. In good conscience I can no longer be affiliated in any way with an organization I consider to be fraudulent, lacking in morals, inconsistent, and in many ways trashy. I refuse to be part of a pageant system that has so far and so completely removed itself from its foundational principles as to allow and support natural born males to compete in it. This goes against every moral fiber of my being.”" - Sheena Monnin, Miss Pennsylvania Loser USA. (Tipped by JMG reader Andi)

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Homocon Wins San Diego Primary

San Diego City Councilman Carl DeMaio won yesterday's GOP mayoral primary. DeMaio has promised voters that LGBT issues will never be the focus of his tenure.
"Tonight is a great night because San Diegans once again renewed their call for reform at City Hall with tonight's election results," DeMaio told supporters Tuesday. The approval not only went to his campaign, but to two city propositions that passed by wide margins, DeMaio said. He said San Diego was emerging from a "lost decade" and the taxpayers who paid the price for the mistakes of politicians. "Taxpayers who suffered cuts in their neighborhood services, taxpayers who are paying higher fees and higher water bills, the taxpayers that must endure and commute every morning on roads that are literally falling apart," DeMaio said.

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The Bible Predicts Plane Crashes

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American Royalty

(Via JMG reader Ken)

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Money Bomb For Washington Marriage

Read the rest and please consider pitching in.

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JC Penney's Gay Dads React To Fame

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Ray Bradbury Dies At Age 91

My second favorite author of all time, behind Arthur Clarke. Details.
Ray Bradbury — author of The Martian Chronicles, Fahrenheit 451, Something Wicked this Way Comes, and many more literary classics — died this morning in Los Angeles, at the age of 91.

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IRELAND: Gay Pol Launches Challenge To Recognize Her Canadian Marriage

An Irish politician and her wife have filed a challenge to have their Canadian marriage recognized at home.
The couple’s bid to have their marriage recognised began in 2004, before Ireland introduced provisions for separate civil partnerships for gay couples, which came into effect at the start of 2011. Senator Zappone said today: “It became clear to us that, even if we succeeded with our original case, the provisions within the Civil Registration Act and the Civil Partnership Act would remain. “So it became imperative to shelve our Supreme Court appeal and proceed to challenge this Act before the High Court.” Among other questions, High Court proceedings will examine whether the Civil Registration Act 2004, which defined marriage as being between a man and a woman, is valid under the constitution’s equality protections. The Civil Partnership Act, which prohibits people who have registered a civil partnership from marrying, will also be examined.

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Gaydar Vending Machine

(Tipped by JMG reader Aaron)

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Christians Must Vote For Christians, Part 3

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Alliance Defense Fund On Prop 8 Ruling

"The ProtectMarriage.com legal team looks forward to standing before the United States Supreme Court on behalf of the people's right to preserve the fundamental building block of civilization -- especially since the dissents accompanying today's decision strongly support our arguments. The democratic process and the most important human institution -- marriage -- shouldn't be overthrown based on the demands of Hollywood activists." - Brian Raum, Alliance Defense Fund.

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Orly Taitz Loses Senate Primary

Yesterday birther queen Orly Taitz lost her primary bid to become a Senator.
Under California’s new primary system, the top two finishers in a primary from any party advance to the general election. Taitz, running to challenge Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D), was in sixth place with over 60,000 votes just after midnight, with 14 percent of precincts reporting. (Update: with 99 percent of precincts reporting, Taitz was in fifth place with over 113,000 votes.) In an interview with TPM before the polls closed Tuesday night, Taitz said she had momentum in the race, claiming she gained 800 new followers on Twitter and had 1.2 million visits to her Facebook page in the last three days.
It's a pity, really. She's blogging gold.

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"Democracy Is Dead"

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Al Jazeera Covers Anti-Gay Hate Speech

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Morning View - Netroots Host Hotel

I haven't had time to do a walk-about in Providence yet, so all I've got for you today is a shot of the host hotel. Exciting.

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Black Pastors Against Obama

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MD Marriage Repeal Leader Cheers

"We turned in over 100,000 in excess of what we needed for our first turn-in. So we've turned in over 122,000 to date. Our full turn-in of what we needed to have to validate the entire thing was only 55,736. That just shows you that we've had incredible engagement of people all across the state. People from every walk of life have been working this thing, and we're just really enthusiastic because in the lines of all the public polling that's been out there, and all of this recent activity with the president making his statement and the NAACP making theirs, we're finding that the opposite is actually taking place on the streets." - Derek McCoy, of the Maryland Marriage Coalition.

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Scott Walker Reacts To Win

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From The Romney Campaign

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Tuesday, June 05, 2012

NBC News Projects...

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Evening View - Providence Capitol

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Headline Of The Day

So sez Slaggie.

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Minnesota Polls Improve

Public Policy Polling reports:
Minnesota's constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage now appears to be in serious danger of failing, a reversal from a PPP poll four months ago when it led for passage by a 48/44 margin. Now only 43% of voters support the proposed amendment, with 49% of voters opposed to it. The shift since then has come with independent voters. After previously supporting the amendment by a 50/40 spread, they're now opposing it 54/37. Republicans continue to strongly favor the amendment (74/21) while Democrats are almost equally strong in their opposition (71/22). Independents coming a lot closer to Democrats than Republicans on gay rights is becoming something of a constant in our polling. The GOP seriously risks antagonizing voters in the middle if it continues to pursue a far right social agenda.

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Tweet Of The Day - Protect Marriage

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Atheists, Get Out Of America!

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Afternoon View - Penn Station Amtrak

Milling about, milling about, milling about. Track number announcement. Mad dash for the gate where 500 people try to fit through a four-foot doorway at the same time. Always a shining moment for modern mass transit, truly.

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Two Minutes Of Minnesota Hate, Vol. 23

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Church Sign Of The Day

Source.

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Fox News On Wisconsin Recall

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Reactions To Prop 8 Ruling


American Foundation for Equal Rights
Today’s order is yet another federal court victory for loving, committed gay and lesbian couples in California and around the nation,” said AFER co-founder Chad Griffin. “The final chapter of the Proposition 8 case has now begun. Should the United States Supreme Court decide to review the Ninth Circuit’s decision in our case, I am confident that the Justices will stand on the side of fairness and equality.” On February 7, 2012, a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit concluded that Proposition 8 violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Ninth Circuit panel majority held: "Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California, and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples. The Constitution simply does not allow for laws of this sort.”
Human Rights Campaign
Once again, a federal court has affirmed that the cherished guarantees of our Constitution are there to protect all Americans – including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. For over three years, the plaintiffs, the American Foundation for Equal Rights, and attorneys Ted Olson and David Boies have shown tremendous fortitude and perseverance in their fight for marriage equality. With today’s announcement, we are one step closer to ensuring that gay and lesbian Californians – and, one day, our entire community nationwide – are able to join the institution of marriage and have their love and commitment respected equally.
Marriage Equality USA
The momentum for the freedom to marry seems unstoppable. Three weeks ago, the President of the United States announced his support for marriage equality. Last week, the 1st Circuit Federal Court of Appeals held that the so-called Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional. And today, the 9th Circuit Federal Court of Appeals upheld its earlier decision striking down Proposition 8. Nationwide polls have shown majority support for the freedom to marry for the last two years, and Californians now favor marriage equality by a 59 – 34 percent margin, according to the latest polling.
National Center for Lesbian Rights
Today’s refusal by the Ninth Circuit to grant further review is a testament to the meticulous and well-reasoned opinion originally issued by the Court. While the supporters of Proposition 8 will now seek review by the U.S. Supreme Court, there is no doubt that they are on the wrong side of history. Excluding same-sex couples from the right to marry runs counter to our highest ideals of equality and fairness.
More reactions to follow as they arrive...

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BREAKING: Ninth Circuit Court Of Appeals DENIES Rehearing Of Proposition 8

Here's the ruling:
The full court was advised of the petition for rehearing en banc. A judge requested a vote on whether to rehear the matter en banc. The matter failed to receive a majority of the votes of the non-recused active judges in favor of en banc consideration. Fed. R. App. P. 35. The petition for rehearing en banc is DENIED. The mandate is stayed for ninety days pending the filing of a petition for writ of certiorari in the Supreme Court. If such a petition is filed, the stay shall continue until final disposition by the Supreme Court.
Reactions and analysis to follow shortly....

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Christian Reality Television

Guns! Homophobia! Jeebus!
The Call of The Giles shows families how to live a powerful and productive adventure laden life without whizzing on God and country. TCOTG features Townhall.com columnist Doug Giles and his wife Mary Margaret, daughter Hannah Giles of the 2009 ACORN undercover sting videos and Regis Giles, NRA columnist and owner of GirlsJustWannaHaveGuns.com. Coming 2012 to a TV set near you. Hold on to your lug nuts. It's time for an overhaul.

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Ontario Passes Anti-Bullying Bill

Over the screams of the Catholic Church, today the Ontario provincial legislature passed Bill 13, the anti-bullying ordinance that orders all schools to allow gay-straight clubs. Bill 13 was launched after the suicide of a 14 year-old gay boy, whose own father opposed the bill.
Catholic schools and parents will soon come to accept the provisions of the government's anti-bullying legislation, according to Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty. Ontario's anti-bullying bill, also known as Bill 13 or the Accepting Schools Act, passed through the legislature just before noon today by a margin of 65-36. Only the Progressive Conservatives voted against the legislation. Catholic educators and church leaders oppose the bill because it requires schools to allow students to call anti-homophobia clubs gay-straight alliances if they wish. McGuinty said the issue of protecting kids from bullying transcends all faiths and partisan politics. He added Catholics would understand the true significance of the bill is to build a stronger, more cohesive society.
Conservatives claim the bill is actually meant to cause Ontario to defund non-compliant Catholic schools.

UPDATE: The anti-gay LifeSiteNews weighs in.

“The battle begins,” said Mary Ellen Douglas, president of Campaign Life Coalition Ontario. ““The Minister of Education has said she will force the GSAs on Catholic schools, more or less whether they like it or not.” “I’m hoping that the bishops of Ontario realize what the implications are of this vote and for Catholic schools and will stand firmly with their people behind them,” she continued. “We have to wake up the people who are paying those tax bills about what has just happened in the legislature today.” The “anti-bullying bill” faced months of protests by parents and pro-family advocates who believe its hyper-focus on homosexual-related bullying represents a threat to parental rights and religious freedom.

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Petition Of The Day

Details.

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ACLU Launches Plea To Mitt Romney

The ACLU is parking these mobile billboards outside Romney's homes. "Come back home to civil liberties." They're going to need a lot of trucks!

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Pine-Sol Lady Loves Pranks

Something tells me that some of these poor actors are family. I actually met the Pine-Sol Lady at a Russian River gay bar, circa 1998. She's a party girl!

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UTAH: Davis County School District Bans Books About Gay Families And LGBT Youth

And the Salt Lake Tribune doesn't like it one bit. From today's editorial:
The Davis County School District is now targeting books for children that portray families headed by same-sex parents and a book with the message that bullying of homosexual teenagers is wrong. In Davis County, it seems, book banning based on intolerance is alive and well. The issue was prompted by a parent’s complaint about an acclaimed book titled In Our Mothers’ House that was chosen by librarians specifically because there are children in the district with two same-sex parents. Librarians, rightly, wanted to make those children feel included and also wanted to help other children understand that various types of families are all acceptable. Totally Joe, about a gay teenager who is bullied, glimpses the suffering of gay teens, who all too often take their own lives. Now the district is on a witch hunt, asking district librarians to report other books with gay or lesbian characters.

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Barber: Scott Lively Is An American Hero

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Iowa Methodists Back Gay Rights

Some of them do, at least.
Hundreds of Iowa Methodists signed protest documents at their annual conference Sunday declaring they are prepared to buck the leadership of their church on matters concerning gays and gay marriage. A group called Do No Harm Iowa has gathered as many as 500 signatures -- including those of about 70 pastors -- in response to the most recent meeting of the United Methodist Churches' global conference of leaders. A vote at that meeting, which is held every four years, determined the church's book of doctrine and rules would continue to call the practice of homosexuality "incompatible with Christian teaching."

But that, said Rev. Diane McClanahan of Trinity United Methodist Church in Des Moines, is incompatible with her own concept of Jesus. "There are so many pieces of Scripture we no longer abide by because we have a different context," said McClanahan, who served as a spokesperson for Do No Harm Iowa. "(Homosexuality) is just the issue of the day." The United Methodist Church continues to formally ban the marriage of same-sex couples and the ordination of gay clergy. Two protest documents were read Sunday following the report on the United Methodist General Conference, which ended May 4 in Tampa, Fla. Many among the 1,600 delegates wore blue "Do No Harm" T-shirts and stood silently during both readings.
(Tipped by JMG reader Derek)

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Romney's Double Standard

New from the Obama campaign...

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Swag Tuesday

Courtesy of HarperCollins, today's Swag Tuesday prize is Victory: The Triumphant Gay Revolution, the new book by renowned author and columnist Linda Hirshman. Victory goes on sale today at booksellers and online.

When the modern struggle for gay rights erupted—most notably at a bar called Stonewall in Greenwich Village—in the summer of 1969, most religious traditions condemned homosexuality; psychiatric experts labeled people who were attracted to others of the same sex "crazy"; and forty-nine states outlawed sex between people of the same gender. Four decades later, in June 2011, New York legalized gay marriage—the most populous state in the country to do so thus far. The armed services stopped enforcing Don't Ask, Don't Tell, ending a law that had long discriminated against gay and lesbian members of the military. Successful social movements are always extraordinary, but these advances were something of a miracle.

Political columnist Linda Hirshman recounts the long roads that led to these victories, viewing the gay rights movement within the tradition of American freedom as the third great modern social-justice movement, alongside the civil rights movement and the women's rights movement. Drawing on an abundance of published and archival material, and hundreds of in-depth interviews, Hirshman shows, in this astute political analysis, how the fight for gay rights has changed the American landscape for all citizens—blurring rigid gender lines, altering the shared culture, and broadening our definitions of family.

We have three copies of Victory to give away. Enter to win your copy by commenting on this post. Only enter once and please remember to leave an email address you check frequently in the text of your comment. Entries close at midnight on Thursday, west coast time. Publicists: If you'd like to take part in Swag Tuesday on JMG, please email me.

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This Is Also An Ad For A Pride Party

In Tel Aviv.

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NYC Vs Churches In Public Schools

According to CBN, homosexual activists are behind New York City's bid to keep churches out of public schools. I've blogged about this battle several times, but the situation remains unresolved.

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NEW YORK: Gay Groups To Denounce NYPD's Stop-And-Frisk Policy

A broad coalition of LGBT groups and others will gather at Manhattan's Stonewall Inn today to jointly denounce the NYPD's racist stop-and-frisk policy.
“We are all standing together against police harassment on the basis of a person’s identity,” Rea Carey, the executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, said in an interview. “There was no rational reason to raid the Stonewall Inn in 1969, and there is no rational reason to stop black and Latino men in 2012 and frisk them simply for being who they are,” she said. The gay rights groups, including the Human Rights Campaign, Lambda Legal and the Empire State Pride Agenda, also plan to participate in a march on June 17 to protest the stop-and-frisk practice. The march is being organized by the N.A.A.C.P., the Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network, and 1199 S.E.I.U., a union of health care workers. In 2011, the police stopped and questioned New Yorkers 684,330 times; 87 percent of those stopped were black or Latino.
The event kicks off at 4pm.

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Headline Of The Day

Breitbart.com has the guest list:
Former Alaska governor and vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin will headline this year’s RightOnline conference in Las Vegas. The conference, which will be held June 15-16 in Las Vegas and is sponsored by Americans for Prosperity, will feature sessions from video journalist and ACORN and voter fraud-fighter James O’Keefe, pollster Scott Rasmussen, and online icon Michelle Malkin.
Celebrating liars, living and dead.

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TONIGHT: Venusian Rarity

You'll only get one shot at seeing this in your lifetime.
The annals of European astronomy burst with famous names: Copernicus, Kepler, Halley. Jeremiah Horrocks? Not so famous. But in 1639, the young Englishman became the first person known to witness one of the rarest events in the heavens: the passing of Venus across the face of the sun — a transit. On Tuesday, Venus will again cross the sun, for just the sixth time since. It won’t do so again until 2117, making this the last transit of Venus for nearly everyone alive today. Telescopes around the world — and up in space — will turn sunward as the roughly seven-hour transit begins at 6:03 p.m. Eastern time. As the black dollop of Venus inches along, scientists will examine the planet’s atmosphere and gather clues that may help them find Earth-like planets circling other stars.

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