A 14 year old boy took his life after enduring anti-gay bullying.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Twitter Ruins Lives
In Indianapolis, a Republican congressional candidate named Stan Solomon stated that his volunteer campaign manager resigned after condescending comments about gays were made. Not only did said candidate insult gays, but Muslims as well. It was not that he spoke them out loud. Why do such a thing when you can use the force that is Twitter?
Gaga for More GaGa?
Lady GaGa brought some very interesting date choices to the Video Music Awards. What makes this interesting? Her dates were gay soldiers who had been discharged due to Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. One of them a young woman who has recently appeared on the Rachel Maddow Show and wore her West Pointe uniform even though she is no longer considered part of the school.
IHOP Shall Sue IHOP!
As reported by CNN:
“IHOP has filed a lawsuit against a church group called the International House of Prayer claiming that the group is illegally using the pancake house's famous acronym.
The legal flap started earlier this month when the International House of Pancakes filed the lawsuit in a federal court in California.
The Kansas City, Missouri-based church group "selected and adopted the International House of Prayer name, knowing it would be abbreviated IHOP. IHOP-KC intended to misappropriate the fame and notoriety of the household name IHOP to help promote and make recognizable their religious organization," the lawsuit says.
Lawyers from the pancake restaurant say the odds are stacked against the church group and provided the court with pages and pages of documentation of websites, newsletters and signs on buildings where the prayer group allegedly used the IHOP acronym.
The use of the acronym infringes on the restaurant's trademark, the restaurant contends.
So, IHOP, the pancake house, is asking a judge to get IHOP, the church group, to stop using the letters IHOP.
The restaurant says it has used the acronym for more than 30 years.
As of Thursday, representatives from the International House of Prayer had not filed a response to the lawsuit, according to court documents.
The church group started in 1999 in Missouri and now bills itself as 24/7 place for people to come and pray, according to the group's website.”
“IHOP has filed a lawsuit against a church group called the International House of Prayer claiming that the group is illegally using the pancake house's famous acronym.
The legal flap started earlier this month when the International House of Pancakes filed the lawsuit in a federal court in California.
The Kansas City, Missouri-based church group "selected and adopted the International House of Prayer name, knowing it would be abbreviated IHOP. IHOP-KC intended to misappropriate the fame and notoriety of the household name IHOP to help promote and make recognizable their religious organization," the lawsuit says.
Lawyers from the pancake restaurant say the odds are stacked against the church group and provided the court with pages and pages of documentation of websites, newsletters and signs on buildings where the prayer group allegedly used the IHOP acronym.
The use of the acronym infringes on the restaurant's trademark, the restaurant contends.
So, IHOP, the pancake house, is asking a judge to get IHOP, the church group, to stop using the letters IHOP.
The restaurant says it has used the acronym for more than 30 years.
As of Thursday, representatives from the International House of Prayer had not filed a response to the lawsuit, according to court documents.
The church group started in 1999 in Missouri and now bills itself as 24/7 place for people to come and pray, according to the group's website.”
Support for Equality in America?
Thanks to a survey reported in the New York Times where 1,007 people in August were surveyed over the phone, we have this to report on the progress of equality in America:
.NCC10. Should couples of the same sex be entitled to the same government benefits as married couples of the opposite sex, or should the government distinguish between them?
58% – Yes, should be entitled to the same benefits
38% – No, should distinguish between them
3% – Don’t know
1% – Refused
NCC12. Should the Federal Government give legal recognition to marriages between couples of the same sex, or not?
52% – Yes
46% – No
2% – Don’t know
Additionally, there were a couple questions and responses which suggests that anti-gay complaints about “activist judges” may not be an effective strategy.
NCC4. And how about these, which do you agree with more?
35% – If a majority of people want something to happen, the rights of a few shouldn’t stand in the way
62% – The rights of everyone should be protected, even when that means saying no to something the majority of people want to happen.
2% – Don’t know
1% – Refused
NCC18. Which comes closest to your view?
41% – Judges should interpret the laws as narrowly as possible, taking into account only what is
clearly the intention of the lawmakers
56% – Judges should interpret laws broadly, taking into account the broader interests of the
nation
3% – Don’t know
This was based on a telephone survey (land and cell) of 1,007 participants around the third week of August and has a sampling margin of +/-4.5%. This was a survey of the populace, not of voters.
.NCC10. Should couples of the same sex be entitled to the same government benefits as married couples of the opposite sex, or should the government distinguish between them?
58% – Yes, should be entitled to the same benefits
38% – No, should distinguish between them
3% – Don’t know
1% – Refused
NCC12. Should the Federal Government give legal recognition to marriages between couples of the same sex, or not?
52% – Yes
46% – No
2% – Don’t know
Additionally, there were a couple questions and responses which suggests that anti-gay complaints about “activist judges” may not be an effective strategy.
NCC4. And how about these, which do you agree with more?
35% – If a majority of people want something to happen, the rights of a few shouldn’t stand in the way
62% – The rights of everyone should be protected, even when that means saying no to something the majority of people want to happen.
2% – Don’t know
1% – Refused
NCC18. Which comes closest to your view?
41% – Judges should interpret the laws as narrowly as possible, taking into account only what is
clearly the intention of the lawmakers
56% – Judges should interpret laws broadly, taking into account the broader interests of the
nation
3% – Don’t know
This was based on a telephone survey (land and cell) of 1,007 participants around the third week of August and has a sampling margin of +/-4.5%. This was a survey of the populace, not of voters.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Don't Ask, Don't Tell is Unconstitutional, Still.
Recently, Don't Ask, Don't Tell was deemed unconstitutional, violating the First and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. We don't know yet if any injunction issued by U.S. District Court Judge Virginia A. Phillip will be binding at this point.
The Senate at this time is in its August recess. When they come back, will we see any progress on the situation?
The Senate at this time is in its August recess. When they come back, will we see any progress on the situation?
Google Censored
Google rolled out an amazing new feature. It's called Instant Search. As you type words into the search bar, it populates corresponding page links and changes with every word you type. Amazing, right?
There are activists in an uproar that, when you type phrases such as "faggot" or "lesbian", no page links show up until you press OK. When you search for the word "fag", this is not the case.
Is Google keeping it safe for the kiddies or should we be upset that terms such as "lesbian" and "faggot" may bring up gross porn, but the word "fag", in US terms, is deemed ok to search without that extra OK step?
There are activists in an uproar that, when you type phrases such as "faggot" or "lesbian", no page links show up until you press OK. When you search for the word "fag", this is not the case.
Is Google keeping it safe for the kiddies or should we be upset that terms such as "lesbian" and "faggot" may bring up gross porn, but the word "fag", in US terms, is deemed ok to search without that extra OK step?
The Gay is in the Music
Chuck Panozzo, bass player of the Styx is gay! Whether you're a fan of their music or not, it's always good to find out about one of our own. Years ago, Chuck also wrote a book called The Grand Illusion: Love, Lies and My Life With Styx.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Maggie Gallagher Meets St. Peter by Rob Tisinai of Box Turtle Bulletin
With the help of movie making site http://www.xtranormal.com/, Rob brings us this little amusement:
The Mind of a Gay: John Barrowman
The extremely handsome and openly gay star of Torchwoord, an awesome TV show on BBC, worked with BBC to research how he is gay and why.
No Divorce for You, Texas!
It has been ruled by an appeals court that divorce is not allowed for gay couples. Texas does not currently recognize gay marriage and they aren't about to. In fact, they want to create an amendment against it.
In a district court, the judge had ruled in favor of the gay couple who wanted to divorce, but the 5th Texas Court of Appeals ruled that the judge had no jurisdiction.
Everything is bigger in Texas, which includes bigotry.
In a district court, the judge had ruled in favor of the gay couple who wanted to divorce, but the 5th Texas Court of Appeals ruled that the judge had no jurisdiction.
Everything is bigger in Texas, which includes bigotry.
GaGa Goes Minister
Lady GaGa has expressed the desire to become an ordained minister in California so that she can marry fans on stage. Whether this is another spectacle or a dream come true for you, it just seems like a start at a Bad Romance.
Cancer Drugs to Cure HIV?
New research is coming to light to possibly help cure HIV. Though the drugs taken currently by HIV positive people can cause the virus to lay dormant in the cells, if the drugs are not taken, the virus can spring up stronger than before. The research will hopefully attack the virus hiding in the cells to cure HIV for good.
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