Lion-Killing Dentist Goes On The Lam

Walter Palmer, the American dentist charged in the killing of Africa's "most famous lion" has reportedly gone into hiding.

Emmanuel Fundira, the president of the Safari Operators Association of Zimbabwe, confirmed at a news conference on Tuesday that Dr. Walter Palmer is wanted for the death of Cecil the lion but that his whereabouts were unknown. Police spokeswoman Charity Charamba said 'we are looking for Palmer' who allegedly paid $55,000 (£35,000) for a big game permit and traveled from his home town of Minneapolis to Africa to kill the lion. Dr. Palmer's hunting colleagues, Zimbabwean hunter Theo Bronkhorst and local landowner Honest Ndlovu are due to appear in court this week on poaching charges for allegedly killing Cecil. "We arrested two people and now we are looking for Palmer in connection with the same case," said Charamba. The much loved big cat was wounded by an arrow after he was allegedly lured out of the national park by the hunter's bait. After spending two days tracking the injured beast, Cecil was eventually found and shot dead. The corpse was then skinned and the head hacked off as a trophy.

While Palmer's current location is unknown, this afternoon the Minneapolis Star-Tribune published his statement.

"In early July, I was in Zimbabwe on a bow hunting trip for big game. I hired several professional guides and they secured all proper permits. To my knowledge, everything about this trip was legal and properly handled and conducted. I had no idea that the lion I took was a known, local favorite, was collared and part of a study until the end of the hunt. I relied on the expertise of my local professional guides to ensure a legal hunt. I have not been contacted by authorities in Zimbabwe or in the U.S. about this situation, but will assist them in any inquiries they may have. Again, I deeply regret that my pursuit of an activity I love and practice responsibly and legally resulted in the taking of this lion."

Palmer's accomplices face up to either ten or fifteen years in a Zimbabwean prison, according to conflicting reports. It's not clear what punishment Palmer would face should he be extradited back to Africa. An extradition treaty between the United States and Zimbabwe was signed in 1997 and went into effect in 2000.

ZIMBABWE: American Dentist Exposed As Killer Of Beloved Cecil The Lion

Via the Telegraph:

Cecil the lion – the most famous creature in one of Zimbabwe's national parks – was killed by an American hunter who has boasted about shooting a menagerie of animals with his bow and arrow, The Telegraph can reveal. Walter Palmer (above left), a dentist from Minnesota, is believed to have paid £35,000 to shoot and kill the much-loved lion with a bow and arrow. The animal was shot on July 1 in Hwange National Park. Two independent sources have confirmed the hunter's identity to the paper, which has also seen a copy of the relevant hunting permit. Conservation groups in Zimbabwe reacted angrily to the news that the 13-year-old animal had been killed: partly because the lion was known to visitors and seemingly enjoyed human contact, and partly because of the way in which he was killed. He was lured out of the national park and shot.

Palmer and the man who assisted him have been charged with poaching. At the link you'll find photos of Palmer posing with other killed animals including a leopard and a white rhino. He has previously been convicted of illegally killing a black bear in Wisconsin.

MICHIGAN: Mother Says Outed "Grindr Pastor" Told Her Gay Son To Kill Himself UPDATE: The Son Speaks Out Himself

Via the CBS affiliate in Flint, Michigan:

A mother came forward with new accusations against the local pastor who resigned after being outed as gay. She said what that pastor told her son nearly drove him to suicide. Jennifer Kish is angered over the recent revelation that Matthew Makela might be gay, not because of his alleged sexual preference, but because of how he treated her son while they were parishioners at his church. Makela is a Midland pastor who resigned after being outed by a website. The website said it outed Makela because of his outspoken stance in recent years against homosexuality, a stance one woman said was particularly harmful to her family. Kish said her then 17-year-old son Tyler suffered from serious depression and was considering suicide because he was told by Makela he was going to hell because he was gay. "If he's going to hell for being gay then he might as well commit suicide," Kish said. Makela is the subject of scrutiny because of the alleged hypocrisy. The website Queerty posted a conversation it claims shows Makela soliciting sex with another man on the app Grindr, an app geared toward gay and bisexual men.

UPDATE: Some readers have noted that the mother in the above story may be putting words into the mouth of the so-called Grindr Pastor, who may have "only" told her son that being gay was as bad a sin as committing suicide. In the clip below, the teenager tells the story himself.

Evil Mother To SCOTUS: My Dead Son's Husband Shouldn't Get His Estate

Acting on behalf of a local woman, the Alabama-based Foundation For Moral Law has filed an amicus brief which urges the Supreme Court to overturn the Tenth Circuit's strike down of Utah's ban on same-sex marriage. According to the brief, the woman does not want her late son's husband to be able to inherit her son's estate.

Foundation for Moral Law (the Foundation), is a national public-interest organization based in Montgomery, Alabama, dedicated to defending the unalienable right to acknowledge God as the moral foundation of our laws; promoting a return to the historic and original interpretation of the United States Constitution; and educating citizens and government officials about the meaning and foundational principles of the Constitution. The Foundation has an interest in this case because it believes that this nation’s laws should reflect the moral basis upon which the nation was founded, and that the ancient roots of the common law, the pronouncements of the legal philosophers from whom this nation’s Founders derived their view of law, the views of the Founders themselves, and the views of the American people as a whole from the beginning of American history at least until very recently, have held that homosexual conduct is immoral and should not be sanctioned by giving it the official state sanction of marriage.

The Foundation is interested in this case because a similar lawsuit has been filed challenging Alabama’s Sanctity of Marriage Amendment, which was approved by Alabama voters 81%-19% in 2006. David Fancher, an Alabama resident who was in a same-sex relationship with Paul Hard, died in an vehicle accident August 1, 2011. Hard has sued the State of Alabama, arguing that Alabama’s Sanctity of Marriage Amendment is unconstitutional and that he is therefore the lawful spouse of David Fancher and is entitled to one-half of Fancher’s estate. The mother of David Fancher does not want her son’s name used to advance the cause of same-sex marriage, and she has retained the Foundation for Moral Law to represent her interests. The federal district court has granted her motion to intervene, and the decision of this Court concerning the Utah case will very likely affect the outcome of our Alabama case.

The couple married in Provincetown in 2011. Read the full brief at Equality Case Files.

UPDATE: The former head of the Foundation For Moral Law is Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, who was booted from the court in 2003 for refusing to remove a Ten Commandments monument from the grounds of the courthouse. Moore stepped down from the leading the group in 2013 after being re-elected as chief justice of the state Supreme Court. He is now the "president emeritus" of the Foundation For Moral Law.

UPDATE II: This brief was filed by Foundation For Moral Law senior counsel John Eidsmoe, who has a crackpot history that might exceed that of Roy Moore. In 2011 Eidsmoe called for Congress to have "ex-gay" torture provided to the US military. That same year he declared that gay service members will molest children. He has also said that all women must submit to their husbands and that the United States must impose biblical laws and punishments or else the nation is doomed. Eidsmoe, NOT incidentally, was Michele Bachmann's professor at Oral Roberts University.

VIRAL VIDEO: Kid Comes Out, Family Curses, Disowns Him, Then Assaults Him

440K views in one day of this YouTube clip in which a kid comes out to his family, only to have them curse him because Jesus, then physically attack him. Dan Savage writes:

"That was hard to listen to. Jesus. Fucking. Christ. My heart breaks for that poor, brave, tough kid. What the fuck is wrong with these people? We could have a fundraiser up and running for this poor kid by morning—if we knew who he was and where he was."

Stay out of the YouTube comments, seriously.

UPDATE: A fundraiser has been set up.

FLORIDA: Church Cancels Man's Funeral After Learning That He Was Gay

Via Tampa's WFLA-TV:

Julie Atwood was standing at her son's casket when the phone rang. The church where her son's funeral was scheduled to be held the next day decided to abruptly cancel the service, after the pastor learned the deceased was gay and his obituary listed a surviving "husband." Atwood said she was told it would be "blasphemous" to hold the services at the church because her son, Julion Evans, 42, was gay. "It was devastating," she said. "I did feel like he was being denied the dignity of death." Evans' husband, Kendall Capers, says the pair were partners for 17 years and married last year in Maryland. Evans died at home after a 4-year battle with a rare illness called Amyloidosis, which destroys organs in the body. He says the obituary named him as "husband," and that their marriage was no secret. "Everyone who knew us knew about our relationship," he said. "We didn't keep secrets."

Pastor T.W. Jenkins says that he didn't know that Evans was gay until members of the congregation called to complain after seeing his husband named in the obituary. Jenkins: "Based on our preaching of the scripture, we would have been in error to allow the service in our church. I'm not trying to condemn anyone's lifestyle, but at the same time, I am a man of God, and I have to stand up for my principles."

Douchebag Of The Day - Sen. Rand Paul

Sen. Paul is apparently tweeting from the Texas GOP convention. The quotation marks presumably mean that somebody else just said that. I have a feeling this tweet will be remembered come 2016.

UPDATE: Nope. Sen. Rand Paul actually did just say that himself. Not only that, check out who he just suggested become prisoners of the Taliban.

Sen. Rand Paul on Friday likened Democrats to the recently released Taliban prisoners at Guantanamo Bay in a speech here at the Texas GOP convention. “Mr. President, you love to trade people,” the Kentucky Republican said to laughs, a reference to the deal made for the return of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. “Why don’t we set up a trade? But this time, instead of five Taliban, how about five Democrats? I’m thinking John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi…” He was drowned out by cheers. Afterward, Paul’s spokesman Sergio Gor said, “The senator was kidding — except for Mrs. Pelosi. That was serious.”

Oh yes, this will be remembered.

REPORT: Russian Skinheads Use Social Media To Lure And Torture LGBT Teens

From the Spectrum Human Rights Alliance, which advocates for LGBT rights in Eastern Europe, comes a horrifying report:

Infamous Russian ultranationalist and former skin head, Maxim Martsinkevich, known under the nickname "Cleaver" (or "Tesak" in Russian) spearheaded a country wide campaign against LGBT teens using a popular social network VK.com to lure unsuspected victims through personal ads. Mr. Martsinkevich's numerous and enthusiastic followers started two projects: "Occupy Pedophilyaj" and "Occupy Gerontilyaj". Allegedly they are trying to identify and report pedophiles using these "movements".

In reality, over 500 online groups have been created inside VK.com social network in order to organize illegal militant groups in every Russian city. Oddly enough their idea of fighting pedophiles targets exclusively male teenagers who respond to the same-sex personal ads and show up for a date. Captured victims are bullied and often tortured while being recorded on video. These self-proclaimed "crime fighters" perform their actions under the broad day light, often outside and clearly visible to general public that indifferently passes by or even commend them.

Spectrum notes that videos of the victims are widely circulated in order to out the teens to their parents and classmates.  Some suicides have reportedly resulted.  The owner of VK.com, Pavel Durov, lives in the United States.

VIDEO: Spectrum has posted the below video of a gay Moscow teen being "bullied, tortured, and sprayed with urine in broad daylight." You may not want to watch this.

(Via Instinct Magazine)

On Sale: Target Practice Gun Control Lobbyist Which "Bleeds When Shot"

Ian Millhiser at Think Progress reports that a company called Zombie Industries sells target practice mannequins which "bleed when shot!" Their latest model target is a "gun control lobbyist" which goes for $89.95. From the sales pitch:

As a pro gun control lobbyist, this guy spent his days milling around Washington D.C. distorting the truth about guns & violent crimes. He not only believed that firearms should only be in movies, he honestly thought law-abiding citizens had no right to protect themselves, their neighbors, or their nation against violent attackers. He chronically ignored facts and bi-partisan crime statistics that disproved his anti-gun beliefs and would often base his arguments on pure emotion. Despite being a self-proclaimed expert on the subject, his actual working knowledge of firearms and their capabilities was completely non-existent; he even erroneously thought that banning cosmetic features on some firearms would have an effect on people’s safety levels. What’s worse is that he was even prone to exploiting victims of heinous crimes just to try and further his own political agenda. In other words, he was a real scumbag with no appreciation for the US Constitution or respect for an individual’s freedom!

See those guys in the suits in the background of image above? The guy just to the left of the zombie  was a victim in the Virginia Tech mass shooting. He sent Zombie Industries the below tweet today.

Think Progress notes that the company is also selling a target practice dummy that looks like President Obama.

BRITAIN: Islamist Terrorists Behead British Soldier On South London Street

Horrifying.

Two suspected terrorists were shot by armed police after attacking a pedestrian, believed to be a soldier, with a machete-style knife close to military barracks in an 'Islamist attack'. Local MP Nick Raynsford said he had been told the man attacked in the street was a soldier serving at the Royal Artillery Barracks near the attack. Mr Raynsford said the soldier had been returning to the barracks after a day out when he was attacked. The BBC reported sources had told them the men were shouting "Allahu Akbar" as they carried out the attack and had filmed carrying it out.

The Telegraph reports that one of the killers approached a passing city bus and asked passengers if they wanted to take his photo. In the clip below, one of the alleged killers boasts to the camera about what he had just done.


UPDATE: The American right is already making hay.

UPDATE II: The Muslim Council of Britain has issued a statement. Via press release:

This is a truly barbaric act that has no basis in Islam and we condemn this unreservedly. Our thoughts are with the victim and his family. We understand the victim is a serving member of the armed forces. Muslims have long served in this country’s armed forces, proudly and with honour. This attack on a member of the armed forces is dishonourable, and no cause justifies this murder.

This action will no doubt heighten tensions on the streets of the United Kingdom. We call on all our communities, Muslim and non-Muslim, to come together in solidarity to ensure the forces of hatred do not prevail. It is important we allow our police authorities to do their job without speculation. We also urge the utmost vigilance and ask the police authorities to calm tensions.

Today In Christian Love™

During his interview with crackpot Alan Keyes, yesterday Christian radio host Stan Solomon said:

"I can’t stand the thought, the idea, the concept of homosexuality. I don’t think I’m showing love for anyone if I encourage them or enable them or stand silently while they do something that’s going to kill them; the average homosexual lives half the adult life of the average heterosexual. FACT. FACT. Now, if you love someone, do you enable, encourage them, or stand silently by while they do drugs, while they smoke, while they drive while drunk? Hell no!"

Right Wing Watch notes that Keyes, who infamously threw his own lesbian daughter out of their home, responds in agreement.  Watch the clip.

RELATED: In 2010 Solomon resigned from the US House campaign of Marvin Scott after Bil Browning published numerous anti-gay tweets in which he said loving Christian things like "GAY = Got AIDS Yet?" Browning noted at the time that Solomon has also called for the murder of abortion providers.  Solomon's website sells crackpot items like colloidal silver and books by Randall Terry.

Minnesota House: Homocon Robert Oscar Lopez Testifies Against Own People

Robert Oscar Lopez is one of the three homocons who filed an anti-gay Supreme Court brief against marriage equality. Today he traveled to Minnesota to once again commit a moral crime against his own family.

(Clip by JMG reader Jim)

UPDATE: At this writing Lopez is now testifying before the state Senate, where he just declared himself to be "the gayest person in the room."

Clementi's Parents Want NOM Apology

The parents of Tyler Clementi want NOM to apologize after their repulsive spokesperson Jennifer Roback Morse referenced their son in a speech to Catholic students at Iowa State.  Morse said:

Sometimes you hear about these things and, you know, you don’t hear the whole story in the media. That kid Tyler Clementi who killed himself — who threw himself off the George Washington Bridge — do you know this story? Okay, then I'm not going to tell it. I mean, there was a much older man in the picture. In other words, there's usually more to the story, right? And so I think friendship is what you have to offer. There are a lot of situations where people are doing something sexual that’s probably not the best thing for them.

Clementi's parents wrote to NOM:

"To exploit our late son's name to advance an anti-equality agenda is offensive and wrong By doing so, National Organization for Marriage prove that not only is there no low they will not sink to, to advance their cruel agenda — but that neither they nor Ms. Morse have any grip on reality. The very idea that Tyler's tragedy happened because of too much support — instead of not enough — is ludicrous. Shame on them."

Roback, you may recall, has testified against LGBT rights before numerous state legislatures. Don't hold your breath for an apology.

PhoboQuotable - Peter Sprigg

"A person who believes they are, or wishes to be, the opposite sex from that which is written in the chromosomes of every cell of his or her body, is suffering from a disconnection with an immutable biological reality. The solution to this problem is not actions - up to and including self-mutilating surgery amputating healthy body parts - which will reinforce this disconnect with reality. I must oppose this bill because it will not work. This bill would force the state and private actors - employers, landlords, and others who provide public services - to officially and legally affirm the very delusion that puts these suffering individuals at odds with reality. Not only will it not make their lives better, but it will prevent them from getting the very help they do need to make their lives better." - Family Research Council vice president Peter Sprigg, testifying today before the Maryland Senate Judiciary Committee, which is considering a bill to ban gender identity discrimination.

RELATED: Sixteen states and numerous cities and counties presently outlaw gender identity discrimination. (Shamefully, New York state does not, although GENDA is once again under consideration.) In the map below, those 16 states are the darkest-shaded. States where only local protections are provided are shaded lighter. Maryland is shaded as it is because a large portion of residents are covered under Baltimore's 2002 ordinance.

American Family Association: Keep Dead Gay Soldiers Out Of Arlington Cemetery

Even if a gay soldier has given our nation the ultimate sacrifice, the American Family Association doesn't want his or her filthy gay bones desecrating a military cemetery. (Via Right Wing Watch)

UPDATE: Commenters point out that the AFA is technically only complaining that the spouses of gay veterans might be granted the privilege of burial at Arlington. But I think the illustration to their press release reveals what they are really saying here.

INDIANA: Christians Plan Separate Senior Prom That Bans Gay Students

"I believe that it was life circumstances and they chose to be that way; God created everyone equal. Homosexual students come to me with their problems, and I don't agree with them, but I care about them. It's the same thing with my special needs kids, I think God puts everyone in our lives for a reason. So the same goes for gays? Do you think they have a purpose in life?' No I honestly don't. Sorry, but I don't. I don't understand it. A gay person isn't going to come up and make some change unless it's to realize that it was a choice and they're choosing God." - Sullivan, Indiana public school teacher Diane Medley, speaking in support of a plan to stage a separate senior prom that will ban gay students from attending.

Dan Savage reacts:

Let's pause here to grieve for all the special education students in Sullivan, Indiana. Students with learning disabilities have it hard enough without getting stuck with a mentally challenged special ed teacher. You know else has it hard enough? I imagine queer kids growing up in Sullivan, Indiana, population 4,249, have it hard enough without having to watch shit like this on the evening news. The anti-gay haters at Sullivan High have a Facebook page: 2013 Sullivan Traditional Prom. One of the organizers of this hate group would like us to know that "this is not a hate group." 2013 Sullivan Traditional Prom is just a group that has been organized with the sole purpose of creating an alternate prom that excludes gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students and to achieve that end the group's members are calling LGBT kids "offensive," sick, and sinful. What's hateful about that? Besides, you know, everything?

Hit the top link and watch local news video of the vile Ms. Medley.

CAMEROON: Three Years In Prison For Texting This Photo To A Man

Via the New York Times:

An appeals court on Monday upheld a three-year sentence against a man found guilty of homosexual conduct for sending a text message to another man saying: "I'm very much in love with you." Activists said the court's ruling in Yaounde, the capital, marked yet another setback for gays and lesbians in Cameroon, widely viewed as the most repressive country in Africa when it comes to prosecuting same-sex couples.

Jean-Claude Roger Mbede, 32, had been provisionally released on bail in July after serving a year and a half in prison. His lawyer has 10 days now to file an appeal to the country's Supreme Court. Holding back tears Monday, he said he wasn't sure whether he could withstand more jail time given the conditions he faced there.

"I am going back to the dismal conditions that got me critically ill before I was temporarily released for medical reasons," he told The Associated Press by telephone. "I am not sure I can put up with the anti-gay attacks and harassment I underwent at the hands of fellow inmates and prison authorities on account of my perceived and unproven sexual orientation. The justice system in this country is just so unfair."

Human Rights Watch reports that last year Cameroon imprisoned 12 people for the "crime" of homosexuality.

Today In Christian Love: God Let Those Children Get Murdered Because There's No Prayer In Public Schools

Headline Of The Day

There aren't a lot of details at this writing.

Matt Barber: People With AIDS Are Sinners Who Deserve Their Gruesome Deaths

Just when you think God's Gentle People™ could not possibly behave more repulsively, Christian leader Matt Barber proves you wrong.  Deliberately timed for World AIDS Day, obviously.