GLBT activist Mike Rogers has significantly ramped up the gay response to the culture wars with this latest posting on blogactive.com I fully support Mike's tactics of outing the closeted hypocrites whose actions harm our community. It is not a popular opinion, but a world in which a black gay man can openly toil for Rick Santorum is a world that needs some serious bitch slapping.
Senator...
This post will be read by thousands and thousands of people... It's directed at ONE person.
Mr. Senator:
Tomorrow you will be faced with a vote that may have the longest aftereffects of any other you have cast in your Senate career.
Tomorrow you will decide if your political position is worth more than doing what is right for others like you. For others like you, Mr. Senator, who engage in oral sex with other men. (Although, Mr. Senator, most of us don't do in the bathrooms of Union Station!) Your fake marriage, by the way, will NOT protect you from the truth being told on this blog.
How does this blog decide who to report on? It's simple. We report on hypocrites. In this case, hypocrites who vote against the gay and lesbian community while engaging in gay sex themselves*.
When you cast that vote, Mr. Senator, represent your own...it's the least you could do.
This commonwealth doesn't need to write bigotry into its constitution in the name of misplaced morality.
This morning the Post-Gazette editors condemn the bill introduced in the PA House of Representatives that would amend the constitution to "protect marriage."
The PG notes that the amendment's impace reaches far beyond the queer community, threatening unmarried heterosexual families including adoptive parents and senior citizens.
They rightly criticize the homo-haters who have signed on to co-sponsor this piece of legislation:
The constitutional amendment is being offered as House Bill 2381 and, to their shame, 89 co-sponsors have signed on for a chance to do something negative at the expense of gay people, as always a safe group to pick on.
Shame is right! Every single one of these co-sponsors has taken time away from meeting their constituents real needs in order to propagate a hate-laced agenda. There's no justification for co-sponsoring this bill. Especially the Democrats! This is pure and simple pandering to the right wing base and it is going to come back to haunt them.
They give a shout out to our friend and champion Dan Frankel for using his time constructively to address family issues.
Two Pennsylvania residents weigh in on the the vicious discrimination underlying this legislation.
From the Post-Gazette, we discover that "the Democrats' would-be challengers to Rep. Melissa Hart, R-Bradford Woods, are jockeying for the endorsements of party luminaries."
That's Melissa Hart who toes the homo-hating Republican line, amendment and all. Melissa Hart who has an openly gay man working as her press secretary. Blogactive.com had the story this past fall.
So best of luck to Jason Altmire and Georgia Berner. Berner has long-time LGBT ally Sam Hens-Greco in her camp. No word yet from the Altmire campaign on homo-issues. I went through Leadership Development Initiative with Jason 5 years ago. He was a good guy and has been responsive to me when I've called on him. But he's an avowed social conservative which doesn't bode well for Pittsburgh queers.
Note: please stop trying to determine if Melissa Hart is gay. WE DON'T WANT HER.
Here's the list of Western PA State Representatives who have signed on as co-sponsors of the anti-gay marriage amendment. Legislators who think that this is a valuable use of their time, time not spent on your economy or your property taxes or your health care. Time not spent funding road repair, public transportation or workplace safety.
I guess the only thing MORE important than queer-bashing is voting themselves a raise. In the middle of the night.
Your Legislators - Threatening 250,000 heterosexual families to persecute 20,000 gay families.
Don't know if one of these homo-haters is your rep? Click here to find out.
Hon. Anthony M. DeLuca District 23 7205 Saltsburg Road Pittsburgh, PA 15235 (412) 793-2448
Hon. Joseph F. MarkosekDistrict 25Commerce Building, Suite 103 4232 Northern Pike Monroeville, PA 15146 (412) 856-8284
Hon. Joseph A. Petrarca District 55239 Longfellow Street Vandergrift, PA 15690 (724) 567-6982
Hon. Thomas A. Tangretti District 57105 Station Place 101 Ehalt Street Greensburg, PA 15601 (724) 834-6400
Pennsylvania State Representative Dan Frankel (D- Allegheny) released a statement on the proposed state constitutional amendment. Frankel is a long time LGBT ally and, unlike several of his colleagues, recognizes that there are greater threats to Pennsylvania's families than homosexuals. Things like the economy, property tax reform, education, healthy care and so forth.
N E W S R E L E A S E State Rep. Dan B. Frankel D-Allegheny www.pahouse.com/frankel
MEDIA CONTACT: Ben Turner House Democratic Communications Office Phone: 717-787-7895 Fax: 717-772-9930 Email: bturner@pahouse.net
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Frankel blasts constitutional amendment Says it would harm unmarried straight couples, including seniors
HARRISBURG, Jan. 24 - State Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Allegheny, said a state constitutional amendment being introduced today would harm same-sex families and unmarried opposite-sex couples, including many senior citizens. Sponsors of the amendment say it would prevent Pennsylvania judges from authorizing same-sex marriage.
"The sponsors of the so-called 'marriage protection' amendment are using gay-baiting, which is bad enough, to hide a wider agenda. State law has banned legal recognition of same-sex marriage for the past 10 years. It's ironic that a group of mostly Republican legislators is telling everyone not to trust Republican judges, including the Republican-majority state Supreme Court," Frankel said.
The sweeping language of the amendment would ban civil unions and other legal recognition of unmarried relationships. Frankel said it could threaten the rights of adoptive parents, as well as health coverage, medical decision-making rights and inheritance rights. The amendment also could harm senior citizens who do not marry their partners to avoid losing Social Security or pension benefits.
"In Ohio, a similar amendment has caused domestic violence cases with unmarried straight victims to be thrown out - pursuing those cases was found to be 'legal recognition' of the unmarried relationship. In Michigan, anti-gay activists are suing to take away health coverage, even though before the amendment passed, they said those benefits wouldn't be threatened.
"The supporters of this amendment need to read the state Supreme Court's 2004 ruling in the Devlin case about Philadelphia's domestic-partner registry. The court clearly stated the partnership registry was only permitted because it is something less than and distinct from civil marriage.
"This amendment should be put aside so we can focus on bills that actually help people, like property tax reform, raising the minimum wage after nine years, improving our economy and our schools and making affordable health care available to everyone.
"The federal and state constitutions should not be used to take rights away from law-abiding citizens. Our national and state constitutions are the bulwarks that protect the rights of all citizens."
Frankel is the lead sponsor of legislation (H.B. 1417 ) that would allow unmarried partners in same-sex or opposite-sex relationships to make critical health decisions for one another and to visit each other in the hospital. A 2003 poll found 88 percent support in Pennsylvania for such legislation, and last week, Maryland's Republican governor announced his support for a similar bill.
Today, Pennsylvania legislators unveiled their plan to destroy the families of 20,000 gay and 250,000 heterosexual families. The heterosexual families, unmarried per the 2000 Census, are the innocent victims in the homo-haters all out war on Pennsylvania's gay families.
Rep Scott W. Boyd, R-Lancaster County and Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler County are among the prime sponsors of this proposal.
Butler County. Here in Western Pennsylvania. Right up the road. A place where any unmarried heterosexual couple faces the loss of some pretty basic rights thanks to Scotty and Daryl's hatred of gays.
This could mean that women cannot seek a protection from abuse order from their boyfriends if they are not married. See the HRC 2005 report on the impact of similar amendments in other states.
Gay marriage is illegal in Pennsylvania. This is a non-issue. It is simply an attempt to rally the faithful around kicking the homos versus taking care of actual legislative business.
Remember 250,000 heterosexual families will be caught up in this net.
The other night some of my homo-friends were griping that the only "news" on LGBT issues is bad news ... discrimination, hatred, conversions, proof that Melissa Hart is gay, etc, etc, etc.
So for all my "glass is half empty" readers .... here is some good news. Note: the good is one small nugget in a very sad story. But its the best I can do without crowing once again about Brokeback Mountain.
The freeholders (fancy term for mighty whites with name plates) have reversed themselves and extended pension benefits to Stacie Andree, the partner of Lieutenant Laurel Hester. Sadly, Laurel is dying of cancer. She is a retired NJ detective who dedicated 24 years to her career. But the freeholders originally said NO. A hue and cry ensued resulting in not only the reversal for Laurel and Stacie, but statewide calls for reform to pension and death benefits throughout New Jersey. Click here for The Big Gay Picture's history on this situation.
Hurrah for Laurel and Stacie to achive this win in the midst of a terrible loss. And hurrah for all the homo-lovers in NJ who are working diligently to prevent this sort of injustice from ruining other lives.
I missed this last week. The Trib's Dimitri Vassilaros opined against the PA legislative attempt to constitutionalize hate and discrimination.
Whenever a judge or legislative body in a state say that homosexuals have the same marriage rights as heterosexuals, it promotes more marriage. Denying gays and lesbians that right is anything but protecting marriage -- it's attacking it. The gays are the ones trying to protect it.
Wow ... who would have thought us homos might actually value and respect the institute of marriage? Or that we could form lasting committed relationships based on trust, mutual respect and love? Next thing you know, people might start getting crazy ideas about our ability successfully parent children!
Vassilaros then makes a point that in his words that every citizen should find chilling ...
The amendment would prevent a court's "finding" a constitutional right to marriage. In other words, marriage is not a right but a privilege that government may bestow to those it favors.
That's right people. The amendment opens that ever so slippery slope toward the goverment determining which marriages are valid and which are not. What big brother giveth, big brother taketh away.
In the latest City Paper, intrepid homofan Marty Levine takes a brief look at the latest political maneuvers in Harrisburg where homohaters have launched another drive to constitutionalize discrimination.
It boils down to this
But as with all debates about gay rights, the issue seems to boil down to conservative fears about the sexuality of pets. As Geer summarizes his group?s proposal: ?No same-sex marriage. No plural marriage. Can?t marry your motorcycle or your dog or anything.?
That's Michael Geer, president of the Pennsylvania Family Institute.
This is a bad legislative idea. Its going to hurt a quarter of a million unmarried heterosexual couples as well a a handful of gays.
You tell 'em Ron Pedersen Jr of North Versailles, PA
The biggest traitor of them all is Santorum Apologist and Spokesman, Robert Traynham an openly gay man who also happens to be African-American.
Pay attention because this is what Mr. Traynham has to say about being a black conservative
Speaking at a 2003 Harvard forum on being a conservative person of color, Traynham said, ?Being black has nothing to do with my job?zero.? When confronted about supporting those who display the Confederate battle flag, he said, ?Those who are romantic about the Confederate flag, that?s our base. We need their support; this upcoming election is going to be close.?
I'm not even going to start ranting about this. Read the City Paper rant and remember.
239 Longfellow Street
