i've been remiss...

(and no, that's not a new drag name).

husbear and i have been in the living hell known as a remodel of the love shack on cinder blocks.

ok, enough "don't cry for me blogentina"...what motivated me to post today was a BLISTERING (in a hella-good way) post from John Aravosis over at AMERICAblog.gay in response to Andrew Tobias ("aunt tomasina", h/t commenter "fritzrth")

i won't excerpt it here, you must go HERE and read the full delicious (and well-deserved) beyotch slap response to "tomasina" tobias (oh, fritzrth, you bring out the claws in me).

what i will post in full is this most excellent comment from GRIDLOCK (my new blog-commenter mancrush), who said:

Jesus, what a basketful of fail. Not a nice basket either.. one of those cheap dollar store easter kinds with the bits of plastic sticking out and that weird chemical smell.

Where to start?

I don't want to see Nancy Pelosi have to hand her gavel to John Boehner, or Barney Frank have to hand his to the gentleman from Alabama. I expect your readers don't, either.

I don't give a rat's ass what you want to see or not. If they have to hand their gavels over because they suck at their jobs, then too fucking bad. Listen closely Tobias: We do not care anymore if the GOP wins if the Dems are just as bad as they are. Get it? Party loyalty is fucking OVER. It's done. It's passé. People want and care about RESULTS, they do NOT care if the person has an R or a D beside their name because that crap is interchangeable.

Merely voting for someone, who has done and continues to do nothing for us, simply because they have a specific letter beside their name has gone the way of the dinosaurs. If you are unaware of this, perhaps you better consign yourself to the dustbin of history right alongside because you're just as outmoded and useless.

So even as we push for our rights - as we absolutely should - I'd urge John and others not to demonize our allies and, in so doing, discourage our community from acting in its own self-interest by failing to fight like mad to keep the right wing from gaining more power.

Demonize our allies? What allies are those, exactly? The same allies who demonize US in court, defending the indefensible DADT and DOMA even though they are NOT required to do so? Demonizing us with hideous language equating our relationships to incestuous pedophiles? Demonizing us by saying we are not deserving of full citizenship? Tobias, you giant squishy pantload, allies actually HELP YOU. They push for you. They accomplish things for you. They don't merely mouth platitudes and then turn their backs on you in your hour of need.

The Dems have done that for DECADES, Tobias. We have given our money, time, votes, blood, sweat, and many many tears and what the fuck have we gotten in return? Absolutely nothing but a knife in the back and our bodies thrown under the bus.

Right now, the Dems are just as bad as the GOP. See, you're again showing how much of an obsolete dinosaur you are.. you're still stuck on this "My team good even though they don't do anything for me, their team bad" mentality. You're an airheaded cheerleader hoping the captain of the football team marries you, but the most he's gonna do is fuck you in the back of a Camaro and then dump your pregnant ass on the curb.


And if we don't form TOO tight a circular firing squad, we will make a lot more.

How about this, Tobias:

We'll make headway on LGBT rights when the Democrats actually stand for something, grow a spine,push for legislation and don't view us as a moneypot, locked in voting demographic, or LIABILITY after the election.

Got it?

that's not just going to leave a mark...methinks it will leave a SCAR. good.

in closing, gridlock, you are SO lucky i'm a "stand by my man" kinda man!

i know what bullsh*t smells like...and this is it:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/21/AR2009122103240.html

brain numbing emphasis added:

The OPM is between a rock and a hard place because the Obama administration wants to ditch the act, a.k.a. DOMA, something Kaplan subtly made clear by calling it a "so-called" act.

To emphasize the point, she added: "As the President has explained, the Administration believes that this law is discriminatory and needs to be repealed by Congress -- that is why President Obama has stated that he opposes DOMA and supports its legislative repeal."

discriminatory? discriminatory??? DISCRIMINATORY?!?!? SRSLY, WTF...why not just call it what it is: UNCONSTITUTIONAL!!!

Why DOMA must be repealed:

thanks a lot to "fierce advocate's" doj.

In its written response to the lawsuit, filed in September, the Justice Department argued that there is no fundamental right to marriage-based federal benefits and says Congress is entitled to address issues of social reform on an "incremental" basis. "

Congress is therefore permitted to provide benefits only to those who have historically been permitted to marry, without extending the same benefit to those only recently permitted to do so," the government said.

full article here

Urvashi Vaid has a new fan...ME!

incredible address at the NEM where Ms. Vaid takes on O, the right wing, the religious right, et. al., and closes with "marching orders".

brilliant speech, mr. bond...

you are to be commended for your words to the Human Rights Campaign.

this should be required viewing for all humanity: gay and straight, black-white-brown-yellow-red, jew-christian-muslim-agnostic-atheist, democrat and republican.

if you read this posting, i exhort you to invest 25 minutes of your time to listen to these powerful words, delivered with great eloquence.





my only concern, mr. bond, is that it's very easy to give this type of speech in front of the HRC. i would like to see you give this same speech, word-for-word, next year at the 101st anniversary of the NAACP.

h/t to Raymond Leon Roker's HuffPost article where I saw this video.

the AG of Mass. is BRILLIANT!

let's see...republiCONS support marriage equality as a state's rights issue.

the mass. AG sees DOMA as preventing the state from legally providing marriage equality.

methinks the republiCONS "state's rights" meme is about to bite them in their DOMA-supporting behinds!

from Care2:

What Does The DOMA Challenge Consist Of?


State Attorney General Martha Coakley has filed the lawsuit, called the Commonwealth v. United States Department of Health and Human Services, citing that, in order for Massachusetts to be able to define marriage as its sees fit, DOMA, which itself defines marriage as being solely between one man and one woman, must be repealed so that the state be allowed to exercise the very same rights as prescribed in DOMA's own legal wording when it gives states the right to make such autonomous decisions on the validity of same sex marriages.



The complaint contests that the DOMA legislation oversteps its bounds (contrary to the Full Faith and Credit Clause) as it prescribes that all states be subjected to the Federal perspective on what marriage is and that the law is the US Government directly interfering with a matter of state jurisdiction and determination when it comes to such things as benefit allocation, and that it does so by use of an overreaching and discriminatory law (violating the Equal Protections Clause).

note to "fierce advocate": if we want a party, we'll throw it when we have equal rights

from the hill:
(emphasis added)

President Obama, under fire from some gay and lesbian groups for what they see as slow movement on two of their most important issues, is taking steps to keep that voting bloc in his column.

This week, the president will host an event at the White House "recognizing and celebrating the accomplishments" of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans. The event comes just days after Vice President Biden was dispatched to extend an olive branch to the gay community.

dear fierce advocate,

nobody likes a party more than the glbt community. actually, a large segment of our community makes their living throwing parties...event planners, caterers, florists, designers...you know, all the "stereotype" types.

the dnc party last week and tonight's party are not what we're looking for. what we're looking for is RESPECT and DIGNITY. to be treated equally with our straight tax-paying counterparts.

john aravosis is my hero...and howard dean discovers a "scheduling conflict"

h/t Americablog

i am absolutely convinced if john hadn't been a bull in a china closet on steroids over this asinine, panderfest, it would have gone off without a hitch. this just goes to show us...ALL of US...that we have a voice. john has proven he can be a one-man wrecking crew.

here are some great examples of great blogger journalism/activism:

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/howard-dean-pulls-out-of-dnc-gay.html?dsq=11686656#comment-11686656

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/sldn-invited-lt-col-victor-fehrenbach.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/best-letter-to-obama-on-gay-issues.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/obama-wont-use-executive-power-to-end.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/former-riaa-head-hilary-rosen-wont.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/jennifer-chrisler-and-family-equality.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/white-house-gay-call-participant-what.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/while-white-house-holds-secret-gay.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/sldn-to-join-protesters-outside-dnc-gay.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/white-house-prepares-to-talk-to-gay.html

http://www.americablog.com/2009/06/protest-at-second-dnc-gay-fundraiser.html




awesome. just awesome.

wow. the day before "teh big gay dnc fundraiser", former head of the dnc, howard dean, discovers a "conflict".

was it:
a.) time to have the prius serviced?
b.) laundry day?
c.) mow the lawn day?
d.) clean out the fridge day?
e.) pick up the dry cleaning day?
f.) shampoo day?

whatever the reason (and i think we all know the real reason), good for you dr. dean!!!

pam spaulding of pam's house blend and joe over at joe.my.god are also to be commended for keeping this issue in "prime real estate" on their blogs, as well.

kudos for a job well done.

thanks, chris...now would you please speak to "fierce advocate" for us?

h/t Joe.My.God via Pam's House Blend, where you can read a more substantial piece.
(emphasis added by me)

"Public officials aren’t supposed to change their minds. But I firmly believe that it’s important to keep learning. Last week, while I was in Connecticut meeting with members of the gay and lesbian community from across the state, I had the opportunity to tell them what I’ve learned about marriage, and about equality. While I’ve long been for extending every benefit of marriage to same-sex couples, I have in the past drawn a distinction between a marriage-like status (“civil unions”) and full marriage rights.

"The reason was simple: I was raised to believe that marriage is between a man and a woman. And as many other Americans have realized as they’ve struggled to reconcile the principle of fairness with the lessons they learned early in life, that’s not an easy thing to overcome. But the fact that I was raised a certain way just isn’t a good enough reason to stand in the way of fairness anymore. The Connecticut Supreme Court, of course, has ruled that such a distinction holds no merit under the law. And the Court is right." - Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT), posting on his official site that he has reversed his position and now supports full marriage equality for LGBT Americans.

the undelivered speech seen through rose-colored glasses:

the "fierce advocate" in his own words:

"These issues affect not only the LGBT community, but also our entire Nation. As long as the promise of equality for all remains unfulfilled, all Americans are affected. If we can work together to advance the principles upon which our Nation was founded, every American will benefit. During LGBT Pride Month, I call upon the LGBT community, the Congress, and the American people to work together to promote equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

http://citizenchris.typepad.com/citizenchris/2009/06/obamas-major-speech-on-lgbt-rights.html

yeah, when monkeys fly out of my a$$.

Another Day, Another Addition To the Sidebar Regarding GLBT Equality

h/t to Pam Spaulding @ Pam's House Blend.

pam is one of my favorite glbt-centric bloggers and she's all over this issue like a duck on a june bug!

so, what are "The Dallas Principles"? i thought you would never ask:

The following eight guiding principles underlie our call to action.

In order to achieve full civil rights now, we avow:

1.Full civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals must be enacted now. Delay and excuses are no longer acceptable.

2.We will not leave any part of our community behind.

3.Separate is never equal.

4.Religious beliefs are not a basis upon which to affirm or deny civil rights.

5.The establishment and guardianship of full civil rights is a non-partisan issue.

6.Individual involvement and grassroots action are paramount to success and must be encouraged.

7.Success is measured by the civil rights we all achieve, not by words, access or money raised.

8.Those who seek our support are expected to commit to these principles.