December 2008
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Archive for December 2008

All 4 U

11. December 2008 by admin.

Yesterday, we produced the 15th edition of Talk it Out. To listen to the current show go to http://www.outonline.com/talkitout/index.html and select show 15. I believe this is our best show to date! I am listening to the show as I write this blog.

The show was taped live at 11am on Wednesday. You can listen and join the show live every Wednesday at 11am on www.outonline.com on OTV.

We are getting ready to launch our January 2009 issue of the newspaper. It gets a little busy around here. Ads, press releases and news articles are flooding the office. What a wonderful time to be in the office. One thing for sure, you meet some very interesting people in this line of business. And, of course some people not so interesting.

A very good staff makes the office environment very pleasant. I look forward to coming to work every single day. This is not one of those jobs that feels like a job. When you enjoy what you do, every challenge can be very rewarding.

When Ed and I purchased the newspaper in 1994, it was not about money. The main reason we purchased Out was to continue a tradition. Our goal back then, and as it is today, is to produce a high quality newspaper for Pittsburgh, western and central PA, eastern OH and WV.

We have continued that tradition with integrity that shows in every issue of the newspaper. We publish this newspaper for you…the women and men of the region.

U make it worth while. Thank you for being so loyal to Out!

It is now time to head home and according to the radio, a ton of traffic and slushy weather awaits me. I love Pittsburgh’s predictable weather. Maybe I will stop at the MM or the Mills and get some shopping done on the way home.

Keep reading… and stay dry!

Tony
Tony’s TimeOUT
tony@outonline.com

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LIVE NOW!

10. December 2008 by admin.

On live now at www.outonline.com

Talk It Out.

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8. December 2008 by admin.

The Religious Case for Gay Marriage

(FROM NEWSWEEK, WRITTEN BY LISA MILLER) The argument goes something like this statement, which the Rev. Richard A. Hunter, a United Methodist minister, gave to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in June: “The Bible and Jesus define marriage as between one man and one woman. The church cannot condone or bless same-sex marriages because this stands in opposition to Scripture and our tradition.”

To which there are two obvious responses: First, while the Bible and Jesus say many important things about love and family, neither explicitly defines marriage as between one man and one woman. And second, as the examples above illustrate, no sensible modern person wants marriage—theirs or anyone else’s —to look in its particulars anything like what the Bible describes. “Marriage” in America refers to two separate things, a religious institution and a civil one, though it is most often enacted as a messy conflation of the two. As a civil institution, marriage offers practical benefits to both partners: contractual rights having to do with taxes; insurance; the care and custody of children; visitation rights; and inheritance. As a religious institution, marriage offers something else: a commitment of both partners before God to love, honor and cherish each other—in sickness and in health, for richer and poorer—in accordance with God’s will. In a religious marriage, two people promise to take care of each other, profoundly, the way they believe God cares for them. Biblical literalists will disagree, but the Bible is a living document, powerful for more than 2,000 years because its truths speak to us even as we change through history. In that light, Scripture gives us no good reason why gays and lesbians should not be (civilly and religiously) married—and a number of excellent reasons why they should.

Write Newswork and applaud them for this story and cover. Check out this issue’s cover story!

Thomas E. Ascheim, CEO
Newsweek
251 W. 57th St.,
New York, NY 10019
Phone: (212) 445-5245
E-Mail: Thomas E. Ascheim, Newsweek

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Is it really that bad? Believe?

4. December 2008 by admin.

Hey…

I need some feedback on the new look of our website and newspaper. tony@outonline.com. Your opinion really matters with us. We don’t just say it, we mean it!

Is all this bad news about the economy getting you down? Is it as bad as the national media is telling us? I hear some of my customers complain that business is down. Collectively, some are doing OK, some are struggling and some are considering closing all together. And, we are told Pittsburgh’s economy and real estate market is currently one of the best in the country? Good news for the ‘burgh, but scary thought for the rest of the United States.

The reason Pittsburgh is ranked one of the top cities to ride out the recession is our industries and real estate markets.

According to the latest Zillow Real Estate Market Reports, home values in Pittsburgh increased 1.72% in the third quarter of 2008, compared to the third quarter of 2007. Nationally, home values decreased -9.7% during this same period.

Thank the high tech, financial, medical, education and steel industries. Pittsburgh is a leading high tech, educational and medical center city. PNC Bank has emerged as one of the largest banking institutions in the country and has effectively avoidable the sub-prime mortgage mess. UPMC is building new medical canters here and throughout the world. Look around Pittsburgh and you will see building growth everywhere. City neighborhoods that were decrepit and with no hope. Today, these neighborhoods are littered with upscale housing, retail shops, coffee houses, fabulous restaurants. Even downtown has a housing and restaurant boom.

Having said that, it appears Pittsburgh is doing better than most of the country. But, things are so great here. I have always felt that even if one person is suffering, than that is one person too many suffering. Nationally, layoffs are everywhere, unemployment is raising, retail sales have fallen the largest drop in 39 years! http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122839721599179263.html?mod=special_page_campaign2008_mostpop.

The auto industry collapse scares the hell of out me. Estimates are as high as 1 out of 10 jobs in the United States could be lost if the auto industry implodes. Give them the damn loans. If they survive, the loans will be paid back with interest.

Four and eight years ago, we tried to comfort ourselves by saying… How bad could it get with Bush in the White House? I can honestly say that our question has been answered.

January 20, 2009 is only 46 days away. You may ask yourself…how much worse will it get? I have to believe the best is yet to come. Right now and during the holiday season, I believe.

Keep reading…

Tony

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We R Family

2. December 2008 by admin.

We are taping Talk It Out at 11am Wednesday live. Catch the show on Podcast later this week. Don’t worry if you you miss the the live broadcast every Wednesday at 11am. All our show can be found on www.outonline.com and available whenever you want to listen.

Also tomorrow, the latest episode of Out Takes is being shot on location at the Out offices. This show will highlight articles and events in the December issue (on newsstand now) and other current events. Join David Stanton and me on OTV www.outonline.com’s or on Out Takes podcasts.

On Wednesday night, Ed and I will talking our younger boys to see “Walking with Dinosaurs — The Live Experience,” which opens Wednesday at Mellon Arena. http://www.postgazette.com/multimedia/?videoID=101238. I love this kind of stuff.

Check out the Dinosaurs at Carnegie Museum in Oakland and while you are there, don’t miss the Life on Mars exhibit now in it’s final days.

Pittsburgh has so much to offer families like mine and “family”–gays and lesbians. We always purchase family memberships and are never questioned about our non-traditional family. Guess what? They don’t care if you gay, straight or from Mars. Well–maybe the Mars part is a stretch.

Our non-traditional family is made up of three boys, Ed and me. We don’t think we are a better family than our neighbors, nor do we think we are beneath other ones. Are we different? Well–of course! Most families are different. People are different. That is what makes this country so special. However, we need to work on the same rights issue.

We are a family because we choose to be. How cool is that? Never will you find us changing to meet other’s view of a family. We are who are. Sounds like an old dance song… Guess what? We make no excuses for it. Believe it or not, most people respect that. This country is ours, too. We deserve respect and have earned it.

Ed and I do not see ourselves as role models, but if our family gives other gay and lesbian couples hope, then be it.

Perfect we are not. Look close enough and you will see the flaws. Dig deeper and you will see we are just like you. Family in more ways than one…

Keep reading…

Tony

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