Here, here to Liz Carrier of Squirrel Hill. Her letter "Campaign Comment" in today's Post-Gazette roundly boxes the ears of both Rick Santorum for running a negative campaign and the Post-Gazette for reporting on to the exclusion of covering actual issues.
Liz points out that telephone polls follow the grand old Pittsburgh tradition of ignoring young people who are much more likely to use cell phones than land lines. (I'm sure the white yuppie Repubocrats who aspire to nestle under the wing of old white men hedge their bets with both a landline and cell phone).
She continues:
It is not enough to tell us who is "winning" the election (according to a not necessarily accurate poll); I want to know why I should or shouldn't vote for either candidate.
These seem like a reasonable request, Liz. Coverage of issues. Inclusion of young people's perspectives. Where have I heard that before?
Liz seems to have done her homework on the issues without the help of the Post-Gazette.
And to my fellow young voters, I say this about Sen. Santorum: I will not be voting for him, because of his votes in Congress against increasing the minimum wage, against increasing funding for Pell Grants (which provide federal financial aid to college students), against expanding Head Start, against expanding federal after school programs, against the EPA's Clean Air Mercury Rule, to say nothing of his continued support for the war in Iraq and his blatant homophobia.
Those are sound reasons to vote against Rick Santorum. I guess his spokesfag didn't fool you into thinking he's a homolover deep in his heart, huh?
This one is very amusing. The Atlanta Braves combine baseball with the gospel in their second "Faith Day" event this year. The event features a post-game speaker and performance by a Christian group, with sponsoring organizations setting up tables and all the usual special event stuff. FotF participated in the July event along with Tocca Bible College and the Gospel Music Channel.
But, at the Braves request, they ain't coming back for the August event. No official word on why the Braves uninvited Jimmy and gang. But speculation is that the Braves are troubled by the organization's comparison of homosexuality to alcoholism or drug addiction:
But the Braves may have been troubled that Focus on the Family was promoting its Web site http://www.troubledwith.com, in which the group gives its suggestions for dealing with myriad problems.
Under the heading "Love & Sex," homosexuality is listed along with items such as dating, miscarriage and post-abortion syndrome. The group debunks the belief that homosexuality is caused by genetics, saying that males are often influenced by incest, molestation, exposure to pornography and negative body image.
"No solid scientific evidence exists today that people are born homosexual," the Web site says. "Interestingly enough, genetic predeterminants have also been theorized for alcoholism or depression. Neither alcoholism nor depression is embraced as healthy. Rather, we try to help people who suffer from these tendencies to find relief and recovery."
In other FotF news, founder and chief-bigot James Dobson has stepped up to defend the architect of the Holy Grail of wingnut movies, Mel Gibson.
Dobson said in a statement that "we certainly do not condone that racially insensitive outburst," but added "Mel has apologized profusely for the incident and there the matter should rest."
"Mel has also indicated his willingness to seek help to overcome his alcoholism, and has asked the Jewish community for forgiveness," Dobson said. "What more can he do?"
Well, he can admit he is an anti-Semit rather than just a drunken lout. AND he can admit he's a sexist asshole for using the phrase "Sugar Tits." But, apparently, that little offensive slur gets all lost b/c no one cares about offending some uptight frigid feminist bitches, right? Would Gibson call the Blessed Mother "Sugar Tits" or would he reserve that for Mary Magdalene?
Dobson is just posturing to defend his Christian porn flick from any nay-sayers.
You know, I find it interesting that so many people who rant on and on in support of Gibson have no problem with his movies being made in foreign languages (Mayan?), but resent a guy who orders a cheesesteak in Spanglish.
From the Philadelphia Inquirer comes a nice essay penned by high school sophomore Jule McNamee asking why gay marriage is such a problem for some folks. She's succinct so here it is:
Same-sex marriage debate
Why are gay people treated as though they are aliens in this country? They have the same rights as we do. They are not intending to offend anyone, nor do they want to insult what this country stands for.
I was told that this is the country of the free, and everyone is created equal. But not allowing couples to marry because of their relationships with the same sex is absurd.
Many Americans believe that same-sex marriage is morally wrong, but that goes way back to the issue of church and state, stating that the opinions of religion should not affect everyday society.
The intentions of many marriages are eventually to start a family, and every child is in need of parents. I don't see the difference of having gay parents or opposite sex parents. Those children are better off than children in households where only one parent remains.
Children of gay parents have the opportunity to have two parents. So why is it so wrong if you have two fathers or two mothers?
She hits the high notes - separation of church and state; some marriages intend to raise children, others don't; gays don't hate America, etc. While I don't agree with the blanket statement that children in two parent households are better off than childre in one parent households, I think Julie's larger point is well made.
The American Psychological Association has released a press statement, taking a strong stance against conversion theory. Conversion theory is predicated upon the notion that you can change sexual orientation and is a core component of the controversial ex-gay movement.
"For over three decades the consensus of the mental health community has been that homosexuality is not an illness and therefore not in need of a cure. The APA's concern about the positions espoused by NARTH and so-called conversation therapy is that they are not supported by the science. There is simply no sufficiently scientifically sound evidence that sexual orientation can be changed. Our further concern is that the positions espoused by NARTH and Focus on the Family create an environment in which prejudice and discrimination can flourish."
NARTH is the National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality. They have a whole litany of quack scientific studies that "prove" homosexuality is a choice. Check out Truth Wins Out which monitors the abusive practices of the ex-gay movement.
These NARTH people are pathetic, abusive monsters. They prey upon vulnerable people, take all their money in payment for so-called therapy, treatment, even camps and, of course, leave them bitter and disillusioned when it doesn't work (not to mention broke).
Note that the APA rightly calls out perennial homo-opponent Focus on the Family who will be making a stop in Pittsburgh this fall.
Our further concern is that the positions espoused by NARTH and Focus on the Family create an environment in which prejudice and discrimination can flourish."
This is a critical point. The Jimmy Dobsons and Rick Santorums of the world don't openly call for violence against homosexuals, but they are major contributors to the cultural environment in which contempt for gays takes it that one step further. They are standing at the top of the slippery slope pouring down the lube ...
David at 2PJs put together a nice post on this waffle ...Santorum had signed a pledge not to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation in employment matters. Now he's withdrawing his signature.
But there's more to the story ...
According to Gay City News, it was a staffer who signed the original document. The issue is not homosexuality but the inclusion of gender identity. Rick doesn't want to hire trannies. Shocker!
Santorum?s out gay communications director, Robert Traynham, said that the statement was signed by an aide on Santorum?s behalf under the misapprehension that it was ?consistent with our office manual,? which he said does ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, but not gender identity or expression.
Traynham said they have ?legal issues? with the inclusion of protections for people of transgender experience. ?It is not something we would accept,? he said, adding that Santorum still does not believe federal law should protect people based on sexual orientation.
When he says "legal issues," Santorum's spokesfag really means reelection issues. Thankfully, they have a lot of fodder for their hate campaign what with all the immigrants to persecute so Pennsylvania's transsexual community is safe. For now.
Its good to know the Senator's signature means something. Click on the image to see the original document.
They carry signs and march along the roadside, but their resemblance to stereotypical protesters ends there.
These antiwar activists are middle-age and older Catholic nuns who can be seen every Monday on Babcock Boulevard in McCandless, holding signs that read "Honk for Peace," "Sisters for Peace" or "Peace not War."
On Monday, more than 100 members of Sisters of Divine Providence marched in front of their motherhouse, Providence Heights.
They get a lot of honks from passersby, some of whom honk if they are late arriving on scene. These are some cool ladies!
In other cool chick news of interest, an eight year old Brownie is being honored by the Girl Scouts for rescuing her three year old cousin who fell into a pond.
Guinevere Deroy was worried the fish might bite her toes, but that didn't stop her from jumping into a lake when her 3-year-old cousin fell out of a paddle boat.
For her heroism, the 8-year-old Emsworth girl will receive a medal of honor from the Girl Scouts, becoming one of the youngest recipients to receive the Lifesaving Award, according to the Girl Scouts.
Guinevere, sweetie, you rock!
Both these stories are the sort of good news you need to get your day started.
Shame on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette! You have dropped the ball by failing to once again keep your readers informed of the slightest allusion to homosexuality in contemporary movies. What the hell kind of bastion of morality are you folks running over there?
David A. Smith of McMurray read a Post-Gazette movie review and dutifully loaded up the spawn for a night out at the movies. He was horrified - appalled even -- to see man-kissing!
Absolutely nothing was mentioned about the gay relationship of the French driver or the full extended lip-to-lip kiss between Will and the French guy. We had to get up and leave. Don't you think family film reviews should share this info with the parents?
Having yet to see the movie (love John C. Reilly myself), I can only speculate as to the nature of the "lip-to-lip" kiss BUT I'm guessing Will Ferrel's character ain't gay and the scene is played for one of those "uh oh" moment laughs. Just my hunch. There is probably a world of difference between this man kiss and, say, the tent scene in Brokeback Mountain. I could be wrong.
Regardless, David A. Smith of McMurray is a full out hate-wielding, homo-loathing, child-perverting bigot. Oh, I'm sure he comes across as a nice enough guy who just wishes the homos would crawl under some rocks rather than actually signing us up for the reeducation camps. He probably doesn't keep a picture of a fetus on his desktop, but he may be attending the upcoming Focus on the Family rally.
But his self-righteous indignation is a load of crap for two reasons.
First of all, the Post-Gazette is not responsible for full-disclosure on potential homoerotic content in movies. In spite of what Ruth Ann Dailey might think. If you want someone to filter out the movies with gay content, surf on over to one of the wingnut websites where you can get your fill of rants on the downfall of contemporary culture. Even the Pittsburgh Catholic has movie reviews.
Second, you are a stupid hypocrit for moaning about a quasi-gay kiss when the paper DID clearly indicate that there is sexualized content in the movie
Crude and sexual humor. Language, Drug References. So that's all okay viewing for the fruit of your loins, but one kiss is not. Guess what dude? Let's put your high-horse right back in the stable where it belongs because you have no legs to stand on. You are the one choosing to expose your family to adult content so you need to take responsibility for your parenting choices instead of blaming the local newspaper.
Ledcat caught the ad in the morning Post-Gazette ... nearly a quarter page image of one of the Grand-Poobahs of Christian bigotry - James Dobson. Dobson's organization, Focus on the Family, alternates between churning out right-wingnut hate-laced propaganda and browbeating people into injecting more Christian extremism into their lives (and their parenting).
But he's coming to Pittsburgh with his merry band of bigots ...are you excited?
Dobson's trail of evil slime has left its disgusting stench throughout the United States courtesy of his "Stand for the Family" tour. Along with his own personal gay bashing message, he brings along a few other stellar examples of Christian perversion ...
Tony Perkins, founder of the Family Research Council. Just this past spring, he equated Brokeback Mountain with the Matthew Shepard story because they are both "works of fiction."
Dr. Ken Hutcherson aka Dr. Blackman (I'm not making that up). He's angry that gays are claiming the civil rights mantle. He's not too fond of uppity women either.
Gary Bauer, President of American Values. They protect life. And marriage. And family. And faith. And freedom. Bauer believes that gay marriage will make us just like hedonistic Europeans who have destroyed their families.
Snarkery aside, these guys have power and a hell of a lot of money. Pam's House Blend did a great post on the vast amounts of resources these organizations command in their unrelenting war on all of us progressives. According to Pam, in 2005 these guys spent a half a billion dollars on anti-gay efforts.
So they are rolling into Pittsburgh on Wednesday, September 20, 6:30 PM at the Mellon Arena. You can get a ticket for $7.00. The first 500 people get free books so they can revisit all the hate-rhetoric later.
I'm sure Santorum is frothing at the mouth to have the Mac-Daddy of Intolerance himself come to town and preach the Gospel of Rick. Make no bones about it -- Jimmy D. and his minions want to do anything necessary to keep their boy in the Senate. They will play all the cards AND spend millions of dollars if that's what it takes.
This really sucks. Its bad enough when Tim McGraw or some other Froggy favorite takes over the stadium area with all his yinzer would be redneck manly men and the slack jawed women who love them. Now we are going to have swarms of smarmy self-righteous men and the brainwashed helmet-haired women who love them running amok in Uptown. Nothing says rush hour nightmare like yinzer suburbanites in minivans.
Is a protest worthwhile? If I have to walk past the feti images to get into the Dixie Chicks concert, why not stage our own stand for ALL families outside of Mellon Arena? Who's with me?
I wasn't going to blog about it, I really wasn't. Because I've told you how much we like Gab's comedy and the performances of her co-conspirers in defaming the US government (Jason Kirsch, Bill Eberle, Autumn Ayres, etc). And last night, they were good --- we saw Gab and Jason perform, along with a sketch comedy troupe that had an appealing dark humor I'd like to see in a more receptive venue and a guest appearance by departing Pittsburgh comedian/radio personality Alan Cox. It was entertaining, bawdy and outright funny at most points.
Here's where I have to honest and say what I really think. We left early along with the 80 year olds. Maybe because we are just too old to hang out with 20something hipsters enjoying a night on the town. Our tolerance for annoying behavior is low. I should clarify that its my tolerance b/c Ledcat was willing to stay while I insisted we leave.
Here's what annoyed me:
Smoke - Its a cramped second floor space filled with people. So light up your cigarette and share your stupid addiction with us please. Because nothing says entertainment like another level of tar and nicotine on my pink lungs. Really, I didn't mine sucking on my inhaler for an hour afterwards. Or defunkifying my clothing with Febreeze when I got home.
Annoying laugh - I think she may be a friend of the performers, but she sat right behind and literally screeched into my ear. Screeched. My head was ringing and I prayed for the jokes to fall flat so she wouldn't crucify me. Apparently, her humor appreciate is low b/c she laughed BEFORE the punchlines. And I was trapped because the nicotines addicts were at the back of the room. I was choosing between my cancer free existance and my sanity. If you cannot control your demonic howls, go into a corner and have some consideration for the rest of us. Don't rock forward in your seat so you get real close to my ear and let loose. Ledcat and I argue all the time about the ability to control sneezes, yawns and laughter. Since Screechy seemed to laugh at a normal level on occasion, either she was doing it intentionally or she was part of the performance. Honey, its only funny to your friends. Because they love you. You may be a lovable person, but you annoy the fucking shit out of strangers like me so give us a break. Because if I see you at another show, I'll probably stand in the back with the addicts and duck out early again. How is that helping your friends' performances? ITS NOT.
Annoying woman by the bar -- Get your damn drinks and move on to your uncomfortable folding chair. Undrape yourself from the bar, say good-bye to your chums and get the fuck out of my way. Don't visit. Its not a park. Its a bar. I need my ginger ale. Then when you end up sitting next to us, don't roll your eyes and huff indignantly when I complain about your obnoxious self. Take responsibility for your behavior. Pledge to be more considerate of your elders.
Talkers - "Hey, lets go see Gab's show!" But let's talk all the way through it and how about we raise our voices right after she asks us to stop talking to listen to a performance w/o microphones. Because we want to support her effort in putting this whole production together and reaching all these people who came to see the show. I bet they would love to hear our ongoing commentary throughout the performance, especially when we talk about things that have nothing to do with comedy, music, politics, or Lenny Bruce. People will love it!
So there you have it ... I missed Bill, Autumn and Gab's jokes about Fred Phelps because of the obnoxious behavior of oblivious twits who have no consciousness of anything beyond their own immediate gratification and pleasure. I am definitely not comedy club material. Thankfully my medication is working well b/c three weeks ago, I would have bitch slapped the bar whore and said mean things to Screechy until she cried and left me in peace. Although I hate to think what her "I'm not crying" shudders and heaves would sound like ...
Rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, language, drug references and comic violence.
