Wednesday, October 20

20. October 2010 by admin.

Judge Officially Denies Stay on DADT Injunction as White House Continues Down Muddled Path

 

It’s official. Federal District Judge Virginia Phillips has rejected the government’s request for a stay on the injunction she issued barring enforcement of the military’s "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" policy.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was asked about Obama’s position on the policy at today’s press briefing.

Gibbs seemed vague, at best, in explaining the administration’s path on the issue, considering there isn’t one. You can read most of the transcript of the relevant questioning, here.

From http://www.towleroad.com/2010/10/judge-officially-denies-stay-on-dadt-injunction-as-white-house-continues-down-muddled-path.html

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Right Wingers Defend GOP Candidate Ken Buck’s Comparison of Homosexuality to Alcoholism

Over the weekend, Steve posted about Colorado GOP Senate candidate Ken Buck’s Meet the Press remarks comparing homosexuality to alcoholism. Here’s some reaction from the wingnuts.

Right Wing Watch reports that Focus on the Family is defending Buck, saying he is absolutely right:

Comments on homosexuality by Colorado Republican Senate candidate Ken Buck have received some harsh criticism, including from state Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet.

Bennet said on “Meet the Press” Sunday that Buck saying homosexuality is a choice and his drawing an analogy between it and the disease of alcoholism are “outside the mainstream of views on this.”

But Buck’s views are closer to the mainstream in Colorado Springs. For years conservative Springs ministry leaders have compared alcoholism to homosexuality.

Jeff Johnston, Focus on the Family social policy analyst, said Monday, “Alcohol affects your whole body, and so does sexual behavior. The highly addictive (aspect of both) is an apt comparison.”

In related news, on The Ed Show in a discussion of Buck’s remarks., Former GOP Congressman Ernest Istook agreed with Ken Buck, saying gay activists say gay is a choice "because it improves their legal position."

From http://www.towleroad.com/2010/10/buck.html

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Stephen Slater Pleads Guilty Over JetBlue Escape

Stephen Slater pleaded guilty today to one count of felony attempted criminal mischief and one count of misdemeanor criminal mischief for his August emergency slide escape from a JetBlue aircraft at JFK.

NBC New York reports:  

Outside of Supreme Court in Kew Gardens, Queens, Slater said "While the public interest was surprising for me, at the end of the day I am a grown-up. I must accept responsibility for my actions."

Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said of the plea: "I believe the defendant has finally recognized the seriousness of his actions…under the circumstances, the disposition fairly balances the seriousness of the charges against the need for the defendant’s rehabilitation."

Under terms of the agreement, if Slater completes the program and counseling, and gets in no further trouble, he would be permitted to withdraw the felony plea next year. It would be replaced with a misdemeanor conviction at that time.

Should Slater fail to adhere to the terms of the deal, his sentence would revert to the full prison term and he would be forced to serve the one to three years.

From http://www.towleroad.com/2010/10/stephen-slater-pleads-guilty-for-jetblue-getaway.html

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Watch full episodes of The View at http://abc.go.com/watch/the-view/SH55…

The ladies respond to the Bill O’Reilly situation that occurred where Joy and Whoopi walked off set.

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Kentucky Masons Reject Proposal Barring Gay Men

The leader of a Masonic lodge in Kentucky, whose recent coming out made him the target of anti-gay slurs and a lodge walk-out, is hailing a vote on Monday by the Kentucky Masons, which rejected a proposal to bar gay men from the organization.

The Herald-Leader reports:

"When the leader of a Winchester Masonic lodge recently told members he was gay, he said one man called him "a flaming faggot," insisted that he resign, and led several members in a walkout. But John Wright refused to resign. Later, he stood firm when a Frankfort lodge proposed a change to the group’s state constitution that would have prohibited openly gay men from being Masons in Kentucky.

At an annual statewide meeting in Louisville Monday, attendees turned down the proposal…

The Masons are a worldwide fraternity of men who believe in God and work to help people through their charities, according to the Web site of the Grand Lodge of Kentucky. In Kentucky, they support homes for the elderly, a rehabilitation hospital for disabled children and other causes.

There are 408 chapters in the state with more than 54,000 members. The Masons, according to the Web site, teach that a person has a responsibility to make things better in the world. Each state has a Grand Lodge that is the administrative body in charge of the Masons."

Wright called the vote a "critical moment" in the organization’s history, saying, "They said with a strong voice that they are not going to discriminate. I do think that there are a large number of them of a newer mind-set that they can put these differences behind them and work toward the goals that the fraternity has. They can become better men and make our communities better places."

From http://www.towleroad.com/2010/10/kentucky-masons-reject-proposal-barring-gay-men.html

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Mr. Alec Baldwin is Angry He Can’t Marry Jesse Tyler Ferguson

Alec Baldwin responds to the announcement in August by Jesse Tyler Ferguson that they’re getting married, in a new spot for Fight Back NY.

As you may recall Fight Back NY is the PAC targeting anti-gay lawmakers in the New York Senate. Their current target is Queens senator Frank Padavan. If you feel inclined to take Alec’s advice, help them out here.

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Ugandan Tabloid Outs 100 ‘Top Homos’, Calls for Their Hanging

The Ugandan tabloid Rolling Stone this week published the names and addresses of 100 "top homos" and called for them to be hanged, in a front page story, the AP reports:

"In the days since it was published, at least four gay Ugandans on the list have been attacked and many others are in hiding, according to rights activist Julian Onziema. One person named in the story had stones thrown at his house by neighbors.

….

The Oct. 9 article in a Ugandan newspaper called Rolling Stone - not the American magazine - came out five days before the one-year anniversary of the controversial ("kill the gays") legislation. The article claimed that an unknown but deadly disease was attacking homosexuals in Uganda, and said that gays were recruiting 1 million children by raiding schools, a common smear used in Uganda.

After the newspaper hit the streets, the government Media Council ordered the newspaper to cease publishing - not because of the newspaper’s content, but rather that the newspaper had not registered with the government. After it completes the paperwork, Rolling Stone will be free to publish again, said Paul Mukasa, secretary of the Media Council.

That decision has angered the gay community further. Onziema said a lawsuit against Rolling Stone is in the works, and that she believes the publication has submitted its registration and plans to publish again.

According to the AP, the tabloid is relatively new and only publishes about 2,000 copies, but that hasn’t stopped it form causing havoc since the article’s publication:

The paper’s managing editor, Giles Muhame, said the article was "in the public interest."

"We felt there was need for society to know that such characters exist amongst them. Some of them recruit young children into homosexuality, which is bad and need to be exposed," he said. "They take advantage of poverty to recruit Ugandans. In brief we did so because homosexuality is illegal, unacceptable and insults our traditional lifestyle.’

Members of the gay community named in the article faced harassment from friends and neighbors. Onziema said the proposed bill already has led to evictions from apartments, intimidation on the street, unlawful arrests and physical assault.

The "kill the gays" bill introduced by MP David Bahati is said to have been "quietly shelved" but the animus toward gays, it appears, is still very active.

More http://www.towleroad.com/2010/10/ugandan-tabloid-outs-100-top-homos-calls-for-their-hanging.html

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Jail Operations Staff Sergeant: Mississippi Corrections Officer ‘Fired Because He Turned Out to be a Faggot’

The ACLU has filed a lawsuit on behalf of Andre Cooley, a corrections officer in Mississippi’s Forrest County, who was fired after supervisors discovered he is gay.

From the ACLU complaint:

"On June 14, 2010, while Mr. Cooley was in his home, off-duty and out of uniform, his boyfriend became physically violent, prompting Mr. Cooley to call 911 for help. The official police report of the incident lists Mr. Cooley as the “victim” of the domestic violence. No charges or disciplinary proceedings have ever been filed against Mr. Cooley accusing him of domestic violence or any other misconduct.

One of the officers who responded to the call was Defendant Charles Bolton, the Chief of Corrections. In response to Chief Bolton’s questions, Mr. Cooley’s boyfriend disclosed that he and Mr. Cooley were in an intimate relationship. Upon learning that Mr. Cooley was gay and in a same-sex relationship, Chief Bolton immediately told Mr. Cooley not to come back to work before reporting to his immediate supervisor.

When he did report to his supervisor, Mr. Cooley was told he was suspended indefinitely. The next day, Defendant Donnell Brannon, Staff Sergeant of Jail Operations, informed Mr. Cooley that the Sheriff’s Department had terminated him because of ‘the type of situation’ in which Mr. Cooley had been involved.

Mr. Cooley asked Staff Sergeant Brannon whether he was being fired because he is gay. After a brief pause, Staff Sergeant Brannon responded, ‘Yes.’ On information and belief, Staff Sergeant Brannon subsequently told Mr. Cooley’s co-workers that ‘Cooley was fired because he turned out to be a faggot.’"

WDAM reports: "The lawsuit, filed Monday in federal court by the ACLU, claims the sheriff’s department fired corrections officer Andre Cooley after discovering he was gay. Listed as defendants in the suit are Sheriff Billy McGee, Chief of Corrections Charles Bolton and Staff Sergeant of jail operations Donnell Brannon.

The suit claims the firing violated Cooley’s fourteenth amendment right to equal protection and due process in the termination."

From http://www.towleroad.com/2010/10/jail-operations-staff-sergeant-mississippi-corrections-officer-fired-because-he-turned-out-to-be-a-f.html

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