Wow.  24 hours without access to my blogging admin site has been torture.  Thankfully, no significant breaking LGBTQ news in Pittsburgh.  Someone did post a comment accusing me of being part of the anti-technology problem which is pretty funny to post. On a blog.  With Twitter updates right next to the comments.  I got a good chuckle out of that.

There is news in the Angie Zapato trial. Allan Ray Andrade was found guilty of 1st degree murder and other charges relating to the brutal murder of 18 year old Angie Zapato.  Andrade murdered Angie because she was a transwoman.  Go to Pam's House Blend for a specific feed dedicated to Angie's death and the trial.  Or follow the hashtag #zapato. 

I just got off the phone with my blog guru down in Dallas, Texas who was overjoyed at this verdict.  A few years ago, a group of men bludgeoned two gay men to death.  The friends got off with no charges and the actual murderer was sentenced to five years because the judge equated being gay to being a prostitute.  As if either of those identities means you deserve less justice than people who are not gay or not prostitutes. 

What else is going?  Tomorrow night is Lesbian Spa Night courtesy of Adagio Health, the GLCC and the Lambda Foundation.  Ledcat and I are attending and our friend, Joe, will be there with his delicious GLOW facials.  Plus, massage!

I can't reveal the details, but I'm helping in an investigation related to naughtiness. Not that kind.  Stay tuned for details. 

That's it for tonight.  Rest easy knowing some justice has been given to the memory of Angie Zapato and her loved ones. 

Then get up tomorrow and remember that our elected officials here are waffling on something simple as not being fired for being gay.  The message Dan Onorato and Luke Ravenstahl send by sidestepping LGBT equal rights issues is very powerful.  If our highest ranking elected officials cannot get their minds around equality, how on earth can we expect the high school bully or the landlord or the keeper of the bathroom keys to treat us with respect. 

People hate us and cowardice shores up that hatred.

I titled this as if I do this and that every Monday. I wish I had the dedication to any particular regular feature, but that's not how my mind works.

The Tribune-Review brings us Pat Buchanan's latest column in which he bemoans the collapse of Catholic Institutions such as Georgetown University.  He blames it on the feminists and homosexuals. 

At the request of the White House, Georgetown University covered up all the symbols in Gaston Hall before the Great Man spoke, including IHS, the millennia-old monogram for the name of Jesus Christ.

When it comes to rendering unto Caesar, Georgetown is not going to be outshone by Notre Dame, which stole a march by offering the nation's avatar of abortion a doctorate of laws degree, honoris causa.

Actually, it is regrettable the IHS in Gaston Hall was not covered up in shame the first week of Lent. For that week Georgetown's feminist and homosexual clubs, such as GU Pride, put on a Gomorrah festival about alternative lifestyles called "Sex Positive Week."

Monday, according to The Newman Club, featured a speaker for Black Rose, which "provides a forum for many different expressions of power in love and play. This can include dominance & submission, bondage and discipline, fetishism and cross-dressing, to name a few."

At Catholic Seattle University, that first week of Lent was "Transgender Awareness Week," featuring a "session on allegedly transgender Bible heroes and heroines and 'Criss-Cross Day' where students are encouraged to 'come dressed for the day in your best gender-bending outfit.'"

This is surely anecdotal evidence to confirm Newsweek in the conclusion reached in its cover story of Holy Week, "The End of Christian America."

Wow.  Criss-Cross Day is bringing down the Catholic church.  I'd actually be interested in transgender Biblical heroes.  And I applaud Mr. Buchanan for using "transgender" in lieu of the less accurate "transgendered" (one is a state of being in transition, the other a description of a fait accompli). 

If you are looking for a daily glimpse into the most current LGBTQ news, I suggest you visit PageOneQ.  I went looking for something interesting to share and ended up spending far too much of this early morning time reading all of the articles.  Check it out.

The HRC posted an interesting transcript of a discussion on LGBTQ financial and legal issues.  Given that those of  us who just ponied up a chunk of change to pay taxes on Domestic Partner benefits are probably still fuming, this is timely.

Locally, the Post-Gazette takes a look at the heated City Council District races.  They briefly explore the whole family feud that drives Democrat decisions which I referenced yesterday.  While I don't agree with all of her positions, I don't get the claim that Tonya Payne fails to show leadership.  She's much more visible here on the Northside than her predecessor and I've found her to be warm and open-minded.  She's marched in the PrideFest Parade which is much different than a few minutes in front of a microphone.  She works on homeless issues.  And frankly, her staff make things happen.  I have no real opinion on her opponents who I am sure are perfectly nice men, but a return to the status quo on the Northside is just ludicrous particularly in Manchester.  This is another area with a  mythological patronage around Stanley Lowe that I just don't understand.  I'm all for Tonya.

I will say the coverage of District 2 is pretty shallow.  The article dismissed contender Rob Frank which seems more about the excitement of a two woman race than anything else.  Again, I'm sure Georgia Blotzer is a lovely woman, but I just didn't feel it in my heart at the Stonewall Endorsement meeting.  Maybe I was too bedazzled by Onorato's five minutes speech in which he said nothing, but Rob Frank seems to warrant more than a sentence of two.  Is his lack of entrenchment in the political family feud a bad thing?  Or just not headline grabbing?

I have no opinion about District 4.  Pat Reilly worked for Chelsa Wagner and seemed very earnest in trying to address the perennial issue with PennDOT's property in our neighborhood.  He was frank with me about the limitations of his position, but I give him credit for trying. 

Here's where I have to stop and remind PennDOT (I'm sure they read this blog every day!) that the lot is just starting to bloom past acceptable.  This latest round of rain is going to warrant a mow soon.  I would love to avoid another series of relentless phone calls to legislators who can't leverage any action in spite of their best efforts.  And speaking of neighborhood politics, last year I had worked to have our State Rep come out to take a look at how the Commonwealth is blighting Manchester when another community member swooped in with a larger agenda and completely undermind me.  I know her intentions were good, but it is frustrating when someone wrests your plans away from you.  I know there are larger issues, but her actions were very disrespectful.  I'm already plotting what I can possibly do this year since the best reaction I get from PennDOT is a begrudging appearance after endless prodding. 

If they would just schedule routine maintenance, it would be such a positive step. I would stop hating them.  I'm hoping someone in a media outlet would take a look at the various properties owned by PennDOT or other state entities in this region and explore their maintenance schedules.  I just can't imagine that these huge clean up efforts are cost effective. 

Pam Spaulding nails the Democrats on their social conservative bull.

And as it's quite obvious, this isn't a New York problem. This is a Democratic party problem. It manifests itself in the whole "go slow" attitude on legislation that during the election year promises sounded like change was around the corner; it's the whole "uh, oh, we need to be re-elected in 2010" nonsense; it's the sudden "we can't multitask on civil rights while the economy is in the crapper" whining. All of this was so predictable, given the past spineless of Dems we've seen over the years. They had the cover of being in the minority, but now in the majority, nothing much has changed.

You see, if you're going to effect change, as Gov. Paterson is trying to do with this legislation, you have to be prepared as a party to address the larger schism of race, religion and homophobia head-on. In a vacuum of a counter-message, the evangelical anti-gays plant seeds and watch them grow in these religious communities of color. Any success is not due to the brilliance of the Religious Right, but its ability and willingness to capitalize on the Democratic party's self-imposed weakness and impotence regarding discipline on basic civil rights issues because of the race card.

Amen (pun kind of intended).  Pam's talking about a New York State Senator Ruben Diaz organizing against marriage equality.  Now here in Southwestern Pennsylvania, we've got a little different issue -- Dems capitulating on a general equality from discrimination.  What's worse are Democrat leaders like Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato remaining SILENT so as to have it both ways.  Insert Catholics and AFA of PA wingnuts for evangelical Christians and you get my point.

The local Democrats, even the gay Democrats, won't challenge him or others who waiver on fundamental issues of fairness and equality.  Someone tried to explain the scary mafioso-like which Dem family hates the other Dem family and which current elected official used to work for whom or who ran whose campaign.  It made my head spin. 

Let's not forget that other "la la la I can't hear you" Democrat, Luke Ravenstahl who is rumored to be "disappointed" over not getting the gay endorsement in return for his appearance at PrideFest.  There's apparently a mad scrambling to appease his Administration.  What the hell is up with that?  He hasn't DONE anything to warrant an endorsement except hang out with a few gay male business owners who have a vested interest in appeasing any Administration because of their business, not necessarily their sexual orientation. 

Don't hand me the baby steps ideology. 

Ravenstahl has attended two PrideFest in a row.  Check.

He signed a symbolic piece of legislation last year.  Check.

He has been dallying with the LGBT Advisory Committee for nearly a year.  Check.

He rides the coat tails of legislation passed over a decade ago before he was old enough to vote.  Check.

What other sort of baby step can you squeeze in there until he actually commits himself to equality?  He cannot continue to appease his Catholic constituents and pat his gay constituents on the head. 

What do I want him to do?  Start the damn committee and fill it with actual leaders.  Keep his private advisers private and give someone else a chance to have his ear.  Don't use PrideFest as a showboat. And he can give the Domestic Partner Registry some teeth by actually informing City employees about it.  That would require a simple memo.  He might even ask his Economic Development folks to put out some feelers to urge local employers to offer domestic partner benefits.  Publicly commit to abstain from any further City-County merger plans until the issues of domestic partner benefits and anti-discrimination protections are resolved. 

If he gets the gay endorsement for the general election, we'll know the Machine is well-oiled with LGBT blood, sweat and tears.  And money.

Homophobia is alive and well in the Democrat party here in SW Pennsylvania. Passing statewide legislation is a pipe dream until we deal with the stuff in our own backyard.

Madeline Chandler is receiving an award from the ACLU for her advocacy to change the sexual education curriculum for the City Schools.  She sounds like a woman who rocks.

Miss Chandler said she conducted the petition drive at CAPA even though an administrator balked at the idea, and she was one of about 10 students who gave riveting testimony at the February hearing. She related anecdotes illustrating how little students know about sex and how television shows, even those with medical themes, spread misinformation.

"I think one of the biggest issues is that people don't understand that they don't know enough," said Miss Chandler, who plans to study communication at Penn State University and eventually work as a film critic. At Penn State, she said, she hopes to be active in anti-war, gay and sexual-rights issues.

Let's all do our best to convince Ms. Chandler to come back to Pittsburgh after graduation and bring some of that energy into our community and allies.

Last night, Ledcat and I volunteered to staff a Steel City Stonewall table at a Dykes on Bikes event at Cattivo.  Also at Cattivo were the Dykes of Hazard comedy troupe. 

The evening was good; we collected 62 signed letters in support of HB 300 and distributed a bunch of Steel City information, plus secured one membership on the spot.  The crowd was really nice: laid back, relaxed and actually interested in what we had to offer -- information and opportunity.  A LOT of the women were informed on the issues and even eager to sign a letter.  To me that flies in the face of conventional wisdom that LGBTQ people in bars don't care.  There was a lot of caring going on last night.  Someone even tipped me $1 which I made Ledcat stuff into the bustiere of one of the Dykes on Bikes. :-)   More than one women came up to me when I was away from the table and told she appreciated me giving up my Friday to help the cause and/or blog.  And I ran into a few readers so shout out to y'all and thanks for introducing yourselves to me. 

The awesome vote for the night goes to the Dykes on Bikes.  They promoted the Dykes of Hazard tour for the owners of Cattivo to pay back the owners for being so good to their organization.  The crowd was not huge, but I haven't been there on a Friday for comparison purposes.  I have to admit that when people complain about there not being anything to do and fail to show up for a queer comedy performance ...we have some PR work to do!  (P.S. They are performing Saturday might in Greensburg.)  I'm sure it didn't help that the extremely popular Lez Liquor Hour was scheduled on the same night. 

The Dykes of Hazard are part of the DIY trend and the brainchild of Kristen Becker of Buffalo and Shreveport.  She had me at hello.  She hosted the event and was terrific at playing off the crowd jubilant in a Penguins victory.  Nothing threw her and she had tons of lesbian material, but plenty of universal stuff as well.  Because of my table duties, I didn't get to see the other comedians but they weren't as strong with the off the cuff  comments which seem necessary in a bar filled with drunken lesbian sports fans.  The crowd watching the show sort of ebbed and flowed. but appeared to be having a good time.  The last performer (whose name I missed) I caught a few minutes from and she was getting pretty funny.  If we didn't have plans tonight, I might like to see them again.

It would be great if PrideFest would bring them back for a Pride show. 

The true shout out for the night goes to Dykes on Bikes founder, Miranda.  She was personally responsible for at least 40 of the signed letters.  She approached every person who came into the bar and convinced them why it is important to flex those democracy muscles.  She also had a well thought out response to those who aren't comfortable putting their personal information on a letter -- support indirectly.  Buy a shot or a rose or make a donation to Dykes on Bikes so they can continue to subsidize letter writing events.  Donate to Shepherd Wellness or, anonymously, to Steel City Stonewall.  Volunteer at the GLCC.  She was very sincere about the fact that there's no reason every single LGBTQ person shouldn't be involved in something, big or small.  She's very persuasive and sincere.  Do not underestimate what the Dykes in Bikes might accomplish.  They are organized, dedicated and passionate.