Sunday, May 17, 2009

Combined Gay News Headlines (T5T-1)

OH SNAP — CONTINUED » Permalink | Post a comment | Add to del.icio.us Tagged: Michael Phelps, Oh Snap, Photos, Sports, the shot
It was to be expected. After Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov refused to grant a permit for a gay pride parade, organizers insisted they would go on without it. And they did just that, smack in the middle of the press spectacle that is the Eurovision Song contest. Among those arre arrested: Gay Liberation Network co-founder Andy [...]
When he showed up on Ellen DeGeneres' show in March, Anderson Cooper looked 'a fool when he refused to dance his way onto the stage — as is customary on Ms. DeGeneres' show. So when he popped up on Ellen this week to talk about anti-gay bullying in schools, we thought maybe, just maybe, he'd [...]
In honor of 2009 IDAHO, I would like to share the following stories:

1. Uruguay has lifted its ban against gays serving in the military.

What think you all- will THIS be discussed by the White House or has the shown "tried and true" silence approach employed over the past month become the modus operandi?

h/t to Victor Maldonado.

2. BBC 2's Jonathan Ross back in the hot seat for homophobic comments.


Ross told listeners to the programme: "If your son asks for a Hannah Montana MP3 player, you might want to already think about putting him down for adoption before he brings his... erm... partner home."

WOW- if you suspect your son is gay, you should chuck him out of your house. And somehow Ross maintains that he is "mortified" over claims he is homophobic? Go figure...

h/t to Tavdy79

3. This one is no surprise. As expected, Moscow police detained scores at a gay pride rally.

Last week the following statement came out of the Moscow mayor's office:


The city government has repeatedly denied their permit requests. Police in the past have stood aside while ultranationalist skinheads beat gay activists bloody -- then arrested the activists, not the skinheads. (Skinheads, unlike gays, have been permitted to march in Moscow.)

This year, the government seemed particularly incensed. Eurovision should have been a proud moment for the Russian authorities, a lighthearted ce lebration badly needed after bitter conflict with Europe over the war in Georgia and natural gas shut-offs.

"The Moscow government is declaring that no gay parades have been or will be held in Moscow," Sergei Tsoi, the mayor's spokesman, told journalists last week.

Gay activists threaten "not only to destroy the moral pillars of our society but also to deliberately provoke disorder, which would threaten the lives and security of Muscovites and guests of the city," Tsoi said.

Seems to be a battle Moscow and Russia have been waging for hundreds of years...

Below the fold, one more story that illustrates the truth of an old adage. Truly a dish "best  served cold"... oh yum; it is scrumptuous!
Awhile ago, SnookyOokums posted a diary listing of those denied access to Jolly Olde England, including WBC's Fred Phelps and radio talk jock bigot Michael Savage.

Well, Mike isn't taking the news of his limitations very well and has in fact protested the ban, citing First Amendment violations.


Michael Savage, host of "The Savage Nation," joins us now by phone from his office in San Francisco. And nice to have you today on TALK OF THE NATION.

Mr. MICHAEL SAVAGE (Host, "The Savage Nation"): Well, thanks, Neal. So, what should we talk about? How about the First Amendment?

CONAN: Well, I was going to ask you, first of all, though, how you found out about this. Were you - did you arrive at Heathrow Airport and were you turned away?

Mr. SAVAGE: Well, no. I woke up, turned "The Drudge Report." And when I saw it this morning, my first thought was, darn, there goes the summer trip where I planned to have my dental work done. The second thought was, there goes my visit to the restaurants of England for the great cuisine.

But then when I thought about the list, I said, where's Kim Jong-Il, who allegedly starved a million of his countrymen to death? And why am I on the same list as a Hamas terrorist who smashed a Jewish child's head in with a rifle butt? How in the world could this be happening in the land of the Magna Carta, I wondered. Has the nation of England now become the land of the mini carta?

CONAN: Well, presumably, they've listened to some of the things that you said or somebody complained about them or something. Have you found out how you got on this list?

Mr. SAVAGE: I don't' know. How did I get on this secret list in the land of free speech? Neal, whatever happened to the liberal statement, I may disagree with you but I would fight to the death your right to say it? Where did that go?

CONAN: Well, in that context, would you agree that Britain has the right and, some would say, the obligation to keep some people out of the country?

Mr. SAVAGE: Well, Neal, it sounds as though you agree with them.

CONAN: ...What I was going to say is do they have a right to keep people like him out of their country?

Mr. SAVAGE: I don't know, but I know that we have a First Amendment in America, and as you well know, you're protected by it.

CONAN: Indeed.

Mr. SAVAGE: And the whole point of the First Amendment was to protect offensive speech, not polite speech.

CONAN: That is an important point. John Peter Zenger, the celebrated case in Colonial Ameri can times was not a polite man.

Mr. SAVAGE: Oh, he was trying to fight the British who were oppressing the colonists. And the First Amendment was written after the Revolutionary War, when we had our First Amendment and our Bill of Rights, to protect speech that authorities would find to be threatening.

CONAN: And as you considered this list, are you taking any actions about it?

Mr. SAVAGE: Well, I've consulted with some very liberal First Amendment attorneys who are friends of mine. They don't agree with my politics, but they understand what happens to a nation that starts banning speech.

I'm gonna let the incomparable KO tell ya the rest:

Savage has the aduacity to beg Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for help with his little problem.

The same Hillary Clinton he accused of using "Hitler dialogue" a few years ago.

Do you think it is even slightly likely that he is actually going to HEAR from her?? Yeah, me neither.

But here's a thought- since when does the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA'S First Amendment apply to other nations?

Let's review... again...

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Gee, I see NADA about it being applicable for all of thw world's countries and people, do you?

Honestly, people who evoke the damned thing as often as they do (cough! Prejean, Palin, Limbaugh, Savage, etcetera...) really should take the time to READ and MEMORIZE it already, as to save themselves from displaying their ignorance time and time again...

What goes around comes around, Mike.

Deal with it- it couldn't happen to a more deserving person.

Check out this wonderful video sent to the Blend by Kenneth Tan:

Here is the accompanying presser which reads in part:


359 people from 48 countries take part in massive global web video project to mark the IDAHO 2009

05.17.2009 - A global project to create a public awareness video for the International Day Against Homophobia & Transphobia (IDAHO) on May 17 has attracted the participation of 359 people from 48 countries across six continents around the world. The groundbreaking project is a joint undertaking of the Paris-based IDAHO Committee and the social network Gays.com, attracting 50ng 50,000 people to its website within a month.

In April, members of the global LGBT community were invited to step out in front of the camera and in their own language introduce themselves, state where they are from and how proud they are to be gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. The result is a video that sends the powerful message that LGBT individuals are present in every country, every society and every corner of the world. Participants submitted videos in all of the world's key languages, including Afrikaans, Arabic, Cantonese, English, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tamil and even American Sign Language.

Love this video and amazed at the incredibly simple, effective and positive message consistant throughout the clip: "I Am Proud To Be Gay."

I am proud to be an ally and share this here today.

You just can't make this kind of stuff up; at this point it's hard to get angry at this level of lunacy, at least on my part. This is the work of a few Z-grade anti-gay activists sharing their their lies, er, statements regarding hate crimes legislation -- garbage in, garbage out.

On Monday, May 18th, 9AM to 4PM, Christian leaders from across the nation will speak against the Senate "Hate Crimes" bill (S.909) at our nation's Capital, Supreme Court and White House.

Rev. Rusty Lee Thomas, Director of Elijah Ministries states, "Homosexuals came out of the closet and are using the coercive force of civil government to force Christianity into one. America will learn the hard way that you cannot make straight what God has called crooked or tolerate what God deems intolerable or turn moral wrongs into civil rights and thrive as a people. S.909 promotes governmental hatred towards God, saving faith, family, and freedom and makes the church of Jesus Christ guilty as heaven and sexual deviants innocent as hell!"

"The decriminalization of child-killing (abortion) brion) brought about the criminalization of those who would oppose it and the decriminalization of homosexuality brought about the criminalization of those who would oppose it. Now we have the S.909 bill, which expressly forbids any language that might be perceived as 'hate' by the homosexual community. If we do not act decisively at this time, S.909 will make illegal every word in the Bible describing the destruction wrought by this vile behavior, and prepare the way for total censorship of the Gospel of Christ. Our children will pay a horrible price for our cowardice." Rev. Flip Benham, National Director, Operation Rescue/Operation Save America

What gets me is that this incessant claim that somehow adding sexual orientation to the existing hate crimes laws are suddenly going to stifle religious freedom of speech? On its face it's absurd.

And Flip Benham. This guy shows up at NC Pride almost every year; I captured this particularly asinine "proselytizing" a couple of years ago. You can hear me saying "oh my god" in the background when Flip takes the mic around 0:46.


Portland Latino Gay Pride is seeking nominations for this year’s Mariposa Awards ¬--Instituted at the 2008 celebration. The term Mariposa or Butterfly is a slang term in many Latin American countries applied to individuals who appear to be LGBTQ. Portland Latino Gay Pride decided to take pride for the “mariposa” inside of all of us. The Mariposa Award is an opportunity to recognize outstanding individuals, organizations, or businesses making a difference in the Latino LGBTQ Community. Mariposa Award Criteria include the following: * Community involvement and leadership experience * Commitment to issues and needs of the Latino LGBTQ community * Proven Advocate, Educator, Organizer of positive efforts related to the Latino LGBTQ Community * Demon the Latino LGBTQ Community * Demonstrated Coalition and Bridge Builder among the Latino LGBTQ Community * History of promoting and celebrating Latino LGBTQ Arts and Culture in the community For a complete description of the criteria and a list of last year’s recipients please go to Portland Latino Gay Pride website www.latinogaypridepdx.com Nomination Process: * Write a brief statement, not to exceed 500 words, describing the individual, organization, or business you would like to nominate. * Include the name and contact information of the individual being nominated, your contact information, and explain why you believe they are deserving of a Mariposa Award. * Email your nomination to latinogaypridepdx@yahoo.com by Monday, May 25th. Mariposa Award will be presented during this year’s celebration, June 4th â€" June 7th.
May 16, 200910am to 4pm at the QCenter4115 N Mississippi

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