Dick Cheney Announces 'Support' for Gay Marriage, But Only Half Ass

Former Vice President Dick Cheney spoke out at the National Press Club on Monday, announcing his support of gay marriage, but only on the state level.

"I think that freedom means freedom for everyone," replied the former V.P. "As many of you know, one of my daughters is gay and it is something we have lived with for a long time in our family. I think people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish. Any kind of arrangement they wish. The question of whether or not there ought to be a federal statute to protect this, I don't support. I do believe that the historically the way marriage has been regulated is at the state level. It has always been a state issue and I think that is the way it ought to be handled, on a state-by-state basis. ... But I don't have any problem with that. People ought to get a shot at that." [quote courtesy The Huffington Post]

Gee, thanks Cheney.  But, personally, I believe that basic human rights like marriage should not be considered on a state-by-state basis.  It only further alienates Americans in this union we call a country.  Are we Americans 1st or are we state residents first?  I'm confused.

I think I'm an American first - I just happen to reside in New York.  I can choose to live anywhere in America because I love the country and I have the basic right to move to any U.S. state as a citizen.  I should be afforded other basis human rights that my country affords me as a citizen of its union, like marriage.  If there's too much power put on the state level in terms of these rights...what's next?  States succeeding from the union?  I mean - come on already.  Thanks, Cheney, for HALF ASS standing up for your lesbian daughter.  I wonder how she'll feel if she gets married one day, but it's not recognized by other states that she visits or decides to move to....

Pushing these kinds of things back to the state is a total cop-out in my opinion, and it's a completely political thing to do.  Think about it:  if these decisions were made federally, then politicians would have to answer to the constituents who fund their programs - constituents who may disagree with politicians' decisions.  Legalizing same sex marriage on the federal level would piss off all those private sector investors who urge politicians to "move" bills through the hopper.

Legalizing marriage in Massachusetts is great.  But, not legalizing it in California only further alienates U.S. citizens as free peoples.  This divides our country; it does not bring us together.

On the other hand, I understand that some decisions should be on a state-by-state basis.  Giving ALL the power to the U.S. government would create a totalitarian structure, thus depleting democractic core values and principals.

Basic human rights, however...those should be a no-brainer for a country - these rights should be afforded to EVERY citizen of a country, not on a state-by-state basis.

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Obama Authorizes United Nations Gay Rights Declaration

On Wednesday, March 18, 2009, Obama officially endorsed a United Nations gay rights declaration calling for the worldwide decriminalization of homosexuality, the same measure which is previously rejected by former President Bush. This endorsement was the product of intense negative criticism by human rights and a number of other groups.

When first introduced, the United States was in line with countries such as Russia, China and members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. “Homosexuality is currently forbidden in around 80 countries and can be grounds for execution in at least six”, The Times’ Neil McFarquhar reported when the measure was first introduced in December. Some who opposed the declaration claimed that it was a gateway to the legalization of pedophilia and incest, while others, such as the Bush Administration claimed that while it was opposed to discrimination of any kind, it was worried the declaration could undercut state and local governments on issues like gay marriage. In contrast, that same contention, after much consideration, led the Obama Administration in a different direction stating that support “commits us to no legal obligations.”

“This is a welcome step forward as it signals to the world that, after years of a hostile administration, the United States recognizes the humanity of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people at home and abroad,” said Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign.

"This is long past overdue and we are encouraged by the signal it sends that the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people will now be considered human rights," said Rea Carey, the executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.

While it is no secret that Obama is seeking to overturn the unpopular “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy devised under the Clinton Administration, this U.N. declaration could be the first step in showing the world that new and long deserved rights for gays in America are underway.

Courtesy:  Kimberly Young, Dallas Gay Community Examiner

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LGBT Organizations in LA to Host Virtual Town Hall Meeting - Open to Public

A virtual town hall meeting entitled “Prop 8: The Facts and Future,” accessible to anyone with a computer and Internet connection.

The 90-minute online forum will be hosted by Karen Ocamb, news editor at Frontiers and IN Los Angeles. It will be broadcast live via streaming audio. Audience members can send questions to the moderator in advance at: TownHallModerator@gmail.com or send questions/comments to her during the broadcast.

The town hall meeting will be recorded for those who are not able to participate in the live session.

Panel members include:

• Amy Balliett, founder of Join the Impact
• Lorri L. Jean, CEO of the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center
• Geoff Kors, executive director of Equality California
• Rev. Eric Lee, president/CEO of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference Los Angeles
• Shannon Minter, legal director at the National Center for Lesbian Rights
• John A. Perez, assembly member-elect of California’s 46th District
• Steve Smith, No on 8 senior campaign consultant of Dewey Square.

To join the town hall meeting, visit: www.lagaycenter.org/Prop8TownHall

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Same Sex Marriage Legal in Connecticut

Connecticut’s Supreme Court ruled Friday that gay couples have the right to marry, making the state the third behind Massachusetts and California to legalize such unions through the courts.

The ruling comes just weeks before Californians go to the polls on a historic gay-marriage ballot question, the first time the issue will be put before voters.

Connecticut’s court ruled 4-3 that gay and lesbian couples cannot be denied the freedom to marry under the state constitution. It was a logical next step for a state that was the first to voluntarily pass laws affirming and protecting civil unions.

"I can’t believe it. We’re thrilled, we’re absolutely overjoyed. We’re finally going to be able, after 33 years, to get married," said Janet Peck of Colchester, who was a plaintiff with her partner, Carole Conklin.

"I’m just ecstatic. It’s such a relief, the joy of it," said another plaintiff, Jodi Mock of West Hartford, who sued with partner Elizabeth Kerrigan.

"Interpreting our state constitutional provisions in accordance with firmly established equal protection principles leads inevitably to the conclusion that gay persons are entitled to marry the otherwise qualified same sex partner of their choice," Justice Richard N. Palmer wrote in the majority opinion that overturned a lower court finding.

"To decide otherwise would require us to apply one set of constitutional principles to gay persons and another to all others," Palmer wrote.

The Family Institute of Connecticut, a political action group that opposes gay marriage, called the ruling outrageous.

"Even the legislature, as liberal as ours, decided that marriage is between a man and a woman," said executive director Peter Wolfgang. "This is about our right to govern ourselves. It is bigger than gay marriage."

Gov. M. Jodi Rell said Friday that she disagreed with the ruling, but will not fight it.

"The Supreme Court has spoken," Rell said in a statement. "I do not believe their voice reflects the majority of the people of Connecticut. However, I am also firmly convinced that attempts to reverse this decision - either legislatively or by amending the state Constitution - will not meet with success."

But House Speaker Jim Amann, a Democrat, said he expects the issue to be taken up by the General Assembly.

"The legislature, as the lawmaking branch of government, debated this issue and made Connecticut one of the few states that offers civil union status for same-sex couples," Amman said.

The lawsuit was brought in 2004 after eight same-sex couples were denied marriage licenses and sued, saying their constitutional rights to equal protection and due process were violated.

They said the state’s marriage law, if applied only to heterosexual couples, denied them of the financial, social and emotional benefits of marriage.

Peck said that as soon as the decision was announced, the couple started crying and hugging while juggling excited phone calls from her brother and other friends and family.

"We’ve always dreamed of being married," she said. "Even though we were lesbians and didn’t know if that would ever come true, we always dreamed of it."

by Dave Collins
Associated Press

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For the Bible Tells Me 'No'

So, I get these Google Alerts in my email box daily - always GLBT news of some sort, particularly pertaining to Dallas where I live. Google is a great thing - if you haven't yet discovered Google Alerts, you're living in the Ice Age. Seriously...go get 'em.

On Monday, I get an alert about a new film titled For the Bible Tells Me So. Naturally, I was intrigued since it seems lately that God and all of his followers have been cramming the Good Word down my throat. For the past few months, a large gang of Jesus freaks have been congregating outside JR's (a local gay bar on the gay strip in Dallas), forming a circle and singing tunes that include words like "Jesus Saves" and "Jesus forgives." You can't blame these folks for standing up for what they believe in...but come on...you don't see a gaggle of fags standing outside a motorcycle bar singing Madonna tunes, trying to convert all of them into good little gays!

Right, so Jesus is all up in my Kool-Aid these days. The religious conservatives are all about sending us fags to hell - several even want us killed, according to signs they hold up when protesting in the streets.

After reading all about this new film, I can't wait to see it. So, I send a blanket text message to everyone in my address book, looking for someone with whom I can see the film. Bingo! My straight female friend, who has a 19-year old gay son, is all about attending with me.

The film is a documentary that was very well directed, telling the story of non-acceptance of the GLBT community in the religious world. Chronicling the lives of several families who are born and raised with religion in their lives, each family finds themselves becoming connected to the GLBT community through a sibling, child or relative who outs themselves.

This film is very powerful and quite controversial. We watch one mother tell her own lesbian daughter that she will never be accepted and that she is going to Hell for being gay. Later, the lesbian hangs herself and the mother grieves her daughter's death for years to come. This tragic turn of events makes a light go off in Mom's head, and she decides to go back and read all of these passages in the Bible that supposedly say homosexuality is wrong. Through her own education, and without the direction of her church for once, Mom understands these passages in a completely different way. Mom now believes that the Bible never meant that homosexuality is wrong...that it is misunderstood and misquoted by the entire religious community. Several reverends back this up. So, Mom sets out with her new-found knowledge and begins protesting for gay rights, remembering and memorializing her daughter's death every step of the way.

There are several real-life stories in this film about families who have their own struggles with homosexuality and religion. Each story is very moving.

I highly recommend seeing this film - gay or straight.

Check it out at www.forthebibletellsmeso.org.

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