Some Truth About Leviticus

Via my pal DJ Corey Craig, here's a pastor that will surely surprise you. Corey promises to put this to a beat.

Bill Nye: Homosexuality Is Natural

Some YouTube commenters don't think he really answered the question regarding "evolutionary sense."

Ben Shapiro Vs Dan Savage

In a Townhall piece published today, wingnut commentator Ben Shapiro goes after Dan Savage for his recent invitation for Ben Carson to "suck my dick" and prove that homosexuality is a choice.

That is an insipid argument; were the shoe on the other foot, Savage would have to demonstrate that being gay is involuntary by engaging in sexual behavior with every male he meets. Given his prior solicitation of Rick Santorum, Mike Huckabee, and Herman Cain, that may well be his desire, but it's a rotten argument overall.

But arguments no longer matter. Logic no longer matters. Feelings matter. We intuitively understand that behavior defines us rather than feeling; no one would label a vegetarian a person who deplores meat-eating but chows down on steak every night. But when it comes to sexual behavior, we look to get ourselves off the hook: All sexual behavior is involuntary, so how can we be expected to make decisions about it? Hence the left's absurd lie during the Clinton era that everyone lies about sex; hence the asinine notion that chastity until marriage is an impossibility; hence the morally blind belief that societal pressure for sexual morality is discriminatory in the same sense that racism is discriminatory.

The result: No honest discussion can be had about the extent of human choice, the limits of human choice, and our own preferences among the choices human beings make. We are mere animals, forced by our firing neurons to act on each and every impulse. We have no choice. And those who say we do ought to perform oral sex on us.

So far Carson has stuck to his pledge to shut up forever about gay issues. But it's only been a week.

British Headline Of The Day

Via the Guardian:

A campaign to pardon nearly 50,000 men convicted under a 19th-century law for homosexual activity is being delayed amid concerns in Whitehall that a small number of paedophiles could be included. Campaigners who had hoped that the royal pardon for the Enigma codebreaker Alan Turing would be extended across the nation have been dismayed by a warning from Whitehall officials that a blanket pardon could benefit gay men who had sex with a minor. “There is huge frustration that the deal breaker now appears to be a fear that a general pardon might see what are being described as some paedophiles pardoned,” one source familiar with the Whitehall negotiations told the Guardian. “This sounds like an excuse and is driving people to despair.” Officials have said that there may be no record of whether a minor was involved in a pre-1967 prosecution because homosexuality was illegal regardless of age. Homosexuality was initially decriminalised in 1967 for consenting adults aged 21 and over. The age of consent was eventually equalised in Great Britain in 2001.

It's estimated that 15,000 men convicted before 1967 are still living.

BRITAIN: Family Of Alan Turing To Demand Pardon For 49,000 Other Men

Via the Guardian:

The family of the codebreaker Alan Turing will visit Downing Street on Monday to demand the government pardons 49,000 other men persecuted like him for their homosexuality. Turing, whose work cracking the German military codes was vital to the British war effort against Nazi Germany, was convicted in 1952 of gross indecency with a 19-year-old man, was chemically castrated, and two years later died from cyanide poisoning in an apparent suicide. He was given a posthumous royal pardon in 2013 and campaigners want the government to pardon all the men convicted under the outdated law. Turing’s great-nephew, Nevil Hunt, his great-niece, Rachel Barnes, and her son, Thomas, will hand over the petition, which attracted almost 500,000 signatures, to 10 Downing Street. Ms Barnes said: “I consider it to be fair and just that everybody who was convicted under the Gross Indecency law is given a pardon. It is illogical that my great uncle has been the only one to be pardoned when so many were convicted of the same crime. I feel sure that Alan Turing would have also wanted justice for everybody.”

(Tipped by JMG reader Daddy Ray)

American Family Association Again Calls For The Criminalization Of Homosexuality

Fischer's tweet above came shortly after a tweet endorsing a Hot Air column in support of criminalizing adultery.

Pat Robertson: Homosexuals Will Die Out Because They Don't Reproduce

But it's a CHOICE to be gay. Norman, coordinate!

Former "Ex-Gay" Client Of Ladybird Bachmann: I'm Still Totally Gay

Via Religion News Service:

Christian Schizzel spent 7 years being trotted around the country on media outlets as a poster boy for the ex-gay movement. Now, after reclaiming his gay identity, Christian says he won’t be a weapon anymore. In an exclusive interview with RNS, Christian tells about his experience with the Janet Boynes Ministries and The Bachmann & Associates counseling centers, the latter operation owned by U.S. Rep. Michelle Bachmann and husband Marcus Bachmann. Both entities were associated with the now closed Exodus International but are currently still in business. At nine years of age, Christian was sexually and physically abused by his step father — a missionary who used Bible verses to silence Christian into submission. He even used scripture during the acts itself to justify the abuse. Years later at the age of 18, after coming out to friends and family, Christian was encouraged to seek help at the ministry. It was there that they used this horrific experience to pinpoint the “cause” of Christian’s sexuality, although Christian said he knew about his sexuality before the abuse.

Shizzel: "Coming out publicly and sharing is important to me because my sexuality has been exploited my whole life by the Christian community." Hit the link to read the interview.

NORTH CAROLINA: Five Church Members Charged With Kidnapping Gay Man

Via a local North Carolina CBS affiliate:

Five members of a local church are facing serious charges. The Word of Faith Fellowship has been apart of the Spindale community in Rutherford County, North Carolina for more than three decades. One former member says something that happened behind closed doors had him fearing for his life.

"I honestly thought I was going to die," said Matthew Fenner. He says several church members beat and strangled him because he's gay. "My head was like being flung back, my vision was going brown and black," said Fenner. "I couldn't breathe and I'm sitting here thinking if I don't get out of this, i'm probably going to die."

That 2013 incident has now led to the indictments of five church members: Sarah Covington Anderson, Adam Christopher Bartley, Brooke McFadden Covington, Justin Brock Covington and Robert Louis Walker Jr. Each face simple assault and kidnapping charges. Anderson also faces an additional charge of assault by strangulation. The Rutherford County Sheriff's Office released the information Tuesday afternoon.

Fenner's mother and brother testified against him during a grand jury convened on Monday. Kenner has recounted other incidents of abuse by church members. Via Matt Comer reports at Q Notes:

Fenner continues, “I had at least 15-20 college age men around me, screaming, shaking me, punching me, hitting my chest, grabbing my head, telling me to repeat different phrases, all of which caused (and have resulted in much) mental distress to high levels.” Later in the incident, Fenner says he was surrounded again by a larger group of young men. “The pushing, screaming, hitting, and shaking ensued again, and this time with more force,” he writes. “If I so much as adjusted myself in the chair, I was knocked bak down and was told to stop resisting.”

The church has been investigated for other hate crimes in the past.

(Tipped by JMG readers Rob and Matthew)

Palau Decriminalizes Homosexuality

The tiny island nation of Palau has decriminalized homosexuality.

The new criminal laws came into force at the end of July but were only announced today. At Palau’s last Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in 2011, France, Norway and Spain all made recommendations that the country repeal its anti-gay laws, which were accepted by the government. This new criminal code was passed by the Palau National Congress and signed into law by President Tommy Remengesau Jr in April. Gay sex used to be punishable by up to ten years in jail but lesbian sex was legal.

Palau comprises over 250 islands southeast of the Philippines, has a population of 21,000, and is affiliated with the United States under the Compact Of Free Association. That deal grants the US access to the waters around the islands, which are protected by the Coast Guard.

Maggie Gallagher Has The Vatican Sadz

"I hope to respond intellectually to the synod report. Tears right now are streaming from my face, and it is not about objections to welcoming gay people. There is something more profoundly at stake for me. Is this me? In the corner?" - Maggie Gallagher, writing for the National Review. Her link goes to REM's Losing My Religion, which commenters are quick to point out is a gay man's song about unrequited love. (Tipped by JMG reader Thomas)

Thomas Peters Has The Vatican Sadz

"We need to remember and repeat that the relatio is only a working document and carries no authority. In fact, this entire extraordinary synod serves a purely advisory role in preparation for the ordinary synod next fall. What this debate has already done is create a space for all of us to reflect on the church’s teaching and to quietly, firmly and persistently proclaim the truth. This is only the first working document in a year-long process leading into next year’s ordinary synod. This is a marathon, not a sprint. So it’s time to get training for the long road ahead. So read and share good articles that provide clarity and explain the church’s teaching well. Respond to false accusations against the church and her teaching. And, perhaps most of all, refuse to fall into despair when it seems as though the truth is being lost in a sea of falsehood. The truth only vanishes if truth-tellers cease speaking. So keep speaking — for even a still, small voice can overcome an earthquake if it speaks the truth." - Former NOM staffer Thomas Peters, who is very upset about yesterday's news that the Vatican is rethinking its approach to homosexuality.

IRAN: 17% Of Students Identify As Gay In Survey Conducted By Government

From the Economist:

An 82-page document recently issued by Iran’s parliamentary research department is stark in its findings. Not only are young adults sexually active, with 80% of unmarried females having boyfriends, but secondary-school pupils are, too. Illicit unions are not just between girls and boys; 17% of the 142,000 students who were surveyed said that they were homosexual. In Tehran, the capital, long known for its underground sex scene, chastity is plainly becoming less common. The scope and pace of change are challenging the government and posing a headache for the clerics who dispense guidance at Friday prayers. The report is also a rare official admission of the unspoken accord in Iran: people can do what they want so long as it takes place behind closed doors. Parliament’s researchers, on this occasion, were allowed to say the unsayable.

Quote Of The Day - Maggie Gallagher

"When Christians tell me that homosexuality is 'socially constructed' and therefore not a 'real; permanent feature of human existence, I generally respond 'I know gay people exist the same way that I know that Methodists exist. I’ve met them.' In other words, not all categories that are real are founded on fixed unchangeable essences. Sexual orientation as a concept is a way of organizing 'given reality' (sexual attraction) into a communal identity, the strongest kind. It is therefore not at all like race, and but rather more akin to religion. I never ever think of myself as a heterosexual, nonetheless my own ideas about my experience of sexuality ('we are born male and female and called to come together in love in this thing called marriage') are core enough to my identity and my sense of what is required for communal good that I am willing to suffer rather than renounce them, if necessary. They are not positions I hold, they are part of who I am." - Maggie Gallagher, writing for her personal blog. (Tipped by JMG reader Aaron)

TOMORROW: World Premiere Of Pet Shop Boys' Alan Turing Opera In London

Tomorrow night at London's Royal Albert Hall, Pet Shop Boys will perform with the BBC Concert Orchestra in the world premiere of their Alan Turing opera, A Man From The Future. Via the Guardian:

"For one night only, I'm one of the BBC singers!" marvels Pet Shop Boys frontman Neil Tennant – he is adding his voice to the 18-strong chamber choir. "I can't imagine he'll blend in," deadpans his colleague Chris Lowe, who is usually found hiding behind a bank of synthesisers at their shows. He is worried about the lack of dry ice and lasers at the Royal Albert Hall. "The lights are always on [at classical concerts], aren't they? I personally am going to feel very exposed." It is not the first time a pop group has featured at the Proms. From Soft Machine's 1970 set (later turned into a live album)to last year's 6 Music and 1Xtra specials, pop and rock acts have often played a part in the two-month series. But Tennant and Lowe are doing something different this year: performing the world premiere of an ambitious new work, A Man From The Future. Based on the life of the extraordinary mathematician and Enigma code-cracker Alan Turing, it's an orchestral pop "biography" in eight parts for electronics, orchestra, choir and narrator.

Late last year Turing was granted a posthumous royal pardon for the 1952 homosexuality conviction that ultimately led to his suicide. The pardon prompted Tennant to change the closing of the opera.

"We had to [rewrite the ending to] point out that the convictions of tens of thousands of other men remain, and that hasn't really been discussed," says Tennant. However, the finale has a celebratory feel, and recognises the changes in attitudes towards homosexuality, globally. Tennant lists these happily: a 2013 US poll in which 52% of Americans were shown to approve of same-sex marriage, the moment in 1994 when John Major lowered the age of consent to 18 ("everyone forgets it was him that started things off").

Tomorrow's event will begin with Chrissie Hynde providing vocals on orchestral versions of several Pet Shop Boys classics, including Rent and Love Is A Catastrophe. The Turing opera will follow. The concert begins at 5:15PM New York City time and I'll post a live stream if one is available.

Funny Or Die Mocks Rick Perry

(Tipped by JMG reader Chris)

Tony Perkins Defends Gov. Rick Perry, Concedes Homosexuality Is Not A Choice

"Obviously, homosexual attractions are not a 'choice' in the vast majority of cases. But it should be insulting to people with same-sex attractions to claim that they're compelled to act on those attractions. Homosexual or heterosexual, people are responsible for their conduct. Have we come to the point that we are nothing more than our sexual urges? And that's essentially the point Governor Perry was trying to make. But unfortunately for him, there's no room for an honest conversation in Obama's America. Much as liberals despise that little thing called the First Amendment, Governor Perry has the freedom to have that opinion -- even if it isn't politically correct. And there are millions of Americans that are glad he isn't afraid to voice it." - Hate group leader Tony Perkins, via press release.

BRITAIN: Pet Shop Boys To Call For Mass Pardons For Thousands Of Men Convicted Of Homosexual Acts

Via the Sunday Times:

Pet Shop Boys are to use a new orchestral work about the computer pioneer Alan Turing to call for the “tens of thousands of men” imprisoned or fined for committing homosexual acts to be pardoned. A Man From the Future, created by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, will premiere at the Proms on July 23 . The Pardon, the last song, references the posthumous pardon granted to Turing, who was prosecuted for gross indecency in 1952. Tennant and Lowe will urge the government to pardon others convicted before homosexuality was decriminalised in 1967. “So very many lives were ruined over such a long period,” said Tennant. “Frankly it rather disappoints me that Stonewall [the gay rights group] has not done more. So we’re making the statement ourselves.”

Turing was posthumously pardoned in December 2013.

GALLUP: Americans Split On "Born Gay"

Via Gallup:

In a year when the movement for same-sex marriages continues to make strides across the U.S., Americans remain divided on how people come to be gay or lesbian. More than a third of Americans (37%) believe people become gay as a result of factors such as their upbringing and environment, while 42% say people are born gay. This latter belief is down slightly from 2013, when nearly half (47%) believed people were gay at birth. When Gallup first asked about the origins of same-sex orientation in 1977, over half of Americans (56%) attributed it to an individual's upbringing and environment, while 13% believed it to be something a gay person is born with. This gap in opinions narrowed over the time, and by 2001, Americans were more likely to believe in homosexuality as occurring at birth (40%) for the first time, though only by one percentage point. Since then, Americans have been roughly equally divided over this question, although with some year-to-year fluctuations in the precise percentages.

STUDY: 2.7 Billion People Live In Countries Where Homosexuality Is A Crime

Via the Guardian:

More than 2.7 billion people live in countries where being gay is punishable by imprisonment, lashes or even death, new research obtained by the Guardian shows. The stark figure from the International Lesbian and Gay Association (Ilga) highlights the discrimination faced by gay people around the world; the full report shows there is not a single country where LGBT people enjoy equal legal rights with their heterosexual counterparts. Five countries – Iran, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen – still have a statutory death penalty for homosexuality, while a further 71 countries punish same-sex couples with lesser sentences of imprisonment or corporal punishment. In total, 2.79 billion people live in countries where being gay can lead to prison or death – seven times as many as live in countries with same-sex marriage.

Now the good news: "More than 1.3 billion people live in countries with some form of legal protection against discrimination against LGBT people, while 780 million live in countries with same-sex marriage or civil unions. More than a billion people live in countries which bar workplace discrimination against LGBT people."

MAP: Via the Guardian's interactive map of LGBT rights around the world.