Here is Donald Trump criticizing Hillary Clinton for accepting money from Saudi Arabia. Something that his daughter just did as well.

Trump criticizing Hillary for accepting $ from Saudi Arabia. Ivanka's proposed foundation will be taking $100 mill from S.A. and U.A.E. pic.twitter.com/Wt301oZ3Tn

— Erick Fernandez (@ErickFernandez) May 21, 2017

Oh yeah taking money from Saudi Arabia is a terrible idea while they are killing gays and mistreating women.

So why is Ivanka doing that very same thing?

Courtesy of Think Progress: 

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have pledged $100 million to the World Bank’s Women Entrepreneurs Fund, an initiative proposed by first daughter and senior White House adviser Ivanka Trump. The fund, which was first announced in April, has already raised serious legal and ethical questions about how a White House adviser can both shape foreign policy and actively solicit donations from foreign countries for the fund.

Okay perhaps I missed the memo but has Saudi Arabia STOPPED treating women like slaves and killing gay people?

Or is all of this only wrong when a Democrat does it?

Barack Obama first sitting President to be featured on cover of LGBT magazine. I can hear the conservative heads exploding already, can't you?

President #BarackObama is our Ally of the Year and cover of the #Out100: https://t.co/h9GBgXcoOZ pic.twitter.com/89UZytobYP

— Out Magazine (@outmagazine) November 10, 2015

Courtesy of TPM: 

President Obama will be the first sitting President of the United States to have posed for the cover of a LGBT publication, it was announced Tuesday. Obama was named the "ally of the year" by Out magazine. 

Obama will be featured on the cover in a black and white photograph. 

"This is the first time a sitting president has been photographed for the cover of an LGBT title, a historic moment in itself, and a statement on how much his administration has done to advance a singularly volatile issue that tarnished the reputations of both President Clinton and President Bush," the magazine wrote on its website. 

The magazine's editor-in-chief sat down with the President for an interview, to be published as part of the publication's "Out100" 2015 edition.

(You can read that interview here.)

I think considering the President's support for LGBT rights, and how much progress has been made on their behalf during his presidency, that this seems kind of like a no brainer.

Of course it will absolutely be misrepresented by the Right Wing as proof positive that Obama is actually a closet homosexual. But then again what magazine cover could he had posed for where they WOULDN'T have seen it as proof that he was gay, a socialist, a Muslim, or a traitor?

Vatican spokesman: There is "a sense of regret" concerning the Pope's meeting with Kim Davis.

Courtesy Yahoo News: 

Pope Francis' meeting last week with an American woman at the center of a row over gay marriage was not something he had sought and should not be seen as an endorsement of her views, the Vatican said on Friday. 

One Vatican official said there was "a sense of regret" that the pope had ever seen Kim Davis, a Kentucky county clerk who went to jail in September for refusing to honor a U.S. Supreme Court ruling and issue same-sex marriage licenses. 

The encounter in Washington was originally kept secret and has sparked widespread debate since it became public this week, proving something of a misstep for the pontiff. 

Looking to smother the fierce controversy, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said Davis was one of "several dozen" people who had been invited by the Vatican ambassador to see Francis during his visit to the U.S. capital. 

"The Pope did not enter into the details of the situation of Mrs. Davis and his meeting with her should not be considered a form of support of her position in all of its particular and complex aspects," Lombardi said in a statement.

That sort of falls in line with some of the other recent reporting indicating that the Pope may have been tricked into meeting Davis, and that she was just a person among many to have a face to face with the Pope but that it was by no means an endorsement of her position.

Since I thought that overall the Pope's visit to America was very positive, I would like to believe that the Pope simply did not know who this person was, or understand how this interaction would be interpreted.

However I would hope that there was some disciplinary action taken on whoever set this thing up and gave the okay for it to happen in the first place.

Mormon father upset that his son in the Boy Scouts may not grow up sharing his same prejudices.

Courtesy of NPR: 

The church, also known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has used the Boy Scouts as its official program for young men for more than 100 years, according to Quin Monson, a political science professor at Brigham Young University. 

"The church took the Boy Scout program and decided its values and mission aligned closely enough with that of the church's program for young men that they just wholesale adopted it," says Monson, who is Mormon, the father of a Boy Scout and a former Boy Scout himself. "Basically, if you are a young Mormon male, you join the Boy Scouts."

For me the idea that scouting and the Mormon religion align so closely is almost reason enough to keep your kid out of Boy Scouts.

This father was then asked how the upcoming changes allowing gay scout leaders was impacting his Mormon son:

His reaction was interesting: It's not a concern to him. He's a pretty deep thinker, and a thoughtful kid, but his reaction was, "Well, I don't see why it matters, dad. Why is this such a big deal?" 

That's the hard part about all of this, is that it impacts a group of young men who don't necessarily understand why.

If you listen to the audio of this interview, you can hear Mr. Monson become quite choked up while answering that last part.  As if the very idea that his son is too young to recognize how wrong it is to allow men who love other men to participate in scouting was incredibly troubling to him.

However what I took from this was that his son was too young to be indoctrinated fully into the homophobia that permeates the Mormon community leaving his mind open and accepting, and that it was his father who was too old and rigid in his thinking to recognize why a church supposedly based on the teachings of Jesus Christ should open its arms and hearts to all people regardless of skin color or sexual orientation.

Perhaps once this new rule pertaining to scout leaders is fully implemented it might help to provide a counterbalance to Mormon indoctrination. And that would be a good thing.

Entire Tennessee county clerk's office resigns in protest over same sex marriage.

Billboard in Tennessee

Courtesy of Crooks and Liars:  

The employees of the Decatur County clerk's office in west Tennessee have resigned from their positions over the Supreme Court's ruling recognizing that same sex marriage - now just called ‘marriage' - will be recognized nationwide. 

Clerk Gwen Pope and employees Sharon Bell and Mickey Butler all resigned effective on July 14th. 

The employees' decision reportedly results from clashes with their religious beliefs, according to WKRM. 

Aww, is somebody having trouble clinging to their bronze age superstitions in the face of increased human rights in this country.

Here is my favorite part:  

County Mayor Creasy said the county has not received any requests for same-sex marriage licenses as of Thursday. 

So to be clear NOBODY has even requested a license for a same sex marriage, however the mere thought that they might be asked at some point to provide one is enough for these idiots to quit their jobs. 

Damn that must really suck for them.

In my opinion if the duties of your job change in such a way that performing them is in direct conflict with your sense of morality or your religious belief, then yes you should quit and allow somebody who does not have a stick shoved that far up their butts to do it instead.

 Seems simple enough to me.

Oklahoma Republican Senator James Inhofe says that he has gay friends who dislike the recent Supreme Court decision on marriage equality. Riiight!

Courtesy of Raw Story: 

Sen. James Inhofe (R) told KJRH that the U.S. Supreme Court is “A very liberal court and we saw what happened last week,” referring to an earlier court decision allowing the Affordable Care Act to continue forward. 

Adding, “They haven’t ruled right on anything in a long time,” Inhofe turned to Friday’s landmark decision making same sex marriage the law of the land, saying he has gay friends who agreed with him that it was decided improperly.

Okay first off what kind of self respecting gay person would be against the Supreme Court ruling?

And secondly James Inhofe has gay friends? 

Yeah, I'm sure they hang out with his black friends, and the scientists who don't believe global warming in real,  in a place called bullshit mountain.

Nebraska woman files suit against all homosexuals. That's right, all of you!

Courtesy of NBC News:  

A Nebraska woman identifying herself as the "ambassador" for plaintiffs "God and His Son, Jesus Christ," is suing all homosexuals on Earth for breaking "religious and moral laws," according to court records filed Tuesday. 

In the suit, entered into the docket as Driskell v. Homosexuals, Sylvia Ann Driskell, 66, of Auburn, Nebraska, asks in a seven-page, neatly handwritten petition (PDF) that U.S. District Judge John M. Gerrard decide once and for all whether homosexuality is or isn't a sin. 

The suit doesn't cite any case law under which a judge could make such a determination. In fact, it cites no court cases at all, quoting Webster's Dictionary and numerous Bible verses, instead, to bolster Driskell's central contention, which is: 

"That homosexuality is a sin and that they the homosexuals know it is a sin to live a life of homosexuality. Why else would they have been hiding in the closet." 

Driskell writes, "I'm sixty six years old, an [sic] I never thought that I would see the day in which our Great Nation or Our Great State of Nebraska would become so compliant to the complicity of some peoples [sic] lewd behavior."

Yeah gay people, if you didn't think what you were doing was a sin why are you hiding in your closets?

Perfectly legitimate question.

For an idiot.

But then who am I to question an "Ambassador for God?"

Here is a portion of her seven page, handwritten lawsuit, courtesy of the Independent:  

Entitled “Sylvia Ann Driskell vs Homosexuals”, the handwritten seven-page lawsuit filed on Tuesday bases the case on Bible passages and definitions from Webster’s Dictionary.

“I, Sylvia Ann Driskell, ambassador for the plaintiffs – God and His son, Jesus Christ – petition your honor and the court…to be heard in the matter of homosexuality,” it reads. 

“Is homosexuality a sin or not a sin?” 

The documents go on to use passages from Leviticus and Romans to contend that God punished homosexuality as an “abomination”.

Okay I have a small question.

If being one of "teh gays" is really a sin, then won't those participating in "teh gay" sex be punished by God? 

Why does this lunatic, I'm sorry,  good Christian woman feel the need to take this to court?

In fact why does ANY Christian feel the need do ANYTHING to punish or marginalize the LGBT community if they really believe their lifestyle is sinful and that engaging in sin is what denies you access to the Pearly Gates? Why isn't that considered punishment enough?

So confusing.

Personally I hope this case actually goes to trial. I think it would be a hoot.

North Dakota lawmaker who voted against legal protections for gays, gets outed as hypocrite after it's revealed he sent another man a picture of his penis.

Randy won't be Boehning anybody for awhile.

Courtesy of Inforum:  

North Dakota lawmaker who sent an explicit photo of himself to another man says the exchange being made public is retaliation for a recent vote against expanding gay rights. 

Rep. Randy Boehning, a 52-year-old Republican legislator from Fargo, says a Capitol employee told him a fellow lawmaker vowed to out him as gay if he continued to vote against bills granting gays legal protections against discrimination. 

Boehning refused to identify at this point who he believes is behind the purported political payback for his vote against Senate Bill 2279, the third such bill defeated in the past six years by North Dakota legislators. 

The exchange came to light when Dustin Smith, a 21-year-old Bismarck man with no known connections to the Capitol, contacted The Forum earlier this month, saying he recognized Boehning from a gay dating smartphone app called Grindr. Chatting under the user name Top Man!, Boehning sent Smith sexually suggestive messages and, in the early morning hours of March 12, an unsolicited photo of his penis, according to exchanges reviewed by The Forum. 

"How can you discriminate against the person you're trying to pick up?" Smith said in a recent interview.

Okay literally this kind of thing happens so often that when somebody comes out as especially anti-gay, my first response is "Yep probably gay."

It may not be fair, but there you have it.

And by the way how much better is it that this guy's name is literally "boning."

I mean that's just the cherry on top in my opinion.

President Obama calls for an end to "conversion" therapy.

Courtesy of the New York Times:  

A 17-year-old transgender youth, Leelah Alcorn, stunned her friends and a vast Internet audience in December when she threw herself in front of a tractor-trailer after writing in an online suicide note that religious therapists had tried to convert her back to being a boy. 

In response, President Obama is calling for an end to such therapies aimed at “repairing” gay, lesbian and transgender youth. His decision on the issue is the latest example of his continuing embrace of gay rights. 

In a statement that was posted on Wednesday evening alongside a WhiteHouse.gov petition begun in honor of Ms. Alcorn, Mr. Obama condemned the practice, sometimes called “conversion” or “reparative” therapy, which is supported by some socially conservative organizations and religious doctors. 

The petition has received more than 120,000 signatures in three months. 

“We share your concern about its potentially devastating effects on the lives of transgender as well as gay, lesbian, bisexual and queer youth,” the statement, written by Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to Mr. Obama, says. “As part of our dedication to protecting America’s youth, this administration supports efforts to ban the use of conversion therapy for minors.”

Currently 48 states still allow this barbaric practice, and even though there are efforts to ban it in many of them, so far only two have made a choice to protect the rights of the gay teenagers who are most often subjected to this cruelty.

With President Obama's endorsement this quackery might get the attention that it has long deserved and we can finally do away with it as we did electroshock therapy and treatments for so-called "female hysteria."

Pro-gay Christian choir sings outside of closed pizza parlor in Indiana to demonstrate compassion. Sadly compassion not returned.

Courtesy of Raw Story:  

A gay-friendly Christian choir called “The Ripple Effect” is attempting to heal the small town of Walkerton, Indiana, which has been torn apart since the owners of Memories Pizza declared that they would discriminate against the LGBT community. 

The pizzeria closed after allegedly receiving “death threats” that turned out to be overblown online rhetoric, but that has not stopped its owners from pocketing nearly $1 million from a GoFundMe page set up for them. 

Although the intent behind performance by “The Ripple Effect” was not to condemn the behavior of the O’Connor family, the contrast between O’Connors’ actions and those of the choir could hardly be more stark. 

Some of the members of the choir are gay, and WSBT’s James Fillmore said that “the issue is tearing Walkerton apart, so they wanted to do something to try and fix it.” 

Standing in front of a giant rainbow flag, the choir’s director, Sherry Klinedinst, told WSBT that “we are not here to condemn or condone the establishment — we’re here to show them and the community that we can show love in spite of our differences.” 

Gail Bannister, who is both a Christian and a lesbian, said that she was singing in front of the closed pizzeria because it allows her to show the community that people can live together despite their differences. 

“We just have different opinions,” she said, “but that’s OK. We’re supposed to have different opinions. That’s what diversity’s all about.”

Aw that's nice, trying to demonstrate that not all religious people are bigots, and trying to bring a little light into the darkness of discrimination. 

I'm sure they were received by their fellow Christians with open arms.

Or not:

Oh well, it was a nice try.

Watch Indiana Governor Mike Pence outright refuse to answer any of George Stephanopoulos's questions about his state's new controversial law.

Courtesy of Mediaite:  

This Week host George Stephanopoulos absolutely grilled Indiana Governor Mike Pence (R) over the newly-signed “religious freedom” bill, which critics maintain would allow businesses to refuse services to LGBT customers. Pence argued that the bill’s intentions had been misrepresented in media coverage, and insisted he would not change the bill, though he did continue to say he would “clarify” it. 

However, Pence refused to answer two “yes or no” questions posed to him by Stephanopoulos over the potentially discriminatory ramifications of the bill, including whether it would allow a florist to deny services to a gay couple, as its supporters maintain. 

“There’s been shameless rhetoric about my state and this law and its intention all over the internet,” Pence said. “People are trying to make it about one particular issue, and now you’re doing that as well.” 

Stephanopoulos asked the question several more times. “It’s a simple yes or no question,” Stephanopoulos said. 

“The issue here is: is tolerance a two-way street or not?” Pence said. “There’s a lot of talk about tolerance in this country having to do with people on the left. Here Indiana steps forward to protect the constitutional rights and privileges of freedom of religion for people of faith in our state, and this avalanche of intolerance that’s been poured on our state is outrageous.”

Wow that is some of the fanciest dancing I have seen since John Travolta on Saturday Night Fever. 

Pence goes on to say that he would NOT pass a law protecting the rights of the LGBT community, which would of course make people less concerned about this new law. And at one point refuses to answer Stephanopoulos's question about whether or not it should be legal to discriminate against gays and lesbians.

By the way as Pence continues his dance more and more businesses are making the decision that Indiana is now a "no go zone" for them and their employees.

93 year old founder of Chick-fil-A passes away.

Courtesy of WSB-TV:  

S. Truett Cathy, the billionaire founder of the privately held Chick-fil-A restaurant chain, died early Monday morning. He was 93. 

Under the religiously conservative founder, the chain gained prominence for its Bible Belt observance of Sunday — none of its hundreds of restaurants are open on that day, to allow employees a day of rest. Its executives often said the chain made as much money in six days as its competitors do in seven. 

Those religious views helped win Cathy and his family loyal following from conservative customers, but also invited protests when Cathy's son denounced gay marriage. 

Cathy's son, Dan, who is currently chairman and president of the chain, had told the Baptist Press in 2012 that the company was "guilty as charged" for backing "the biblical definition of a family." Gay rights groups and others called for boycotts and kiss-ins at Cathy's restaurants. The Jim Henson Co. pulled its Muppet toys from kids' meals, while politicians in Boston and Chicago told the chain it is not welcome there. The controversy later subsided.

It is too bad that a man that the business that this man worked so hard to create is now synonymous with homophobia. Though considering the crowd that he pandered to, I guess it was not entirely unpredictable.

They did not say exactly what killed the 93 year old, so it could simply have been old age.

I mean unless there was some outside influence on his health, you know like a nasty infection or possibly a curse, but I could not imagine what that might have been.

Can you?

While taking President Obama's order employee in Texas restaurant speaks out in support of gay rights, and receives fist bump in return.

Courtesy of the Independent: 

Daniel Rugg Webb, a comedian, artist and musician, as well as an employee at Franklin Barbecue in Austin, seized the opportunity to make his voice heard when he found out Potus was visiting the food joint on Thursday, The Austin Chronicle reported. 

When the President approached the till, Webb, 32, cast his hand down onto the counter and said: “Equal rights for gay people!” 

Obama responded: “Are you gay?! 

To which Webb replied: “Only when I have sex.” 

Laughing, the President told Webb to “bump me” and the pair knocked their fists together. 

The exchange was captured in a photograph, which has since been widely shared on the internet. Obama is reported to have spent $300 (£175) in the restaurant.

So not only did the President share a joke one with one of the  rarest creatures known to man, an openly gay man living in Texas, but he also gave him the dreaded terrorist fist bump. Conservative heads must be exploding all over Texas.

Here's my favorite part of the article:

“If Rick Perry (the governor of Texas) would've walked in, I would have lost my job. I would've taken that old queen to town,” Webb said.

Now as much as I enjoyed reading about this exchange part of me really wishes that Rick Perry would have shown up instead with a gaggle of reporters in tow. 

THAT just might have been epic.

Franklin Graham tells a group of conservative preachers that they have to stop being cowardly about demonstrating their homophobia.

Courtesy of Raw Story:  

Rev. Franklin Graham told a group of conservative pastors that he loves LGBT people enough to warn them they risked falling into the “the flames of hell.” 

“I love them enough to care to warn them that if they want to continue living like this, it’s the flames of hell for you,” Graham said Thursday night at the Watchmen on the Wall National Pastor’s Briefing in Washington, D.C. 

“Now, if you don’t like that, don’t get mad at me,” Graham said. “I didn’t write the rule book. Almighty God wrote it, and it’s a sin against Him.” 

He said religious leaders were stifled by political correctness. 

“We don’t want to be called a homophobic,” he said, “and I tell people, listen, I’m not afraid of homosexuals, I’m really not — matter of fact, I love them.” 

Graham, who has repeatedly praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for his anti-gay policies, cautioned the pastors not to compromise in their teaching. 

“Listen gentlemen — we live in a world where there is so much compromise,” said Graham. “This city that we’re in, that’s all they do is compromise. We cannot go down that road because you and I are going to have to stand before God one day and give an account to Him, and you don’t want Him to say from His lips, ‘You were a coward.’”

A man who openly praises Vladimir Putin who is invading neighboring countries and murders reporters who dares to question him, and who  condemns men and women for loving in a way that he does not condone.

And yet he claims to love the people who he insists must deny their nature and live a life with love or sexual fulfillment. 

Fuck him.

World War C.

Courtesy of Slate:

 If you’ve followed the story of Uganda’s infamous “Kill the Gays” law over the past few years, you’re probably aware that prominent American evangelicals like Scott Lively and Lou Engle have been harshly criticized for their role in introducing a strain of zealous social conservatism—including an especially vicious condemnation of homosexuality—to Africa. But media reports of this phenomenon have been mere hints compared to the dense epidemiological survey that God Loves Uganda represents. Williams’ vision of the relationship between American missionary groups—like the Kansas City-based International House of Prayer that he profiles here—and the Ugandan government and culture is one of contagion, infection. Early in the film, an animated map of the globe shows salvation spreading like a plague across the world. A little later, a young woman on her first mission trip to the country describes her goal as one of virality: 

"One of my greatest hopes is to deposit what I’ve kind of received at IHOP, that DNA of prayer and worship. DNA replicates itself, and so I think that everybody wants to replicate their values and the core parts of who they are." 

And as Williams shows, the evangelical movement’s vector-teams have been successful—images of spirit-struck white people wailing and “rapid-fire” praying for Africa in Missouri transform into scenes of wild-eyed Ugandan ministers screaming at strangers in a traffic jam, of white-walled rooms full of people jumping and flailing and lifting chairs in the air, of sweat-drenched Africans speaking in tongues. Williams has created a zombie movie, only the dreaded mutation is one of hateful Christian ideology rather than cells: Call it “World War C.” 

Tracing the origins of this epidemic prove upsettingly simple. “The West has been in a decline,” Lou Engle, founder of prayer rally program “The Call,” explains in the gruff, breathy, slightly crazed tone that a certain kind of minister uses to convey his fervor. “But right now I think that Africa, it’s the firepot of spiritual renewal and revival. It’s very exciting to me.” America is becoming increasingly resistant to his bigoted version of Christianity; time to find greener pastures elsewhere. And as another missionary explains, Uganda is the perfect place: “50 percent of the population is under 15 years old. … What [we] can do is limited, but we can multiply ourselves in these young people.” Add that to the strategy of tying aid and charity work to values exportation in order to ensure a captive audience, and it’s easy to see why many Ugandans so readily accept the evangelical message.

I discovered the sordid side of evangelism and missionary work right here in Alaska, after finding out how the early Christian workers separated families, punished children for speaking their native languages, and renamed them with Biblical names while insisting that they forget their birth names.

What I learned up here was more than enough to put me off religion for the rest of my life, but when you research the spread of Christianity throughout the world, the brutality, oppression, and destruction of ancient customs and beliefs is enough to make a truly moral person sick to their stomach.

World War C, is the perfect description of the plague that has swept this planet and which continues to tear apart communities, turn family members against each other, and inspire hatred toward homosexuals and those unwilling to leave the religion of their ancestors.

If you have not yet seen the film, worry not, you can see it right here.

Last night's New Rules.

I love this: "Folks we had a televised, celebrated, interracial gay kiss during the NFL draft. The culture war is over, and we won!"

A possible step forward in the battle for same sex marriage in Alaska.

Courtesy of the ACLU:  

The Alaska Supreme Court ruled today that the state unconstitutionally discriminates against same-sex couples by denying them equal access to a property tax exemption for senior citizens and disabled veterans. 

The rules were challenged by the ACLU of Alaska, the American Civil Liberties Union, and Davis Wright Tremaine LLP on behalf of three couples who were denied full access to a $150,000 property tax exemption that Alaska makes available to opposite-sex married couples. Because same-sex couples cannot legally marry in Alaska, the state treated them as roommates rather than as families and let them get the exemption for only half of the value of their homes. Roger Leishman, partner at Davis Wright Tremaine, successfully argued the case at trial and on appeal before the Alaska Supreme Court. 

"Families in Alaska deserve better than a second-class system of laws for same-sex couples who are just as committed to each other as heterosexual couples," said Joshua Decker, executive director of the ACLU of Alaska. "Our senior citizens and veterans should not have to pay more taxes just because they happen to be gay or lesbian."

I think that Alaska is primed and ready to move forward with marriage equality up here.

Hell we are already getting ready to vote on legalizing marijuana, so we might as well move the state forward in this regard as well.

Besides I want this to happen before that pernicious prick Jerry Prevo dies.

Using his sermons to vilify the LGBT community, and his political influence to help shape policies which oppress them, this man has been the driving force behind homophobia in this state for decades.

I just want the opportunity to see his face when the people of Alaska reject his hate mongering and openly embrace their gay brothers and sisters.

Boy Scouts ban gay troop leader. Local pack refuses to force him out, so the BSA revokes their charter. Just like Jesus would do.

Courtesy of TPM:  

The Boy Scouts of America has revoked the charter of a Seattle troop over its refusal to remove an openly gay troop leader, according to Scouts for Equality. 

Geoffrey McGrath, believed to be the first openly gay troop leader, was banned from the Boy Scouts at the beginning of April. 

Rainier Beach United Methodist Church's Troop 98 and Pack 98 defended their Scoutmaster, however, and refused to force him out. 

"Based on our religious principles, we will continue to act as an autonomous church that does not discriminate," the church's Rev. Monica Corsaro said in a statement to Scouts for Equality. "We will continue to have our Troop meetings here, every Thursday night, with business as usual."

So to be clear the BSA wants this guy discriminated against becasue of his sexuality, and the church that sponsors the local troop refuses to do so.

Well let's hear it for the Rainier Beach United Methodist Church of Seattle, for being so open minded and accepting.

You know it so rarely happens that I am moved to give a positive shout out to a church or religious group that this feels pretty cathartic for me.

Nice to know that not everybody's Bible tells them to hate gay people.

Uganda makes it official, being gay is now against the law with a lifetime prison sentence and everything.

Courtesy of The Washington Post:  

With the stroke of his pen, President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda defied science and world opinion to make lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people outlaws in his country. 

“Homosexuals are actually mercenaries,” he said. “They are heterosexual people, but because of money they say they are homosexuals. These are prostitutes because of money.” Museveni added, “There’s now an attempt at social imperialism, to impose social values. We’re sorry to see that you (the West) live the way you live, but we keep quiet about it.” The “anti-homosexuality” law carries a penalty of 14 years for a first-time offense and life imprisonment for those convicted of “aggravated homosexuality.” 

The world isn’t keeping quiet about the latest travesty against LGBT people in Africa. Denmark and Norway announced they were delaying or diverting aid. Secretary of State John Kerry announced that the United States was reviewing its relationship with the central African country, including $400 million in aid. 

“This is a tragic day for Uganda and for all who care about the cause of human rights,” Kerry said in a statement. Museveni’s signature on the law and the motivation behind it show he doesn’t care at all.

Being thrown into prison for daring to love. 

It does not get much more oppressive than that.

By the way if you are unaware as to the source of this hatred, then look no further.

George Takei has written a letter addressing Arizona's "Turn Away the Gay" bill.

Courtesy of Liberals Unite:

“Dear Arizona, 

Congratulations. You are now the first state actually to pass a bill permitting businesses–even those open to the public–to refuse to provide service to LGBT people based on an individual’s “sincerely held religious belief.” This “turn away the gay” bill enshrines discrimination into the law. Your taxi drivers can refuse to carry us. Your hotels can refuse to house us. And your restaurants can refuse to serve us. 

Kansas tried to pass a similar law, but had the good sense to not let it come up for a vote. The quashing came only after the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and other traditional conservative groups came out strongly against the bill. 

But not you, Arizona. You’re willing to ostracize and marginalize LGBT people to score political points with the extreme right of the Republican Party. You say this bill protects “religious freedom,” but no one is fooled. When I was younger, people used “God’s Will” as a reason to keep the races separate, too. Make no mistake, this is the new segregation, yours is a Jim Crow law, and you are about to make yourself ground zero. 

This bill also saddens me deeply. Brad and I have strong ties to Arizona. Brad was born in Phoenix, and we vacation in Show Low. We have close friends and relatives in the state and spend weeks there annually. We even attended the Fourth of July Parade in Show Low in 2012, looking like a pair of Arizona ranchers. 

The law is breathtaking in its scope. It gives bigotry against us gays and lesbians a powerful and unprecedented weapon. But your mean-spirited representatives and senators know this. They also know that it is going to be struck down eventually by the courts. But they passed it anyway, just to make their hateful opinion of us crystal clear. 

So let me make mine just as clear. If your Governor Jan Brewer signs this repugnant bill into law, make no mistake. We will not come. We will not spend. And we will urge everyone we know–from large corporations to small families on vacation–to boycott. Because you don’t deserve our dollars. Not one red cent. 

And maybe you just never learn. In 1989, you voted down recognition of the Martin Luther King holiday, and as a result, conventions and tourists boycotted the state, and the NFL moved the Superbowl to Pasadena. That was a $500 million mistake. 

So if our appeals to equality, fairness, and our basic right to live in a civil society without doors being slammed in our face for being who we are don’t move you, I’ll bet a big hit to your pocketbook and state coffers will. 

George Takei”

Damn, that's a good letter.

And Takei makes a very powerful point. 

If Arizona wants to discriminate against gay people then perhaps all of them, and all people who support them, should avoid Arizona and leave it to the narrow minded folks like Sarah Palin and Jan Brewer.

You know ultimately it really doesn't matter, gay acceptance is coming. And these states that are digging in their heels and threatening to hold their breath until they are allowed to gay bash again, just show themselves to be stubbornly prejudicial.

Remember it was Arizona Senator John McCain who voted AGAINST declaring Martin Luther King Jr's birthday a federal holiday back in 1983, so the state has a long history of being intolerant and behind the times.