11.13.2006

My head just exploded

The American Family Association has just called for a boycott of Wal-Mart, claiming the union-busting, music-censoring, gender-discriminating discount chain is too....pro-gay!

I'm going to let that sink in for a second.

The AFA is a little more unhinged than usual on this one. Here are some of the claims:

• When you visit Wal-Mart via a link from their website, the Washington DC Metro Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Center will receive 5% of whatever you spend. The AFA describes the Center as " a place where homosexuals can come together to 'socialize;'" scare-quotes theirs. I wonder when "socialize" became code for fucking, and what does that mean for any future church ice cream socials?
  
  
• Wal-Mart sells books and other items that are of interest to gay people. Specifically, the AFA's team of crack researchers found 26 whole items that pertained to gay marriage. Without doing a lick of research, I bet several of those items were greeting cards and not one a manifesto for destroying the sanctity of traditional marriage and converting bored housewives into a league of pagan lesbian warriors.
  
  
• And...actually, that's it! Two whole bullet points from those over-achievers at the AFA.

The absolute best part of the boycott, though, is it's scope. The AFA is asking all members to avoid shopping at Wal-Mart on the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving. Apparently, come November 26th, its okay to pander to the gays so long as you're still getting a good deal on cheap shit made in China.

I must give credit where credit is due, though. Good on Wal-Mart for recognizing that the queer dollar is just as green as the breeder dollar. Of course, no self-respecting gay man would be caught dead buying anything in that crap emporium, but it's a good effort nonetheless. Now, let's talk about living wages and health care, hmm?

UPDATE: Pat Boone used to play tennis with Sam Walton, which is why his opinion on homosexuality matters.

Labels: Fundies Say The Darndest Things, LGBT

annamaria at 8:56 AM

3 spoke

10.20.2006

Who needs lunch when I have anger to feed me

If I didn't skip lunch, I'd be having lentil soup. Yum!

Kurt asks if my absence from blogging is due to Tiger Fever; unfortunately, not being a baseball fan, I’m unable to use such a great excuse. Then Kerri emailed me to tell me that she hates my job, because it’s preventing me from blogging. You and me both, babe.

So I looked at the blog the other day, and realized it’s been over a month since I’ve written anything. Probably explains all the pent up anger I’ve been feeling lately, since I haven’t had an outlet for it in weeks. Here is a summary of what I’ve been thinking lately on topics of major (and minor) interest:

The Amish School Shooting: Will someone please tell me why the MSM refuses to characterize this as a hate crime? If an unhinged racist walked into a school in Detroit, ordered all the little white kids out of the building, carried with him 600 rounds of ammunition and a lynching rope, and proceeded to murder five little black children, I think the racist motivation for the crime would be fairly obvious. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson would be giving interviews left and right decrying the overt and violent racism of American society which allows men like our hypothetical killer to exist. And they would be right. So why is it that when a man separates the girls from the boys, brings tubes of lube and restraints, and shoots five little girls in the back of the head, execution-style, only one MSM figure notices that our sexist and misogynistic society allows for men like Charles Roberts to exist?

The Torture Bill. Fuck you, Debbie Stabenow. I know that you’re up for re-election, but as of October 9th, you’ve got a 17% lead over Republican challenger Mike Bouchard. And with 79% of Michigan voters citing the economy as their chief concern this election year, your stance on securing worker’s pensions seems like a winner. Not to mention that Governor Granholm is currently kicking Dick DeVos’s ass on the economy issue, as well. So why the need to suddenly overthrow any progressive credibility you might have by granting a corrupt president the power to ignore the Geneva Convention? Granted, he’s been ignoring it for years, but your vote has just given him, and future presidents, both the legal and moral authority to continue to do so for years to come. Congratulations. For the first time in my life I’ve actually considered voting for a Republican (don’t worry, it was a fleeting thought); instead, I’m just not voting for Senator at all. You might win, but don’t fool yourself into thinking that the true Michigan progressives support you.

Nice Guys. Amanda is tackling the "Nice Guy" issue again, and I’m left shaking my head wondering why this is still an issue. Nice Guys, for people who aren’t me and don’t spend hours reading feminist blogs, are those assholes who incessantly whinge about how women are only attracted to men who treat them like shit, and look at me, I’m so great, I don’t rape or beat women, and why can’t these dumb bitches realize that I’m the perfect boyfriend because I only fantasize about how to get one over on women, rather than actively doing it. Amanda’s take is, of course, spot on: Nice Guys are misogynists in sheep’s clothing who cling so desperately to their privilege that they fail to recognize that the Asshole vs. Nice Guy debate makes about as much sense as the belaboring the oh-so-important question of potato vs. potahto.

Last March, on International Women’s Day, I was in Ann Arbor for a Ted Leo & The Pharmacists concert. For those of you who haven’t spent much time around A2, allow me to overly generalize yet fairly characterize the student population: rich, mostly white kids who read Foucault once and think they understand oppression; such knowledge is then usually presented to members of an oppressed class as a statement of the rich kid’s understanding and, of course, moral superiority: "See, I’m better than those other rich kids, because I recognize racism, which means I’m not racist, which means that you, oppressed person, cannot accuse me of using my position of class and race privilege as a bludgeon. What’s that you say? I benefit from an oppressive system even if I don’t personally engage in acts of oppression? Fuck you, Darky, can’t you see I’m better than those other assholes?" Ann Arbor is full of Nice Guys. At the TL/Rx show, there was a guy walking around with a T-shirt that said "I don’t oppress women." The first time I saw it, I kind of chuckled. The second time the kid walked passed me, I wanted to rip his arms off and beat him bloody with his own desiccated limbs. I finally decided that the next time I saw him, I was going to ask if his "I don’t kick puppies" t-shirt was in the wash. Luckily for both of us, he managed to avoid me for the rest of the night.

Michigan Proposal 2*. Speaking of Ann Arbor, the rightie-tighties in the Mitten are apparently not content with the Supreme Court decision in Gratz v. Bollinger which gutted U of M’s undergraduate affirmative action program; proposal 2 would amend the Michigan State Constitution to ban all affirmative action policies in school admission and employment. I was driving with my sister-in-law the other day, and we noticed signs all over the neighborhood (the very wealthy, very white neighborhood) which read "Fairness, Equality, Yes on 2." At the time, I was so overwhelmed with work and whatnot, I didn’t even know what the proposal was. But I turned to my SIL and said "How much do you want to bet proposal 2 reinstates slavery or something?" Nice to know that in our crazy, post-ironic world, I was kinda right.

Vanished What does television have against the pretty, pretty Gale Harold?

Pretty

First Queer As Folk takes my beloved Brian to the brink of spiritual healing, only to push him headlong back into the life of an overgrown club boy. Then I watch that crappy Vanished show for the sole purpose of spending an hour a week with a very hot man, only to watch in horror as he gets pumped full of lead and left to die in a pool of his own blood. It almost makes me want to start watching shows for their plot and not their hot actors.

The Crane Wife. Not to totally change gears or anything, but I’m burned out on being angry right now. Does everyone have this yet?** If you don’t have it, might I suggest that you get yourself to the nearest independent music retailer and purchase this sublime work of musical genius?

And speaking of The Decemberists, Ann at Feministing as an interview with Colin Meloy wherein he riffs on the violence of pregnancy and why his kid is doomed to be a Republican.

Okay, that’s it for now, since my lunch hour is up. I hope you are all happy that I forwent sustenance in favor of writing (arguably) witty and pointless things for you all. You can make it up to me later.

------------
* I've decided that the number "2" is the new mark of the beast--the last Michigan proposal 2 amended to state constitution to ban gay marriage and civil unions.
**Well, everyone but Rich since the album won’t be released in Europe until January 27th (haha!).

Labels: Bitch Bitch Bitch, Feminism, LGBT, Politics, Pop Culture

annamaria at 2:49 PM

4 spoke

8.17.2006

Finally, an abstinence pledge I can sign

Photo courtesy of Derek Goodwin Photography

This is a happily married gay couple.

This is a sheep.

I know that upon initial examination, it is difficult to discern any differences between the two, so I’ll do my best clarify:

• In the first photograph, both subjects are human.
• In the second photograph, the subject is an animal of the ovine persuasion.
• To elucidate further, our ovine friends, while cute and often soft and fluffy, are not human.
• Conversely, neither human in the first photograph should be mistakenly identified as a sheep, or any other non-human animal.

"But I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. Homosexuality is an alternative lifestyle," she said. "That doesn't make it marriage. Some people have group sex," she said. "She we allow two men and three women to marry? Should we allow polygamy with one man and five wives? For some people, the alternative lifestyle is bestiality. Do we allow a man to marry a sheep?"

Ms. Rowland,

I read with great interest your comments regarding gay marriage during an appearance on PBS’s “Colorado State of Mind.” I agree that sexual relations between humans and non-human animals is an abomination (to co-opt some of your language), and that we as a society must do whatever we can to prevent the sexual abuse of animals. I’ve never seen any poll numbers on how many Americans believe bestiality to be sinful, but I can state with confidence that they must outnumber those who oppose gay marriage and gay rights. So, in order to alleviate the fears of the anti-bestiality crowd, while still recognizing that gay humans should and do have rights, I am starting a campaign to have all decent Americans pledge to abstain from sex with non-humans.

I, __________________________, do hereby pledge to forswear and abstain from sexual relations with non-humans as a result of the recognition of marriage rights for gay and lesbian Americans. This disavowal of bestiality should also be construed as a promise to renounce any intentions of marrying non-human animals.

Once a sufficient number of people have responded with their abstinence pledges, I trust you will back off from rhetoric equating loving gay couples with horrific acts of violence against sheep. I also trust that your final argument against gay marriage, the slippery slope to bestiality, will be laid to rest.

Yours in peace,
Annamaria

I'll let you know if I get a response.

Labels: Fundies Say The Darndest Things, LGBT

annamaria at 12:00 PM

3 spoke

8.10.2006

We're all queer now

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 9:01 PM

6 spoke

5.22.2006

How to waste a teachable moment

The New Bert and Ernie?

Overheard at the grocery store, waiting in line to purchase one item because the stupid U-Scan machines were down:

Adorable Towheaded Child: "Mommy, I don’t like Veggie Tales; Veggie Tales are gay."

WASPy Mother: "What? Who told you that Veggie Tales are gay?"

ATC: "Daddy. Daddy said that Veggie Tales are gay."

WyM: "Well, we don’t say words like that. Veggie Tales aren’t gay; we like Veggie Tales."

Annamaria: Sighs audibly and realizes this is how bigots are made.

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 9:18 AM

4 spoke

4.20.2006

Why don't we just ban parenthood?

So, Kerri said something in the comments a few days ago that had me thinking about Identity Politics and the way that sexuality has been co-opted by those who view “who you fuck” as something other than just that—who you fuck. It reminded me of a discussion I had with a classmate in an intro-Women’s Studies course in college, where I argued that gender always means woman. Men have no gender, at least in the common parlance, because their gender is the norm. Only women, being deviant by patriarchal standards, are the defined by gender. Race is a similar construct. Referring to yourself as a member of the white race is often a pretty clear indication that you are an unrepentant racist asshole. At the very least, that is how you will be perceived. Constructs like race, gender and sexual orientation are social markers used to identify those who do not live up to the cultural norm—white, male, heterosexual.

And, as is the nature of patriarchy, what begins as a tool of identification becomes a tool for oppression. Take for example this account about a woman who testified before the Massachusetts Judiciary Committee about being raised by a gay father:

The Massachusetts government heard testimony last week from a young Canadian woman, Dawn C. Stefanowicz who had been raised from infancy by her homosexual father and his various “partners” in a “gay” household. She told the Massachusetts Judiciary Committee that her life submerged in the homosexual subculture had left her scarred psychologically and morally.

Stefanowicz made her statement during hearings, held April 11 by the Massachusetts government to consider establishing an amendment to the state constitution that would define marriage as being between one man and one woman.

Describing her father’s homosexual lifestyle as a culture without “boundaries and principles of morality and monogamy,” Stefanowicz said her upbringing was characterized by confusion and lack of affection, domestic violence and sexual abuse.

I’m not a psychologist, but I have a feeling that any psychological scarring this woman experienced had more to do with “lack of affection, domestic violence and sexual abuse” and the revolving door of daddy’s sexual partners than the fact that said partners were men. If this was truly going on in this child’s home, then Canadian social services failed her. They allowed her to remain in a home where abuse and violence were the norm, and I am sickened that any child could be treated so cruelly by her own parent. But so far as I know, child sexual abuse and domestic violence are not the sole province of homosexuals. Actually, I’m fairly sure that’s the case, since the vast majority of pedophiles are heterosexual men. And kids were routinely abused in homes prior to the Stonewall Rebellion, so I’m pretty sure we can’t blame that on “teh gays” either. But, from a sociological perspective, it is paramount that we conflate this father’s actions with his sexual orientation. Ms. Stefanowicz’s father was, by her account, a monster who never should have been allowed near children, but in a world were sexuality were simply defined by “who you fuck” his sexuality would barely be a footnote in this story.

To use one woman's account of abuse at the hands of a gay father to justify the denial of basic rights to an entire segment of the population is, at best, a terrible means of determining public policy, and at worst, an offensive means of codifying hatred. But let's assume that the Massachusetts Judicial Committee's intentions are pure, and they just want to protect children from abuse--why not ban heterosexual marriage* then? Since most pedophiles are straight men and I'm sure that most kids in foster homes came from heterosexual parents, why not use that statistical evidence (as opposed to Ms. Stefanowicz's anecdotal evidence) and ban straight people from getting married or having kids? If protecting children is really your concern.

______________________
*And can we stop with the ridiculous argument that the only justification for marriage is to make lots and lots of little babies? Seriously, it's getting on my nerves.

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 1:00 PM

0 spoke

3.23.2006

A parody of a parody is one too many

-------------------
*Thanks, Rich! That's my new favorite word!

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 12:24 PM

1 spoke

3.02.2006

Wherein Annamaria crushes on a gay guy...again.

One of the pitfalls of being sick is that it encourages you to sit on the couch all day and watch television, since doing anything else requires a strength of body and mind that has been sapped by an infestation of evil little germs and an overabundance of NyQuil. Last night, curled up on the couch with a warm blanket and a humidifier, I found myself watching a marathon of Bravo’s Project Runway. I don’t know if it’s the drugs or the adorable Daniel V. (see above), but I watched nearly the entire second season (including one of those damnable reunion specials) in one sitting. They say that admitting you have a problem is the first step toward recovery; well, it’s official: I am a Project Runway addict. That show is like crack! One hit and you’re hooked. Thankfully, there is only one episode left of the season, after which I can start some kind of rapid detox and get back to life as normal…until season three.

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 7:30 AM

3 spoke

2.28.2006

Incontrovertable proof of the gay and lesbian agenda

This one's for you, Kerri:



Frippy tells the story of an Exodus International billboard that got a pretty little makeover from the good citizens of St. Louis.

I've said this before, but I seem to be in a redundant mood lately, so I'll say it again: Even if it is possible that one can change their sexuality from gay to straight, why should they? That is my biggest problem with these so-called "ex-gay" ministries--they offer no good reason for anyone to subvert their natural sexual orientation in favor of a new one. I'm straight, and I don't care how much indoctrination I receive at the hands of the homoprop™ artists of the world, nothing is going to change that. But even if I were to entertain the notion that I could, through the good work of the "ex-straight" ministries of the world, become a lesbian overnight, there is absolutely no reason why I should. It seems that the only reason that Exodus International and Love Won Out, et. al. have for changing one's sexual orientation is to avoid the very bigotry these groups espouse.

I take my marching orders (and the occassional link) from Twisty.

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 7:14 AM

5 spoke

1.27.2006

Filmmaker rewards “moral” films; Annamaria yawns

I can imagine that Angelina Jolie is relieved that she’s unmarried and pregnant in a year when three whole movies with gay themes were released—certainly distracted the Quayle-ites from going after her, didn’t it?

I hope she remembers to add Michael Class to her Christmas card list…

An independent filmmaker, tired of the praise and awards heaped on films opposed to traditional values, is calling on others to join in the establishment of the American Values Awards for Movies and Television.

Filmmaker Michael Class says the awards seek to honour films and television that feature, "stories of love, honor, commitment, good versus evil, and the triumph of the human spirit."

Class is disgusted that Brokeback Mountain, the film about two cowboys who give in to homosexual tendencies while working as shepherds, has four Golden Globe awards and is likely to clean up at this year’s Oscars. Class, head of the independent studio, Magic Picture Frame Studio, calls Brokeback “morally confused” and says this is typical of big budget Hollywood films. “Brokeback Mountain? What's positive about a film whose main character's sexual behaviour destroys a family?”

Good lord, you’d think that Brokeback Mountain was the only movie released last year the way these idiots go on about it. Yes, it’s about adulterous gay cowboys…get over it already! Where was the outrage when Reese Witherspoon and Joaquin Phoenix won Golden Globes for their portrayals of June Carter and Johnny Cash in Walk the Line? What, adultery is only offensive when it’s homosexual in nature? Mary Louise Parker picked up an award for her role as a suburban drug dealer in Weeds, no outcry there. But she’s not a lesbian, so I guess we can overlook her crimes, right?

In any given year, most of the films and performances nominated for the Golden Globes or Oscars offend me—because they are banal pieces of crap not worth the $8 a ticket at the local cineplex. The difference between me and people like Mr. Class is that I am apparently capable of turning off the TV, changing the station on the radio, and not buying tickets to see movies that don’t appeal to me. And I’m also capable of accepting that some people want to see the 40-Year Old Virgin, and I don’t have the right to stop them.

The above-linked article has this to say about Mr. Class: “This refrain from US conservatives is as old as Joseph McCarthy’s House Un-American Activities Committee but Class has taken a more pro-active approach to the problem.” Only the far right can compare someone to McCarthy, and mean it as a compliment.

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 9:02 AM

1 spoke

1.03.2006

Barbie: Gender Revolutionary

I always find it humorous when I agree with the basic premise of a far-Right argument, only to be utterly confounded by the reasons they use to come at their conclusions. For instance, the basic premise is "Barbie is evil." I can get behind that. The reasoning, however, a little suspect: "A poorly-worded poll on the Barbie website promotes gender confusion and will lure your children into the hedonistic world of the homoabortionists*." Yeah, I’m not so down with that.

Concerned Women for Patriarchy America spent some time at Barbie’s Malibu Mansion, and found a poll which suggests that America’s favorite doll** wants to turn your babies gay. The poll started out innocuously enough, asking children to enter their gender from a drop down box; unfortunately, the nefarious web designers betrayed their true intentions by offering up three gender choices: girl, boy and I don’t know. Obviously, by offering up a third choice (which rumor has it was originally "bear daddy" before being changed to the more gender-inclusive "I don’t know"), Mattel are intimating that it is perfectly acceptable for children to usurp the gender binary, spelling doom…DOOM!...for the American way—you know, traditional families, apple pie and kicking the queers while they’re down.

CWA’s Robert Knight (a man!), had this to say:

"It’s the idea that well, maybe people aren’t born a particular biological sex, or they are but that shouldn’t determine their gender identity," Knight said. "And that’s a very big component of the homosexual activist agenda now."

The acronyms for the movement used to be limited to L and G, which stands for lesbian and gay. Then they added the letter, B, which means bisexual. Now it’s LGBT lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender and some even add Q, which stands for questioning youth***, Knight pointed out.

"In other words, any kid who’s not sure about who he is, he’s fair game to try to persuade to have same sex acts," said Knight.

Holy leap of logic, Patriarchy Man! I can imagine the scenario right now:

Little Timmy (or perhaps Tammy) logs onto the Barbie website to answer a poll about whether Ken or Blaine is the better man for Barbie (we’re going to leave aside the obvious fact that any man named Blaine is gay). Timmy/Tammy looks at the drop down menu and realizes that a third choice is available—a beacon of light and hope for the youngster who has been questioning his/her gender identity of late, due mostly to a predilection toward shooting guns while wearing high heels. Timmy/Tammy grows up, consoled by the knowledge that Barbie understands his/her true state of gender ambiguity, and promptly joins a homoabortionist sect, where he/she is lured into homosexual acts by leather daddies/bull dykes, who capitalize on Timmy/Tammy’s gender confusion and keen fashion sense. They all live happily ever after. No wait! I mean, Timmy/Tammy flounders without the oppressive weight of binary gender distinctions keeping him/her from floating off into space and burning up in the exosphere. There, that’s better.

----------------
*I’ve decided that “homoabortionists” is the funniest word I’ve ever made up, and will continue to use it whenever fundies talk about “the gays.”
**Anyone know if the story about the Lilli doll, on which Barbie was based, being a sort of German gay counterculture icon is true?
***As an aside, the Q in LGBTQI (and unwieldy acronym that I’ve never actually heard anyone use) stands for Queer or Questioning. Only Bob Knight seems to think that “Questioning” implies youth; anyone who’s taken a Queer Studies class, or, you know, actually knows someone who’s gay, would know otherwise.

Labels: Feminism, Fundies Say The Darndest Things, LGBT

annamaria at 11:57 AM

0 spoke

12.14.2005

Intolerant gay fundamentalists for diversity of choice...

Now that I've used all the catch
phrases, I'll be sure to get that
autographed picture of Babs!
Oh, I love it when conservatives complain about the liberal media and the godless fags taking over the earth. Following their logic requires such amazing cognitive contortions to overcome the inconvenient little fact of Republicans controlling all three branches of government, most state houses, and the mainstream media (I'm talking to you, Rupert Murdoch). As Noam Chomsky said, if the media were really liberal, you would see the "Labor Section" of your newspaper, not the "Business Section."

This month, Agape Press and James Lambert take on "liberal lingo" in an attempt to unravel their deep, delusory meanings and save their dear readers from falling for our damnable deceptions:

• 'Choice' - Who isn't against choice? Everyone is for choice! Yet this word has been used by liberals for several decades to eliminate any negative connotation when discussing the abortion issue. "Pro-choice" is certainly a better term than "pro-abortion." Abortions are an ugly business. In most cases the fetus is extracted from the uterus, often dismembered. Yet whose choice is it? It may be the choice of the mother, but how about the baby who does not have a choice? The reality of abortion is something liberals don't want to debate.

Please note the Freudian slip at the start of that paragraph...

I find it interesting that in an article based on the misuse of language by liberals to further our political ends, the author manages to use an emotionally-charged word in an effort to further his ideological position. A baby does not have a choice in an abortion, because babies are neither aborted, nor do they obtain abortions. A pregnancy is aborted, and as a result a fetus is removed from a woman’s body. You cannot abort a baby (or a fetus for that matter)—this isn’t an issue of me using language to obscure the reality of abortion, this is an example of me using language correctly. Sorry if that offends.

The use of “choice” by abortion rights advocates isn’t an attempt to belie the reality of abortion or “eliminate any negative connotation,” it is simply a statement of intent. We believe that women should be able to choose from a variety of reproductive options, from abstinence to abortion, because we believe that women are capable of making those kinds of decisions without patronizing and infantilizing legislation like 24-hour waiting periods and spousal consent regulations. We believe women have to right to choose; that makes us pro-choice.

• 'Gay' - For centuries, gay was defined as "merry, happily excited or lively." Homosexual activists have reinvented this word to define their lifestyle. It's odd, isn't it, that the term "gay" would be used to describe a lifestyle than [sic] (on average) lowers the life expectancy of homosexual males by over 20 years? That's according to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta -- not a statistic just dreamed up by opponents of homosexuality.

The use of the word gay to refer to homosexuals appeared as early as the 1920s, most notably in Noel Coward’s play Bitter Sweet, where fin de siecle dandies sing:
For the "Nineties" being gay,
We all wear a green carnation.
The “green carnation” is a reference to the very gay (and I mean this in all senses of the word) Oscar Wilde, who famously donned such a flower. Wikipedia also notes that the 1938 film Bringing Up Baby is the first to use the word gay to connote homosexuality. Considering that the modern gay rights movement has its start with the Stonewell Rebellion in 1969, it would seem that society as a whole, and not those nefarious homosexual activists, had a hand in this particular etymology.

So, let’s talk about that “lifestyle than [sic] (on average) lowers the life expectancy of homosexual males by over 20 years,” shall we? First of all, Mr. Lambert is lying to you. Those numbers don’t come from the Centers for Disease Control*, they are culled from a 1997 study conducted by Hogg, et al in Canada. The Vancouver team used data from 1989-1992 in an effort to estimate the impact of HIV on gay and bisexual men, in particular to determine any effect on the overall life expectancy of that particular demographic subset. It is interesting to note that Hogg et all have specifically decried any attempt by anti-gay activists to use their work as a means of denying rights to, or teaching intolerance of, gay men.

Over the past few months we have learnt of a number of reports regarding a paper we published in the International Journal of Epidemiology on the gay and bisexual life expectancy in Vancouver in the late 1980s and early 1990s.From these reports it appears that our research is being used by select groups in US and Finland to suggest that gay and bisexual men live an unhealthy lifestyle that is destructive to themselves and to others. These homophobic groups appear more interested in restricting the human rights of gay and bisexuals rather than promoting their health and well being. [emphasis mine]

Both the original research time and others have since claimed that the 1989-1992 data is outdated, and that new advances in medical technology and education have narrowed the life-expectancy gap to a paltry 14 months—a statistically insignificant figure.

• 'Fundamentalists' - The meaning of this term has changed over time into one with a very negative connotation. Liberals, especially since 9-11, have used it to compare conservative Christians to Wahabe Islamists and the Taliban. While this comparison is absurd, liberals in the media have used it to wage war against religious Christians. They do this in part by demonizing Christians and by calling them "fundamentalists." They imply that all conservative Christians want a theocracy, condemn others to hell, wish to punish sinners, and militantly want to force their religious beliefs on others.

Prove us wrong.

Seriously, Agape Press, behave in a way that doesn’t indicate that you “want a theocracy, condemn others to hell, wish to punish sinners, and militantly want to force [your] religious beliefs on others” and I will stop calling you a fundamentalist.

• 'Intolerant' - Webster's definition of this word is "unable to endure, unwilling to endure, or unwilling to grant equal freedom of expression especially in religious matters or other social, political or professional rights." Liberals have effectively eliminated the "religious matters" part. They see religion, especially the Christian religion, as intolerant. The use of this word by liberals reveals their goal of avoiding all forms of judgment. If conservatives critically question liberal ideas, they are immediately labeled as "intolerant." Yet liberals cannot see that their intolerance of religious people defines that term.

Un-fucking-believable. It’s the liberals that are “unwilling to grant equal freedom of expression especially in religious matters”? Tell that to the woman who can’t get emergency contraception (or any kind of birth control for that matter) because the pharmacist refuses to recognize her religious beliefs. Or the high school kids who have to learn that evolution is a theory because some crackpot asshole thinks that the sky fairy** spent six days making the universe. I am not intolerant of religion, but like the homophobic asshole who cringes at the thought of two dudes kissing***, I just don’t wanna see it! By all means, express your religion, go to church, believe what you want to believe, but for the love of Bill, grant me the same fucking courtesy, would you?

• 'Homophobic' - This term cannot even be found in my Webster's dictionary. Yet we have seen this term applied to anyone who disagrees with the homosexual lifestyle. This is yet another way for radical homosexuals and lesbians to intimidate and harass any who dare oppose them in the political and social arena.

Time to get a new dictionary, dude.

• 'Diversity' - This word reeks of political correctness. While diversity is a good word that describes "a condition of differences," the word is also used by liberals to put forth the notion that any kind of differentiation is bad. In the liberal world, making personal judgment calls is wrong -- and diversity tells us that every lifestyle should be accepted and promoted.

I have a feeling that Lambert had a stack of notecards with conservative talking points on them that somehow managed to get scattered all over the floor. In his haste to write this insightful article, he put them in a pile, said to hell with order or cogency, and haphazardly applied them to whatever bullet point his little heart desired. You see, the "any kind of differentiation is bad" line is supposed to be used against the evil gender feminists, and the "making personal judgment calls is wrong" canard is for liberals who criticize Bush's "Ownership Society," or Denny's for not serving the black folk.

-----------------
*I looked all over for a CDC report that said anything even remotely similar to this, and came up with nothing. If you can find one, send it along and I’ll repay your kindness with a cookie.
**As always, credit to Norbizness
***As always, credit to Jon Stewart

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 2:13 PM

5 spoke

12.07.2005

A lesson in fundie logic

AKA shorter Rev. Euteneuer

Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer, president of Human Life International: Gay men cannot be priests because priests have to renounce marriage, which gay men can't do, because we won't let them get married.

Well, that clears things up.

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 3:12 PM

1 spoke

12.06.2005

You're not a human until you're in my phone book

I haven’t visited with our friends, the Concerned Women for Patriarchy America lately, and it seems they’ve uncovered all kinds of nefarious liberal plots while I’ve been off living my life. This title particularly intrigued me:

The Abortion-Homosexual Connection

Well, doesn’t that sound distressing? To think that homosexuals are performing abortions! Or is it that evil lesbians are getting themselves knocked-up by unwitting straight men only to go out and have abortions! Oh, I know! Genetic testing has allowed doctors to isolate a gay gene, and homosexual doctors are selectively aborting straight womb babies to aid the homosexual agenda and the queer quest for global dominance!

Okay, I give up. What is the abortion-homosexual connection? Does it have anything to do with The French Connection? I know that twinks really like to wear those FCUK t-shirts.

No, the abortion-homosexual connection is even worse that you thought. Check out what Robert Knight, CWFA director (and a man!), has to say:

[Susan] Kennedy's rise to the top of California's power structure is just the tip of the iceberg. Openly lesbian California Democratic legislators Sheila Kuehl and Carole Migden, along with openly homosexual Mark Leno, have led the fight against any restrictions on abortion while initiating a slew of pro-homosexual measures, including full-blown "gay marriage," promoting homosexuality in the schools, and a law prohibiting the state from doing business with firms that do not subsidize homosexual relationships. Leno and Kuehl are listed as co-authors of AB 654, a euthanasia bill so radical that it didn't even get a floor vote in the liberal-dominated Assembly.

At the national level, the pro-abortion National Organization for Women supports all aspects of the homosexual agenda, including same-sex "marriage," hate crime laws, and persecuting [sic] the Boy Scouts for barring homosexuals as scoutmasters.

Homosexual activist groups are players in liberal coalitions that work against pro-life judicial nominees, for socialized medicine, and for legislation restricting the rights of pro-life demonstrators, such as the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which treats pro-life protesters as criminals.

Don’t you see, folks, the evil abortion-homosexual connections? People who support individual liberty, human rights and privacy tend the be consistent! And as we all know, consistency is the enemy of the Religious Right. And Robert Knight has proof that the abortion-homosexual agenda is at direct odds with the values of “Christians” everywhere: some nutjob anti-choice advocate wrote a book called “The Criminalization of Christianity” wherein she posits that the ultimate goal of the homoabortionists is to, well, criminalize Christianity.

Longtime pro-life activist Janet Folger had an epiphany a few years ago at a pro-family conference at Coral Ridge Ministries in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. She "suddenly connected the dots and realized it's all the same battle" after hearing a speaker discuss "the real aim of the homosexual agenda: the criminalization of Christianity."

When I was in college, I volunteered at my local Planned Parenthood clinic. Our director was a wonderful man, deeply committed to all aspects of social justice, including not only a woman’s right to make her own reproductive choices, but also gay rights (by which, of course, I mean human rights). He was also a minister at a local Christian church. He never saw any conflict between his faith and his job at PPFA; in fact, he often argued that his faith was precisely the reason he chose to work at the clinic, because he believed that Christians cannot look the other way when confronted with injustice. I wonder if he knew that he was an instrument of evil, determined to vitiate his own religion. Somehow I doubt it.

Labels: Keep Your Rosaries Off My Ovaries, LGBT

annamaria at 8:08 AM

2 spoke

10.10.2005

Hey! Remember Me?

I’m feeling down, folks. You see, whenever there is some new trend that all the cool kids are in on, I’m always the last to know. They’re throwing parties and listening to Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and I’m sitting at home all alone on a Saturday night still listening to that Arcade Fire CD, which is so 2004. For instance, take this whole homosexuality indoctrination—totally missed out on that! Who knew that when my high school teachers were talking about tolerance and acceptance, there was an entire movement going on trying to lure kids into homosexual cults? Even my friends, many of whom are gay, didn’t bother to fill me in on this fun new lifestyle; instead, they let me go on my heterosexual way, totally unaware that the homosexual agenda even existed. Is it just me? Am I too femme? I mean, I’m a feminist—doesn’t that guarantee me at least an honorary membership into the dyke club?

It’s a good thing that the Concerned Women for Patriarchy America have uncovered the nefarious plot behind Gay Straight Alliances and National Ally Week. Can you imagine the consequences if such events were allowed to continue unabated? Why, our children might grow up to be tolerant, and we just can’t have that, can we? After all, tolerance breeds acceptance, and acceptance leads to full citizenship, and that will bring about something like freedom and liberty. We simply cannot stand for this!

Actually, I must admit, I’m thankful for the CWA. Not only are they a constant source of amusement and reminder of exactly why I am a radical feminist, but they can always be counted on to fall victim to my favorite conservative predilection: the inappropriate use of quotation marks. Pray tell me, why do conservatives insist on writing “gay” when gay will do? Is it because they are using their last defense against our increasingly amoral culture—the passive aggressive use of punctuation? Do they honestly believe that if they put quotation marks around words like “gay” and “marriage” and “tolerance” these things will cease to exist? Is it that easy—we can just eliminate unsavory aspects of society simply by quoting them? If so—“George Bush.” “Karl Rove.” “Jessica Simpson.” It’s worth a shot!

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 8:32 AM

1 spoke

9.22.2005

Boycotts are fun!

You might recall that I linked to a boycott list provided by Life Decisions International last month, meant to by used by anti-choicers who might otherwise, unwittingly, support businesses that support women. LDI president Douglas R. Scott stopped by to respond to the post, and was kind enough to give us permission to use the list as a "buy-from" guide, rather than a boycott. Awfully big of him.

And awfully nice of WorldNetDaily to give us yet another list of corporations that are willing to support human rights. This time, it's a list of 101 gay-friendly corporations. Well, WND calls them "America's pro-homosexual giants," but to me that just sounds like really, really tall drag queens.

I must admit to being a little surprised about at least one company on this list. Molson Coors Brewing?? Seriously? What, sodomy is a-ok with these people but heaven forbid women actually get to make a decision about their own fucking bodies? Must be Dr. Hager syndrome.

-----------------
PS: Add a country to that list; the Czech Republic is one step closer to passing domestic partnership legislation. So, Rich, can we go to Prague now?

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 12:09 PM

0 spoke

8.16.2005

Bustin' up a Starbux

I hate the Concerned Women for America. I once joked with Rich that my animosity toward the CWA, and literally everything they stand for, probably makes me an Aloof Man for France. After all, CWA leader Beverly LaHaye (wife of Tim LaHaye, author of the Rapturific Left Behind series) once defined the Equal Rights Amendment thusly: "The ERA proposes the elimination of our God-given roles as men and women, resulting in the redefinition -- and eventual destruction -- of family." Yes, making sure that I don’t lose my job because I’m a woman will eventually bring forth Armageddon. And let’s not even get into how the Violence Against Women Act will cause families all over the country to collapse because men are no longer allowed to beat their wives with impunity. But I digress…

After spending years fighting against the ERA, VAWA, the NEA and, ahem, Harry Potter, the CWA has found a new enemy: Starbucks. Well, shit. I hate Starbucks, too. Seems I am going to have to go through a conversion, and actually start drinking their bitter fucking coffee. Of course, I'm not contrarian enough to simply start imbibing Frappuccinos because the CWA implores me not to; no, I'm going to do so because, like Starbucks, I think Armistead Maupin is pretty fucking cool:


The censored bit reads "damn."
Yes, the CWA is offended by the word damn.

According to CWA, this cup "blatantly pushes the homosexual agenda." This cup will bring the downfall of civilization. This cup will turn your children into sodomites and bull-dykes, even though it can barely manage to keep my coffee warm for longer than five minutes.

Now, if the CWA and their ilk want to boycott Starbucks, I say go for it. After all, it will make the lines shorter and decrease the amount of time I have to spend around the distressed and oh-so-depressed emo boys who make my Caramel Macchiato. But can't they find a better reason than this? It's a cup. With a quote. By a gay man. Fuck--do these people read Shakespeare? Appreciate the Sistine Chapel? Guess what--Shakespeare had a male lover and Michaelangelo was a flaming fucking queer. Get the fuck over it!

A Venti of his choice to Brad R. of Sadly, No! for the alerting us to this prime example of Wingnuttery.

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 10:19 AM

1 spoke

7.20.2005

Speechless

A few years ago I worked with a woman, I'll call her Mary, who was terrified that her two-year-old son was gay. Her reasons? He liked to play with dolls. He had this one doll in particular, it had eyes that would open and close when you tilted the head back and forth. No matter what Mary did, how many new trucks and footballs she bought, her son refused to part with his doll. So Mary did what any good mother would do--she waited until her son was asleep, poked the doll's eyes out with a knife, and in the morning sadly informed her son that the doll was broken and needed to be thrown away. I've known more than a few gender-phobic people in my time, but Mary tops the list.

Back in February, I blogged about Maine State Rep. Brian Duprey, who introduced legislation that would prohibit women from obtaining abortions if their fetus is gay. At the time, I joked about the logistics of this, considering medical science has yet to identify or isolate a single gene that determines sexual idenity. I mocked Rep. Duprey for getting the idea while listening to the Rush Limbaugh Show. Later, I mused about the cognitive dissonance involved--after all, usually those people who so vociferously oppose homosexuality that they would refuse to give birth to a gay child are also those that just as vociferously oppose abortion rights. Lots of laughter ensued, and I felt better knowing that the Right must be seriously out of touch with reality if they have spokespeople like Brian Duprey.

I'm not laughing anymore.

A 21 year old Tampa man is charged with murder after his 3-year old son was pummeled into unconsciousness and then died.

Ronnie Paris Jr. went on trial for his own life this week in a Tampa courtroom. The toddler's mother, Nysheerah Paris, testified that her husband thought the boy might be gay and would force him to box.

Nysheerah Paris told the court that Paris would make the boy fight with him, slapping the child in the head until he cried or wet himself. She said that on one occasion Paris slammed the child against a wall because he was vomiting.

Mary's doll-murder seems a little less disturbing to me now. And Rep. Duprey officially scares the shit out of me; why abort your gay babies when you can slam them against a wall and then pummel them until they die?

Both Ronnie and Nysheerah Paris are being charged in response to their son's death, but frankly, that's not enough for me. Not when the article continues to say:

The court was told there had been a history of abuse by Paris. Prosecutor Jalal Harb said that in 2002, the Florida Department of Children & Families placed the child in protective custody after he had been admitted to the hospital several times for vomiting.

He was returned to his parents Dec. 14. A month later he went into a coma and was rushed to hospital. Six days later he was removed from life support and died. An autopsy showed there was swelling on both sides of his brain.

Why the fuck was that child returned to his parents? And when can I expect to see Jeb Bush fire every single employee of the Florida Department of Children & Families who so much as looked at this little boy's file? After all, sending a child home to an abusive family to die a horrible death doesn't go very far in protecting Bush's culture of life.

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 11:41 AM

1 spoke

6.30.2005

Damn you, Spain

Sometimes being Italian sucks. Particularly when you can look across the Mediterranean Sea and gaze at Spain, only to realize that despite their funny accents, those Spaniards are seemingly doing everything in their power to make us look bad.

For example: Spain has just become the fourth nation in the world to achieve marriage equality. Fuckers. Italy spent this month upholding asinine restrictions on in vitro fertilization, further curtailing the rights of gay and lesbian families. Spain, on the other hand, has a Prime Minister who who says things like this:

"We are not the first, but I am sure we will not be the last," [Zapatero] told the chamber. "After us will come many countries, driven, ladies and gentlemen, by two unstoppable forces: freedom and equality."

Where the fuck does Spain get off being so damn cool?

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 1:14 PM

6 spoke

6.29.2005

Damn you, Canada

Sometimes being a Detroiter sucks. Particularly when you can look across the Detroit River and gaze at Canada, only to realize that despite their funny accents, those damn Canucks are seemingly doing everything in their power to make us look bad.

For example: Canada has just become the third nation in the world to achieve marriage equality. Fuckers. Michigan spent last year passing an asinine proposal which denies not only marriage and civil union rights to same-sex couples, but effectively denies domestic partnership benefits to municipal employees. Canada, on the other hand, has a Prime Minister who says things like this:

"We are a nation of minorities," Mr Martin said. "And in a nation of minorities, it is important that you don't cherry-pick rights. A right is a right, and that is what this vote tonight is all about."

Where the fuck does Canada get off being so damn cool?

Labels: LGBT

annamaria at 11:31 AM

0 spoke