Live Blogging the SOTU

OK, I'm new to this live blogging thing, but here goes. Bush's quotes are paraphrased, because even I can't type that fast.

1) Decided not to play the "take a shot every time he says 'terror'". Only have three half-full quarts of liquor, so I probably wouldn't make it.

2) Two minutes, forty-five seconds. Who had 2:45 in the "time elapsed before first mention of 'September the 11th, 2001'?"

3) "Just because we have a system of two parties and two elected branches of government," (for now, anyway,) "means that we may have disagreements on issues, but we can still discuss these issues with respect for each other." Like, for example, comparing Michael Moore to Osama bin Laden, or issuing Cheney-esque condemnations of those who criticize war policy as giving aid to the enemy.

4) "We must stand behind our military in this vital mission." Because 'standing behind' doesn't really cost anything, unlike providing body armor.

5) "The United States supports broader democratic reforms in the Middle East. The leaders of Hamas must recognize Israel, disarm, and work for lasting peace." Uh-huh. That must've been the Hamas campaign slogan that got them 70+% of the vote, right?

6) "The Iranian gov't is attempting to reconstitute its nuclear program... the world must not allow them to gain nuclear weapons..." Because only nuclear-powered nations can be certain that the United States won't invade and overthrow a gov't it doesn't like (see: North Korea).

7) Did he really just talk about making strides in fighting AIDS worldwide... with a straight goddamned face???

8) "The enemy can still strike us!" Boo! Osama's gonna git ya!

9) "Reauthorize the PATRIOT ACT. Law enforcement deserves the same tools we use to fight drug dealers and organized crime."

10) Another "September the 11th". Ooh, now he's defending the domestic spying, saying the Constitution and statute gives him the right. Other presidents have done it, too. Federal courts let 'em do it. Appropriate members of Congress have been told. If Americans are talking to al Qaeda, we want to know, because we won't sit back and wait to be hit again. Two 9/11 hijackers were talking to Americans, but we couldn't tap 'em, so we didn't know what they were up to. I'm gonna spy on whoever I want to, whenever I want to, and if you don't let me, you're gonna get blowed up! (OK, I must've misheard that last part...)

11) "Freedom is on the march!" "No isolationism." Because invading sovereign nations of no threat to us on faulty intelligence is exactly the scenario Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, & Reagan had to deal with. "Presidents of both parties are going to have to fight this long long looonnnggg war."

12) "Four years of uninterrupted economic growth, because I gave people tax relief... make them permanent!" Hey everybody, how's that economic growth treatin' ya? Are you better off today than you were five years ago? Did you buy a new DVD player with your tax cut?

13) I can't even muster the sarcasm necessary to savage his bloviation on reducing the size of gov't, cutting back spending, and reducing the deficit. I'm only human.

14) "Pass the line-item veto!" Because this unitary executive doesn't have quite enough unchecked power. Sure, Alito will let him interpret any law he signs any way he wants, but he needs to also be able to edit those bills line by line.

15) HA HA HA!!! Democrats cheering for Bush not passing his Social Security "reforms".

16) Here comes the immigration stuff... wait for it... Must have humane temporary guest worker program... OK, GOP, now, stand up and cheer! Hello? Hello?

17) We must have affordable healthcare for the poor and the elderly, and we are meeting that responsibility. (Even the gallery could hardly stifle the guffaws on that one.)

18) OB/GYNs are having trouble spreading their love to women... so pass medical liability reform this year.

19) AMERICA IS ADDICTED TO OIL. The best way to break this addiction is through technology. You can be certain that this Texas oilman, my oilman vice president, my Exxon supertanker, er, Secretary of State, and my entire oil soaked administration will do everything possible to break our addiction to oil, including drilling in ANWR, digging up more coal, and a bunch of other things that won't come to fruition until long after we're gone and have built up way more profits than we could possibly spend in sixteen generations.

20) We want to lead in talent, so we'll promote more research programs in sciences and education in the sciences. Except, of course, anything that has anything to do with an embryo. We need more kids to be taught in hard math and science and advanced placement in math and science, and bring in more professionals in math and science. Just as long as they don't tell the kids they descended from a common primate ancestor and that they remember that Genesis is the foundation of cosmology.

21) "A life of personal responsibility"? Paging Lt. Bush, Alabama Nat'l Guard...

22) "Worried about activist courts redefining marriage, worried about judges legislating from the bench, worried about citizens still recovering from disaster..."

23) "Human life is a gift from our Creator, and should never be discarded, manipulated, or put up for sale." So I'm immediately closing all of the fertility clinics nationwide. If our Creator wanted to give you the gift of life, He wouldn't have built you with a barren womb.

24) "Public officials should be worthy of public responsibility, I welcome reform efforts..." Oh, yeah, BIG round of applause for that one.

25) Laura Bush is going to reach out and rescue the wayward youth of America. Because when it comes to understanding the problems of a poor illiterate black kid plagued by gang violence and a drug-addicted mother, the first mentor you think of is Laura Bush. Maybe she'll teach them how to get away with juvenile vehicular manslaughter.

26) "We are engaged in a global ideological conflict we did nothing to invite." Nope, nothing at all. Just sittin' here, minding our own business, supporting brutal Middle Eastern dictatorships, invading sovereign nations, torturing our prisoners of war, placing our military bases on Muslim holy land, blindly supporting Israel's treatment of Palestinians, killing millions through economic sanctions, selling arms to terrorist regimes, and imposing Christian ideology in every aspect of our foreign policy whether they like it or not. We are such innocent victims here!

27) My Middle Eastern misadventure is just like Lincoln's civil war to hold the union and eliminate slavery, just like King's march for civil rights, just like America's World War II battle to free Europe.

Alito confirmed 58-42

Well, well, it's all over but the presidential coronation. Hope you enjoyed 33 years of sovereignty over your own bodies, ladies. Don't worry, big corporations always have the little guys' best interests at heart, so you needn't worry about your class action suit getting fair treatment at the Supreme Court.

While I have no children, I fear the world my nieces are soon to inherit.

I can't channel my disgust any better than The Rude Pundit did today.

Today, Senators who voted for cloture are going to vote against the nomination of Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court. And when Lincoln Chafee, Maria Cantwell, Herbert Kohl, Blanche Lincoln, and Jay Rockefeller, as well as all the others run for re-election, they can say, "Look, I said 'No.'" But that "no" matters so little as the very issues they say caused them to vote that way - the power of the presidency, abortion rights, the right to privacy, the favoring of corporations - are turned against them time and again. Yeah, they voted against Alito, but there's a starving, beaten prisoner in Gitmo, a pregnant teenage girl in Nebraska, a coal mining family in West Virginia who are all gonna be the ones f*cked because of such cowardly courage. And when they say they voted against Alito, someone's gonna be smart enough to say, "Hey, Maria, if it's such a big f*ckin' deal, why didn't you join the filibuster?"

And if someone doesn't wreck Susan Collins, Arlen Specter, or any supposed pro-choice Republican after the first Supreme Court case that limits access to abortion, then DNC consultants need to have their Blackberries shoved up their asses.

...

(And if you really want your stomach to do the Charleston, remember the precedent that's been set: should someone put rat poison in Justice Stevens' creme brulee, Alito's views are now the bar at which a nominee can be approved.)

Update: The vote was 58 to 42. Enough to have sustained a filibuster even without Chafee if 16 Senators believed in more than empty gestures. And Olympia Snowe voted for Alito. There is no middle in the Republican Party. There is only Democratic capitulation masking as moderation.

State of the Union losers

[UPDATE: See my comments on the SOTU here.]

Are folks going to watch? Maybe you'll pop some popcorn and laugh at the Chimperor's performance. Or maybe you'll be attending a SOTU party.

I'll be in my jammies. I'm not live blogging this POS. It's too painful. Some factoids from the AP:

President Bush's State of the Union addresses, by the numbers:



Year 2002 2003 2004 2005
Number of words 3,807 5,367 5,148 5,009
Length in minutes 48 67 54 57
Interuptions for applause 75 76 71 66
Mentions of Sept. 11 5 3 3 1
Mentions of Iraq 2 22 24 27
Millions watching on TV(a) 52 62 43 39
(a)Only 2005 figures include audience from Spanish-language networks Telemundo and Telefutura

According to White House shill Brian Jones:

"A lot of what you'll see the president talk about tonight are things that common sense Americans from both sides of the aisle can agree on." He says Bush is expected to touch on homeland security, the war on terror, reducing dependence on foreign sources of oil and the economy.

I'm sure there will be people taking a swig every time he mentions 9/11.

Have mercy -- AP is reporting that this SOB is going to actually say: "America is addicted to oil" and must break its dependence on foreign suppliers in unstable parts of the world.

Great Caesar's ghost. It'll be worse than I imagined.

***

And, talk about painful, we have to sit through this anti-gay turd below posturing as the latest iteration of the "New Republicrat" in the Democratic response, as he delivers the party's "2006 message of inclusiveness."

Tim will be reaching across the aisle with an olive branch... ::sniff sniff:: I'm misting up now as I type this...NOT.



You know, because Tim Kaine cares about "all Americans from all walks of life" -- except the queer ones. But he is electable, and that's all that matters, right?

Pfffft.

Review and reflect on these earlier posts...

* Anti-gay Dem Tim Kaine tapped for response to SOTU (Jan 20)

* Kaine: 'not comfortable with language' but will sign amendment anyway (Jan 21)

* Tap dancing Tim (Jan 26)

* Spineless leadership (Jan 28)

***

Back to the Chimperor...

52 percent say Bush's presidency a failure

Why is this number so low?

There is something terribly wrong in our country when this man, after all that he has wrought, can muster anything over 30% approval. I assume that about a third of our population is hopelessly drunk on the Kool-Aid, so what is the excuse for the remainder of the American people?


(Jason Reed/Reuters)

The story notes that Clinton had over 80 percent approval in January 1999 -- after impeachment.

***

This and that

Chris Kromm over at Facing South emailed me about The Alito Effect, saying "red states are salivating to pass laws outlawing abortion. They're ready to go."

He's not joking. Alito hasn't even sat down in the chair yet, but lawmakers in five states -- Georgia, Indiana, Ohio, South Dakota and Tennessee -- are ready with bills that would ban all abortions, except in the instance of the woman’s life is at risk.

***

Carla at Preemptive Karma says, "I've been hearing these 'World Can't Wait' ads on Air America here...and they make me cringe. IMO they make us look nutty and off the cliff." What progressives need to do, instead of protesting, is to hunker down and organize.

All this energy wasted on demonstrations and protests could be channeled into something much more effective: organization. Progressives must continue to rebuild at the state and local level. Our beliefs and values have been allowed to languish in places closest to home. We must rebuild these first. Build the foundation and then work upward toward DC.

Yes, we think Bush is an abomination of governance. Yes we believe that he's done serious harm to this nation that will take generations to fix. But we can't convince the American electorate that we're the better alternative merely staging protests and stamping our feet. We have to prove that we're better.

***

Can't stand the winger beasts at Little Green Footballs? I've got a site to point you to that Blogenfreude highly recommends...Little Green Fascists. He says, "scroll down to look at the Pantload Media graphic."

***

Blender Ron says, "now my country's swung to the right (Canada) -- read all about it www.harpoville.blogspot.com/...Another way things look from North of the 49th."

***

The 2005 Koufax Award nominations are still rolling out, so surf over and check out all the interesting goings-on. Here's what's up so far.

* Best state and local Blogs: The Blend is nominated here; I'm not sure why, I blog out of NC, but I don't post exclusively about NC or even the South. Some other NC noms here: Ed Cone, Facing South, Greensboro 101, NC Conservation Network Blog, Orange Politics.)

* Best New Blogs: I posted some of the ones I know and read here.

* Most Deserving of Wider Recognition: The Blend is nominated in this category again (it made it to the semis last year).

* Best Post: Believe it or not, two of my posts made it: Skin and the Color of Money and Letter from Peter LaBarbera.

Have fun reading the best of the lefty blogosphere; there are so many worthy nominees in these groups.

Voting will not begin until all the of the noms in all categories are posted. Next set of nominations to be announced will be for Most Humorous Post.

Wal-mart executive pig at the trough

It's not enough to make a million dollars a year at a company that screws its workforce over. Here's a guy -- a vice chairman, no less -- who stole cash, merchandise, and freaking gift cards from the House that Sam built.

Maybe he can pass some of that booty around when he's in the clink making friends and influencing people. (CNN):

Tom Coughlin, 57, faces a maximum of 28 years in prison after pleading guilty to five counts of wire fraud and one count of filing a false tax return. He also could be fined $1.35 million.



...Wal-Mart lawyers referred Coughlin to federal prosecutors after discovering Coughlin had embezzled money from the company and used expense vouchers to buy products as varied as snakeskin boots, hunting trips and Bloody Mary mix. They estimated losses at up to $500,000.

...In federal court, Coughlin spoke only when he was asked questions by U.S. District Judge Robert Dawson. Afterward, defense lawyers issued a statement in which Coughlin accepted responsibility for "serious personal mistakes in judgment."

...Coughlin specifically admitted:

* Falsifying a travel expense voucher to pay $700 allegedly for travel and meeting expenses, but which was actually for the care of Coughlin's hunting dogs.

* Using a false invoice for $6,500 to pay for a private hunting lease.

* Using a false expense statement to cover $2,695 for upgrades to his 1999 Ford truck, which he claimed as reimbursement for meeting expenses.

* Using fraudulently obtained gift cards to pay for a cooler, two cases of Smirnoff, two cases of Miller Light beer, a bottle of Jack Daniels, a carton of tequila, and other items from a Sam's club in Joplin, Missouri.

* Using a false invoice to receive a check for $3,100 that was cashed for his personal use.

* Filing a false tax return.

Oh, by the way, did you know that this loser also received a $3 million bonus, and holds $20 million in Wal-Mart stock?

Hat tip, Holly.

Women in uniform die to avoid rape by fellow soldiers

Where is the humanity? This story makes me sick to my stomach. And, big surprise, the military wanted to cover it all up.

Last week, Col. Janis Karpinski told a panel of judges at the Commission of Inquiry for Crimes against Humanity Committed by the Bush Administration in New York that several women had died of dehydration because they refused to drink liquids late in the day. They were afraid of being assaulted or even raped by male soldiers if they had to use the women's latrine after dark.

The latrine for female soldiers at Camp Victory wasn't located near their barracks, so they had to go outside if they needed to use the bathroom. "There were no lights near any of their facilities, so women were doubly easy targets in the dark of the night," Karpinski told retired US Army Col. David Hackworth in a September 2004 interview.

It was there that male soldiers assaulted and raped women soldiers. So the women took matters into their own hands. They didn't drink in the late afternoon so they wouldn't have to urinate at night. They didn't get raped. But some died of dehydration in the desert heat, Karpinski said.

Karpinski, who was in charge at Abu Ghraib, said that the former senior US military commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, was the one who gave orders to cover up the cause of death of these soldiers. Sanchez, you might recall is a piece of work.

Sanchez is no stranger to outrageous military orders. He was heavily involved in the torture scandal that surfaced at Abu Ghraib. Sanchez approved the use of unmuzzled dogs and the insertion of prisoners head-first into sleeping bags after which they are tied with an electrical cord and their are mouths covered.

These women in uniform were willing to die for their country -- and what it should stand for. How humiliating and horrible it must have been to know that your fellow soldiers saw you as nothing more than a vessel for their violent, depraved needs? The enemy was within the barracks, and they felt they had nowhere to turn.

Will Rumsfeld be commenting on this? Right now, the Pentagon knows the problem is severe, but have you seen anything in the MSM?

Hat tip, Shakes Sis.

Oscar noms

Here are all the nominations...

Brokeback Mountain's up for eight. (AP):

The cowboy love story "Brokeback Mountain" led the Academy Awards field Tuesday with eight nominations, among them best picture and honors for actor Heath Ledger and director Ang Lee.

Also nominated for best picture were the Truman Capote story "Capote"; the ensemble drama "Crash"; the Edward R. Murrow chronicle "Good Night, and Good Luck"; and the assassination thriller "Munich."

...Along with best-actor contender Ledger, and directing nominee Lee, "Brokeback Mountain" scored nominations for Michelle Williams as supporting actress, Jake Gyllenhaal as supporting actor and Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana for their screenplay adaptation of Annie Proulx's short story.

Director Lee said he was gratified at the reception both homosexual and heterosexual audiences have given "Brokeback Mountain," which has proven a steady box-office draw across the country.

"I didn't know there were so many gay people out there. Everywhere, they turn up," Lee said. "More importantly, I think I'm amazed how people everywhere have had the sensitivity to want to get into the complexity of the issue, the probability of love, the illusion of love, all those things. It's not simple things you can categorize as right or wrong."

A towering figure is gone

Coretta Scott King has passed away. The civil rights matriarch suffered a stroke and heart attack last year, and was last seen publicly just a couple of weeks ago.

This loss is so great because Mrs. King was an advocate for civil rights who believed that phrase was inclusive -- those of us in the LGBT family knew that she was on our side. While other figures in the civil rights movement, including Coretta's daughter Bernice, have chosen exclusion, demonization, and marginalization of gays and lesbians, Coretta Scott King stood regally and spoke eloquently about why discrimination of any kind is wrong.

The following are the remarks made by Coretta Scott King at the opening plenary session of the 13th annual Creating Change conference, organized by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, in Atlanta on November 9, 2000.

I think we all need a few days to recuperate from the stress-filled election we have just experienced, but not much more, because we have a lot more work to do in our common struggle against bigotry and discrimination.

I say “common struggle” because I believe very strongly that all forms of bigotry and discrimination are equally wrong and should be opposed by right-thinking Americans everywhere. Freedom from discrimination based on sexual orientation is surely a fundamental human right in any great democracy, as much as freedom from racial, religious, gender, or ethnic discrimination.

My husband, Martin Luther King Jr., once said, “We are all tied together in a single garment of destiny…an inescapable network of mutuality.… I can never be what I ought to be until you are allowed to be what you ought to be.” Therefore, I appeal to everyone who believes in Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream to make room at the table of brotherhood and sisterhood for lesbian and gay people.

In addition to this fundamental moral principle, there is a very practical reason why people involved in human rights should support each other and work together. And that reason is that the whole of us united makes us stronger than the sum of our parts. This principle of synergy is eloquently summed up in the equation “One plus one equals three.” In other words, there are things we achieve together that we can’t achieve separately.

In a way, we have just had an object lesson in the power of coalition unity. And I think we have just seen the future of American democracy flash before our eyes last Tuesday. The coalition that gave Al Gore a popular majority can surely be as powerful as the New Deal coalition that transformed America in an earlier era.

So what comes next for the NGLTF, the King Center, and indeed all organizations working for human rights and social justice must be a new emphasis on working together in coalitions. With this commitment, we can pass comprehensive hate crimes legislation and the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and secure full funding for AIDS research, prevention, and treatment. We can defend affirmative action and support a broad range of common legislative and policy priorities.

It is encouraging that we have seen more gay and lesbian candidates elected to political office. It is important for lesbian and gay officeholders and their constituencies to achieve greater visibility as supporters of laws that benefit the entire community. I think this will help educate the American public that lesbian and gay people seek the same goals of quality education for young people, cleaner air and water, safe streets and better health care that straight people want. We have to work harder for the broader vision of the compassionate and caring society that demands decent living standards for all citizens.

Now that the election is finally behind us, we must turn our full attention to building a tightly knit coalition of human rights groups that can act swiftly and effectively for needed policy reforms. Let’s make this first decade of the 21st century an era of unprecedented expansion in freedom and democracy.

And as we work for needed reforms, we must also look ahead to the next elections, mindful that we need more people of color in America’s federal, state, and local political institutions. And we also need more women and more lesbian and gay officeholders as well. This is how we make our political institutions reflect the diversity of the American people.


Coretta Scott King, widow of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., walks a picket line with others to protest apartheid in South Africa, in this Nov. 29, 1984 file photo, at the South African Embassy in Washington. King, who turned a life shattered by her husband's assassination into one devoted to enshrining his legacy of human rights and equality, has died, former mayor Andrew Young told NBC Tuesday, morning, Jan. 31, 2006. She was 78. (AP Photo/Charles Tasnadi, File)

In closing, my friends, I just want to say that I’m proud to stand with you today as we build a great new American coalition for freedom and human rights for all people. Despite the formidable challenges we face, I believe that we will succeed in creating a more compassionate and just society.

I’ll conclude my remarks tonight with a few words spoken by Martin Luther King Jr. at the National Press Club in July of 1962. The 38 years that have come and gone since then have done nothing to diminish the relevance of his remarks. Indeed, they seem particularly appropriate to the challenge we face today.

“We are simply seeking,” said Martin, “to bring into full realization the American dream—a dream yet unfulfilled. A dream of equality of opportunity, of privilege and property widely distributed; a dream of a land where men no longer argue that the color of a man’s skin determines the content of his character; the dream of a land where everyone will respect the dignity and worth of the human personality—this is the dream. When it is realized, the jangling discords of our nation will be transformed into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood, and men everywhere will know that America is truly the land of the free and the home of the brave.”

With this faith, sisters and brothers, let us work together with renewed passion and commitment to create the beloved community of Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream, where all people can live together in a spirit of trust and understanding, harmony, love, and peace.

Who will step forward to fill this aching void? Who will be the shepherd of the true movement for civil equality?

Also:
* biography of Coretta Scott King at The King Center site.

Wicked ISP

It looks like sad sack AOL is now going to be targeted by the insane religious whack jobs. Here is the actual banner headline over at WingNutDaily this AM, easily a major candidate for the Batsh*ttery Award of the day. The article grows more unhinged as you keep reading.

Is new AOL IM slogan marketing blasphemy?
'I AM' pitch takes God's name in vain, say some shocked critics

America Online is now acting like God - using what some consider to be His very name in a marketing pitch for e-mail, voice chat, video chat, instant messaging, text messaging and other forms of communication.

AIM's new slogan is "I AM."



[Ian] Millar wonders is any of AOL's marketing and planning directors ever went to Christian Sunday school or attended Jewish services. He points out to AOL executives that "I AM" is the English translation of YaHWeH, the self-proclaimed name of God.

"He is the Creator and Savior of the world," explains Millar. "He alone is to be worshipped. To take His name in vain, or use as a common thing is blasphemy, a vulgar sin of offense. Perhaps you have not read the Third Commandment, since they have removed it from so many public monuments in the last decade. But breaking it as a means of marketing your products offends the mind of everyone who worships Him."

...Millar suggests that perhaps AOL is in need of more religious diversity in its corporate ranks. But he suggests that such oversights would seem implausible in a country "where the Judeo-Christian culture has been pervasive for 300 years."

"You must immediately change the name of your program," he told Jonathan Miller, the chief executive officer of America Online, and John Buckley, corporate communications officer for the company, in a pointed letter. I can assure you that you will lose business over this marketing tactic from people who worship the Almighty. But worse, you have offended Him by your actions; whether they are deliberate or ignorant. To treat as common the name of God is wicked. God is patient, but mankind is today making an error of epic proportions by the deliberate actions of mocking the Almighty; particularly in the technologically advanced society. His patience with the mockery of mankind will come to an end."

An "error of epic proportions"? My god. I'm sure the AOL folks will get right on this... OK. Maybe this is just some random nutcase spouting off, right? Uh oh, take a look at this WND poll:



Actually, here's another reason why AOL is hell-bound for these folks, from last October...

Time Warner's America Online has hired Mary Cheney, the daughter of Vice President Dick Cheney, an AOL spokesman confirmed on Tuesday. Mary Cheney will work closely with Ted Leonsis, vice chairman of America Online and head of the unit whose function it is to increase AOL's Internet audience via Web-based programming and products, AOL spokesman Nicholas Graham said.

...Mary Cheney recently worked as an aide to her father. A high-profile lesbian [only when it pays], she previously served as gay community liaison for Coors Brewing, which had been criticized for making donations to critics of gay rights.

Despite attempts to keep Mary Cheney out of the news, the subject of her sexuality came up during several debates in the 2004 presidential race when candidates were questioned about their stance on gay rights. The vice president had previously tried to stay quiet on the subject.

AOL has long been a leader in promoting gay-friendly policies and practices, including offering same-sex domestic partners and their children the same benefits as non-gay couples, Graham said.

***

While I was over at WND, I had to snare this priceless, unrelated headline.

Gay-straight alliances targeted by Virginia bill

Ebbin, Lohr. The latter wants to dissolve the alliances: "Whether it be homosexual or heterosexual, school is just not the place to be talking about sexual activity."

The gay-bashing just keeps on coming in Tim Kaine's state. Now the batsh*t homophobes are going after gay-straight alliances, claiming they "promote teen sex." Poor openly gay delegate Adam Ebbin (D-Arlington). He's got his hands full battling these clowns in the legislature. (365gay):

[Harrisonburg Del. Matthew] Lohr's House Bill 1308 would authorize school boards to prohibit the use of school facilities by any student club that promotes sexual activity among unmarried students.

It would essentially dissolve the gay-straight alliances, which typically meet on school grounds, said Dyana Mason, head of Equality Virginia.

The bill won preliminary House approval Monday, and could go before the Senate this week. An identical bill introduced last session easily glided through the House on a 95-0 vote. That bill later died in Senate committee, Lohr said. Monday, lawmakers appeared split over the bill, some arguing it unfairly singled out gay groups while others countered the legislation targeted no one.

"This bill is not aimed at one particular group," Lohr told House members. "The intent is to give local school boards more control over the types of groups which use the buildings."

But when pressed by Falls Church Democratic Del. James Scott about which groups could be interpreted as addressing sexual issues, Lohr referred to a situation involving a Chesterfield County gay-straight student alliance last year. In that case, Lohr said school officials canceled a planned book signing by a gay author after it was learned the author would be including a steamy novel about gay fraternity sex. Lohr argued school officials should have been able to quash the group entirely.

...But gay-straight alliances are focused on helping teens sort out their sexuality — not telling them how to act on it, argued Ebbin, the state's first openly gay House member. "What troubles me is the targeting of student groups because they (acknowledge) the idea that gay people exist," he said.

Massachusetts dominatrix acquitted

"Mistress Lauren M" walks away from a manslaughter charge; prosecutor Robert Nelson put on gear in order to re-enact the deadly bondage session during the trial.

She got off (uh huh huh, Beavis, you said "got off"). Do you think we will see outrage from Concerned Women for America about this? Maybe a pithy quote from Daddy Dobson? Yawn. It looks like there was some seriously bad police work in this case.

A dominatrix was acquitted of manslaughter Monday in the death of a man who prosecutors say suffered a heart attack while strapped to a replica of a medieval rack.

Barbara Asher, a 56-year-old woman who called herself Mistress Lauren M, was also cleared of dismembering the man's corpse to conceal the death. Prosecutors said that 53-year-old Michael Lord suffered a heart attack in 2000 during a bondage session in a "dungeon" in Asher's condominium.

Asher was accused of doing nothing to help him for five minutes, fearing authorities would discover her business. Asher had her boyfriend chop up the body of the 275-pound retired telephone company worker, and they dumped it behind a restaurant in Maine, prosecutors said.

His remains have not been found. Prosecutors said Asher confessed to police, but the alleged confession was not taped. Investigators testified they did not save their notes.

Hat tip Holly.

Another homo-bigot politician's closet door will be flung open

BlogActive has announced that another homo-hypocrite on the Hill will be exposed...

Mr. Senator:

Tomorrow you will be faced with a vote that may have the longest aftereffects of any other you have cast in your Senate career.

Tomorrow you will decide if your political position is worth more than doing what is right for others like you. For others like you, Mr. Senator, who engage in oral sex with other men. (Although, Mr. Senator, most of us don't do in the bathrooms of Union Station!) Your fake marriage, buy the way, will NOT protect you from the truth being told on this blog.

How does this blog decide who to report on? It's simple. We report on hypocrites. In this case, hypocrites who vote against the gay and lesbian community while engaging in gay sex themselves*.

When you case that vote, Mr. Senator, represent your own...it's the least you could do.

Michael Rogers
blogACTIVE.com

Folks are already speculating about who it might be in the comments of Mike's post, as well as in a DKos diary. Some of the usual suspects are coming up.

Filibuster DOA

Defeated 72-25. Alito will be confirmed, folks. As Margo Channing said -- "Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night." Only it's going to be the beginning of a long-ass series of bumpy days and nights. Hope no one else on the Supreme Court retires or kicks it.

From the desk of Sam Brownback

HRC fired off a letter to the office of proudly anti-gay Kansas Senator Sam Brownback after his "fruits" remark in the Rolling Stone interview (my post here):

"You look at the social impact of the countries that have engaged in homosexual marriage." He shakes his head in sorrow, thinking of Sweden, which Christian conservatives believe has been made by "social engineering" into an outer ring of hell. "You'll know 'em by their fruits," Brownback says. He pauses, and an awkward silence fills the room. He was citing scripture -- Matthew 7:16 -- but he just called gay Swedes "fruits."

This is what Sam's office released today.

BROWNBACK CLARIFIES SAME-SEX MARRIAGE COMMENT

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Sam Brownback today issued the following statement concerning his recent comments in Rolling Stone magazine about same-sex marriage in Sweden:

“When quoting Matthew 7:16, ‘Ye shall know them by their fruits,’ I was in no way referring to sexual orientation.

“While this biblical passage was pertinent to our overall conversation about faith and deeds, it apparently led the writer to believe I was making a joke; I was not and would never do so with such a personal and sensitive issue."

That said, Brownback didn't have any response to these gems...

* Does he fully support the beliefs of his chief of staff, Robert Wasinger, who wrote in a campus magazine funded by the Heritage Foundation, that the "innocent sperm" of gay men are, "forced to swim into feces?"

* What about a comment on his opposition to the federal hate crimes bill and that its passage would lead to the eventual criminalization of Christianity.

* And what about that $42,000 funneled to him by Jack Abramoff? How does that fit in his moral world view?

Visit The Anti-Sam Brownback Blog

Blend featured on Situation Room today

I just happened to be typing along here with CNN's "The Situation Room" (the 4PM hour) on in the background and Wolf was talking about "liberal activists on the warpath" blasting Hillary Clinton and the selection of Tim Kaine by the Dems to deliver the SOTU response tomorrow. I happened to look up just in time to see blog reporter Jackie Schechner punching up some of the sites in question, and up pops the Blend, lol.



It was onscreen for maybe 3 seconds, showing one of my Kaine posts, Spineless leadership. She also brought up The Moderate Voice during the review.

Homo-bigot of the day: Washington 'activist' boob Tim Eyman

He's known in his parts as a "professional initiative promoter."

Washington's Governor, Christine Gregoire, plans to sign the new anti-discrimination bill into law tomorrow morning, and one wingnut is incensed. Tim Eyman filed an initiative today to repeal the gay-rights bill, which passed Friday in the state Senate. According to this article, the AmTaliban groups plan to get behind this turd to take the matter to a public vote. (The Olympian via PageOneQ):

The longtime initiative promoter said in an e-mail to supporters and the media late Sunday, “Politicians aren’t thinking about what the voters want. Let the voters decide.”

“Politicians are deciding based on special interest group pressure and their own re-election calculations,” Eyman added. “The voters have watched this disgusting display of arrogance and selfishness for weeks. The issue has become hopelessly politicized.”

“It’s sad. It’s appalling. It’s anti-American,” state Sen. Karen Fraser, D-Thurston County, said late Sunday when told of Eyman’s latest ballot proposal. “It’s bullying, and it’s a money-making scheme for his organization. It looks like he expects to make a lot of money from bullying innocent people. I think everybody should decline to sign.”

[Democratic Rep. Sam] Hunt expressed outrage over the proposal. “Tim Eyman, have you no shame?” Hunt said. “Eyman is stooping to a new low just to line his pockets and get a mailing list of bigots."

It appears that a padded cell is in order for this guy. Seriously. Look at this post from local blogger Rich of Eye on Olympia:

It was "a dream come true" for his critics, initiative promoter Tim Eyman joked Thursday: the sight of him and two key associates shuffling in jail jumpsuits, handcuffs and leg chains before state lawmakers. With duct tape over their mouths.



Another fundraising scandal? No. Just more political theater from the man who once filed an initiative while wearing a rubber gorilla suit. Eyman, Mike and Jack Fagan, Mike Dunmire and other allies were trying to draw attention to a series of bills that would regulate -- or in one case do away with -- citizen initiatives and referenda.

This particular initiative would include language forbidding sexual orientation or sexual preference as a protected class listed in any anti-discrimination statutes. Here's the language via the Spokesman Review:

Let The Voters Decide

Prohibits government-imposed preferential treatment

Complete Text of “Let The Voters Decide” Referendum

POLICIES AND PURPOSES

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The people oppose important public policy changes being made without voter approval. The voters want an open debate where both sides are given the opportunity to have their voices heard and to persuade the voters on the issues involved. And after months of deliberation and discussion, the voters want to have the final say so that the decision can be made without fear of retaliation or intimidation.

The people oppose the government forcing anyone to impose quotas, set-asides, or other preferential treatment for any group. Under this measure, sexual orientation or sexual preference shall not be a specially protected class. The inclusion of this group as a protected class is preferential treatment over other groups not included in this chapter, such as military status, income level, medical history, or political party membership. The people do not support preferential treatment because the people do not want it to be used as a basis for requiring the legalization of same-sex marriage. Also, the people recognize that more lawsuits are not the answer.

Concerning the new law passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported: “The statewide measure would allow people, for the first time, to sue in state court, where damages could be more lucrative.” The article further reports that their new law provides “the ability to sue in state court where recovery could include not just compensatory damages, but punitive damages.” The people know that the Accept-me-or-else-I’ll-sue-you or the Be-nice-to-me-or-else-I’ll-have-you-arrested approach will only increase resentment and conflict among our citizens. This issue has become hopelessly politicized in Olympia. Politicians aren’t thinking about what the voters want. Let the voters decide.

Knight: 'Safe space' posters lead to disease-laden homo-sex

"This is about bullying people and saying you will kneel down and bow to the Baal god of homosexuality -- or we'll make your life very miserable."

-- penis-possessing Bob Knight of Concerned Women for America's Culture and Family Institute, getting his homo-related fix for the week.

Last week I blogged about the safe space poster that was causing all the hubbub out in California's San Leandro Unified School District (SLUSD). The district mandated that teachers display the signs in classrooms to indicate to students that "This is a safe place to be who you are. This sign affirms that support and resources are available for you in this school."

No biggie...well...since we are living in strange, culturally regressing times, it was not surprising that five teachers refused to endorse their classrooms as safe spaces for LGBT/Q youth because to do so would conflict with their religious beliefs.

You knew Bob Knight was going to be all over this. He had to uncover our latest initiative of The Homosexual Agenda^TM. His preference is to let the bullying and violence against gay kids continue in the schools, I suppose. I don't see anything on that poster about sexual activity.

He believes [SLUSD superintendent Christine] Lim's talk of safety is cover for the homosexual agenda. "What [such policies] produce is intolerance toward anyone who won't accept homosexuality," he says, adding that in this case, that means "teachers who know that it's not a good thing to sell kids on the idea that it's okay to be gay."

...The CFI spokesman maintains the school district is demonstrating intolerance toward the five teachers who are choosing not to display the posters -- and those teachers, he adds, are courageous for standing up to the mandate. "The school district has no business telling teachers to glorify behavior that has such a long list of known health risks," Knight says. "This ought to be treated as a public health issue -- not a matter of civil rights, as [homosexual activists] like to frame it."

And it is wrong, Knight adds, to force teachers into a situation that implies their approval of an unsafe and unhealthy lifestyle. "When you put a rainbow poster up in your classroom, you're lending the authority of the teacher to the gay-rights movement," he explains. In essence, says Knight, the district is saying: "Kids, go ahead and try this behavior. Even your teacher is for it."

Damn; he's one bright cookie.

Shakes Sis adds a witty, relevant comment on Bob's obsession, and how he might make better use of his time.

All we have to do to cure homosexuality is put up posters endorsing heterosexuality in every classroom, and then all the gay kids will know their teachers are "for" straightness! Eureka!

Although...you might have thought that all those teachers getting busted having sex with their opposite-sex students might have done the job even better than pro-straight posters.

Study: Bush voters more likely to be racist

I'm trying to muster up some sense of surprise, but as you can imagine, it's quite difficult to be shocked by these findings.

University of Virginia psychologist Brian Nosek and other researchers conducted a study that confirms what we all pretty much assumed. Unfortunately, the study doesn't investigate the complexities of "why" folks who vote Repug are more likely to be racist. Anecdotally, of course I'm sure we can come up with a boatload of reasons. (WaPo):

For their study, Nosek, Banaji and social psychologist Erik Thompson culled self-acknowledged views about blacks from nearly 130,000 whites, who volunteered online to participate in a widely used test of racial bias that measures the speed of people's associations between black or white faces and positive or negative words. The researchers examined correlations between explicit and implicit attitudes and voting behavior in all 435 congressional districts.

The analysis found that substantial majorities of Americans, liberals and conservatives, found it more difficult to associate black faces with positive concepts than white faces -- evidence of implicit bias. But districts that registered higher levels of bias systematically produced more votes for Bush.

"Obviously, such research does not speak at all to the question of the prejudice level of the president," said Banaji, "but it does show that George W. Bush is appealing as a leader to those Americans who harbor greater anti-black prejudice."

...Jon Krosnick, a psychologist and political scientist at Stanford University, who independently assessed the studies, said it remains to be seen how significant the correlation is between racial bias and political affiliation.

For example, he said, the study could not tell whether racial bias was a better predictor of voting preference than, say, policy preferences on gun control or abortion. But while those issues would be addressed in subsequent studies -- Krosnick plans to get random groups of future voters to take the psychological tests and discuss their policy preferences -- he said the basic correlation was not in doubt.

"If anyone in Washington is skeptical about these findings, they are in denial," he said. "We have 50 years of evidence that racial prejudice predicts voting. Republicans are supported by whites with prejudice against blacks. If people say, 'This takes me aback,' they are ignoring a huge volume of research."

Hat tip, Raw Story.

Tar Heel gay couple protests marriage inequality by refusing to pay taxes

"By not paying taxes, this is a deliberate act of civil disobedience towards a President that wants to make an amendment to the Constitution to only allow marriage between a man and woman, rather than two people who love each other, and that discriminates against us as full citizens of the United States."
-- Hendersonville, NC resident Charles Merrill

A Tar Heel couple decides to take a stand on marriage inequality here. NC does not a state amendment pending (we do have a DOMA in place). I'm sure folks in the states who will be facing an amendment on the ballot this fall will be thinking of following suit. (PRNewswire):

Charles Merrill, a 71-year-old artist, and his partner Kevin Boyle, have announced they will not pay Federal or North Carolina Income Tax on over two million dollars worth of stock sales and income for 2004, because of unfair discrimination in the Federal and State Income Tax Codes.

Merrill said, "I have no intention of paying Federal and State Income taxes because my same sex partner and I cannot be legally married and receive the same tax benefits as other married couples."

...Charles Merrill and Kevin Boyle are founders of a group called Citizens Against Discrimination. In 1996 they organized and protested an anti-gay resolution in Rutherford County, NC, which caught the attention of national media.

NOTE: I'm not endorsing this, since we all know the IRS, even before it was under the Chimperor's watch, didn't look kindly upon this kind of act of civil disobedience. For homos to do it under this Administration is particularly dicey. Blender (and CPA) Melinda chimed in on this via email:

I realize us gays have few options to protest our second class citizenship, but please be assured that what these folks are doing is *not* an option. The IRS doesn't fuck around with these things. As a CPA of almost 15 years, I can't count the number of times that I've read about the IRS going after tax protester with the usual outcome of serious interest and penalties and, on occaision, even a prision sentence. Usually, the protesters are of the ilk that try and frame their non filings by false statements such as "Congress never ratified the Federal Tax amendment", or some such nonesense.

Now, you might fly under their radar if you don't draw attention to yourself and try this tactic, but I guarantee these people will get their asses nailed to the wall on this - especially since there are significant dollars involved. I just hope that they don't get others thinking that this is a good way to protest the gross unfairness that is happening in this country.

Boning up for SOTU

Actual caption: US President George W. Bush listens to a reporter's question during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, 26 January 2006. Bush's State of the Union speech is his best chance to shape the debate on difficult issues like Iraq ahead of critical November legislative elections.(AFP/File/Jim Watson)

and this one for extra credit (fight the nausea):


U.S. Speaker of the House Dennis "Sexy" Hastert (R-IL) (R) while answering questions from the media about developing a plan for comprehensive lobbying reform on Capitol Hill while standing next to (politically closeted) Rep. David Dreier (R-CA). REUTERS/Larry Downing

Feel free to caption...

Arizona: You can visit, but you won't want to stay

Cities and communities in Arizona are courting gay travel dollars, but the welcome only goes so far. (365gay):

Phoenix, Tempe and other Arizona communities are reportedly preparing to launch ad campaigns designed at attracting LGBT tourism. City tourism officials are preparing to sit down with the Greater Phoenix Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce to map out a strategy, the Arizona Republic reports.

The chamber already offers an 89-page guide for gay visitors. Tempe has already launched its gay marketing campaign. The strategy began three years ago when the Tempe Convention & Visitors Bureau began to research the gay market. The bureau later joined with area hotels and launched a gay tourism web site and an ad campaign in the gay media.

The gay travel market is worth an estimated $65 billion annually.

That said, this is also a state that bans same-sex marriage, and has an amendment up this year. Its text:

To preserve and protect marriage in this state, only a union between one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage by this state or its political subdivisions and no legal status for unmarried persons shall be created or recognized by this State or its political subdivisions that is similar to that of marriage.

Bush-humping McCain and Protect Marriage Arizona chair Lynn Stanley smile with glee in support of the petitions in support of the gay-bashing amendment.

Why should gay people from around the country spend any hard-earned money in a state that is going to vote to make its own gay residents second-class citizens? At this point, polls show that folks aren't completely sold on the amendment because of its restrictions on partnership rights, but the wingers are working hard. (AZ Republic, in Sept 2005):

The poll of 390 voters done last week found that 60 percent are likely to oppose the Protect Marriage Arizona initiative if it makes the November 2006 ballot. Only 33 percent said they would vote for it, and the other 7 percent were undecided.

But check out the same paper's polling in October 2005:

A new statewide poll done by The Arizona Republic indicates most voters would support a state constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, but the survey didn't touch on the most controversial part of the ballot measure: denying benefits to unmarried couples.

The Republic poll of 600 Arizonans found that 57 percent are likely to back an initiative defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman if it makes the November 2006 ballot. Only 37 percent said they would vote against it; 6 percent were undecided. The poll, with a margin of error of about 4 percentage points, says the idea of a state constitutional ban on same-sex marriages is popular with voters when not linked to wording that may prohibit cities, towns and counties from giving legal status to unwed couples.

AZ Blenders out there -- what's the state of things now?

It must have come in a revelation

Frist: Gov't Unwanted in End-of-Life Cases. The Senate's doctor in the house has now had a change of heart for some reason. Could it be that the autopsy of Schiavo proved that her doctors were correct -- she had irreversible brain damage, with her brain shriveled to half its normal size, or did Cat Killer Frist just take a poll for 2008 and saw he was on the wrong side of the issue?

The one thing I do know, the fundies won't let him off the hook after this position shift. (AP):

Frist, considered a presidential hopeful for 2008, defended his call for further examinations of the brain-damaged Florida woman during the last days of a bitter family feud over her treatment. Schiavo was in a persistent vegetative state.


The case became a rallying point for right-to-life advocates, an important segment of the Republican Party. It also drew interest from those supporting the right to refuse life-sustaining medical treatment and led to charges that the GOP was using a family tragedy for political gain. Asked on NBC's "Meet the Press" if he had any regrets regarding the Schiavo case, Frist said: "Well, I'll tell you what I learned from it, which is obvious. The American people don't want you involved in these decisions."

...Frist, R-Tenn., said in the full Senate that he supported what he called "an opportunity to save Mrs. Schiavo's life." A heart surgeon, Frist had viewed video ordered by a court and taken by a board-certified neurologist who had concluded she was not in a persistent vegetative state.

Ang Lee, DGA director of the year

Great news.

Ang Lee was named filmmaker of the year by his peers, winning the Directors Guild of America award for the epic romance "Brokeback Mountain."

The win affirms Lee's position as favorite for best director at the Academy Awards on March 5. He has captured more than 10 honors for his work on the film, which follows a 20-year forbidden love affair between two Wyoming ranch hands. Oscar nominations will be announced Tuesday.

The Directors Guild award is one of Hollywood's best barometers for the Academy Awards. Only six times in the 57-year history of the Guild honors has the winner failed to go on to win the directing Oscar.

Dem lobbyist to left blogosphere: generate money and shut your piehole

Here's a real bottom-line statement from a Democratic lobbyist, and it speaks volumes:

"The bloggers and online donors represent an important resource for the party, but they are not representative of the majority you need to win elections."

-- Steve Elmendorf, a Democratic lobbyist who advised Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign.

You have to read this WaPo piece, Blogs Attack From Left as Democrats Reach for Center, which is where the above shite quote came from. I've been talking about this crap for a good long time now re: gay rights -- they want our queer bucks and our silence and endless "patience" as they tilt the party rightward.

This dishonesty was barely hidden beneath the surface during the 2004 race and, as you can see from the above quote, it's out there stark naked before us now as the 2006 races heat up. This "bend over, you've got nowhere else to go" mentality is as bad as the Right's plan to drag out the gay boogeyman again for this election cycle.

As a progressive, the feeling of being continually used in this manner makes my blood boil because it expands to so many issues we've thought about as core values of the party (e.g reproductive freedom, the environment, the economy, social justice, etc.). The Dems are publicly abandoning (or hiding from) anything resembling novel thinking in their quest to become Republican-lite. They've decided that learning how to frame core issues is just too much work for them. Just water down the GOP playbook a tad and (hopefully) slide into office.


As you can see, weasel Elmendorf (who, by the way, is also an openly gay man) and the rest of the tired Democratic infrastructure in Washington hates the lefty blogosphere overall, except as a tool. The establishment is just that -- established -- and they want to stay that way, rocking no boats, sitting on new ideas generated from the netroots.

These folks cannot handle the level of public scrutiny, instant analysis and questioning about the quite obvious lack of risk-taking coming from those in leaderships roles in the party. They do not like to be called out to explain what core issues they stand for, because they know today's core value is about as firm as the next focus group or poll of the NASCAR set. Blogs expose that duplicity, and that's what has the spineless elements of the party riled up.

These activists -- spearheaded by battle-ready bloggers and making their influence felt through relentless e-mail campaigns -- have denounced what they regard as a flaccid Democratic response to the Supreme Court fight, President Bush's upcoming State of the Union address and the Iraq war. In every case, they have portrayed party leaders as gutless sellouts.

...The blogs-vs.-establishment fight represents the latest version of a familiar Democratic dispute. It boils down to how much national candidates should compromise on what are considered core Democratic values -- such as abortion rights, gun control and opposition to conservative judges -- to win national elections.

Many Democrats say the only way to win nationally is for the party to become stronger on the economy and promote a centrist image on cultural values, as Kaine did in Virginia and as Bill Clinton did in two successful presidential campaigns.

The new twist in this debate is the Web, which in recent election cycles emerged as a powerful political force, one expected to figure even more prominently as more people get high-speed connections and turn to the Internet for news and commentary. Unlike the past, the "pressure is conveyed through a faster, better organized, more insistent medium," said Jim Jordan, a Democratic strategist.

Any Dem politician who toes the Elmendorf line should not get a dime from anyone in the netroots. Period. If all we represent are money-machines and virtual foot soldiers, I call bullsh*t. No more of that. If a candidate cannot make civil equality or the protection of reproductive freedom a core value that they are willing to publicly defend, then what is the point of being a Democrat? What good does it do to win an election if the politician cannot stand up to the wingnuts, or worse, votes on our core issues just like a wingnut so it can be touted in their next race? The end result is the same to those of us directly affected by the cowardice.

Jim VandeHei, in the WaPo article, accurately portrays the netroots left as being in the same state of the right wing of the Republican party back when its influence was nascent.

The closest historic parallel would be the talk-radio phenomenon of the early 1980s, when conservatives -- like liberals now -- felt powerless and certain they did not have a way to voice their views because the mainstream media and many of their own leaders considered them out of touch. Through talk radio, often aired in rural parts of the country on the AM dial, conservatives pushed the party to the right on social issues and tax cuts.

Blogs and online communities provide an effective way to counter party drift, in some ways, in other ways the influence is minimal. The progressive wing may be out in the wilderness for now, but don't expect us to stay silent (or allow ourselves to be fleeced) any longer.

Sorry for the above disarray, it just all spilled out because of the rage.

***

Shakes Sis posts on yet another example of the problem. Dem Senator Barak Obama is the latest to get a queasy tummy about the prospect of a filibuster.

I know there’s a big chance of a filibuster backfiring because the Dems will be tagged as obstructionists and, quite frankly, they haven’t done enough work in getting out the message that there are very good reasons to filibuster Alito on behalf of voters. And I agree that the best way to ensure that rightwing douchebags don’t get nominated to the Supreme Court is to win elections.

But, on the other hand, part of what the Democrats need to do to win elections is reassert their commitment to liberal values. Yes, the media proactively supports the GOP, which makes it infinitely harder for the Dems’ message to get out, but the Dems need to share some of the blame for being seen as a mixed-message party. They have largely supported the war and the Patriot Act, they allowed Bush to claim bipartisan victories on some big legislation like the bankruptcy bill and bipartisan support for many of his nominees, including Alberto Gonzales, Condi Rice, and John Roberts, and many of the most prominent Dems are public triangulators, like Hillary Clinton, aligning themselves with such conservative legislation as flag-burning amendments. At some point, the Dems are going to need to take a stand against the GOP and their attempt to obliterate all liberal principles and actors from governance. Filibustering Alito’s nomination is drawing that line in the sand. Or at least it should be.

And Shakes Sis responds to my post here.

***

John at Americablog opposes the filibuster, and I understand his reasoning; it's hard for me to muster up any energy for the fight either. It's frustrating.

All the efforts now at the Netroots are struggling because because of Dem inaction and lack of preparation when the battle for SCOTUS has been clear from the outset. Continuing the theme here, we need better leadership in the Democratic party and in the advocacy groups that are only interested in the status quo. We aren't going to get core values back on the table by playing nice -- and we're not just talking about the Alito battle. John (my emphasis):

Far too many in the Netroots think that the choice before us is fighting for this filibuster or doing nothing. And in the grand scheme of things, they're tired, we're all tired, of sitting back and watching the Democratic party do nothing. Therefore they're excited to at least try the filibuster because at least they're doing something. I hear ya.

...But, you need to recognize that those are not the only two options available to us. There's a third. Destroy the Senate Democrats who did nothing to launch a REAL campaign to convince the American people that Alito must be defeated. Destroy the traditional non-profit advocacy groups who took our millions of dollars and did NOTHING to launch a real campaign to win the public to our side. And go after the rich donors who continue to enable these failed Democratic politicians and these failed advocacy groups like some addict who only needs one more fix, then promises he'll get better. If we do not go after them, if we do not force them to change or get out of the way, the same problem, the same failure, the same ineffectiveness will continue to plague our party and our movement, with no change in sight.

We have a choice. We have the ability to make change in our party. We have the power to make the Democrats stand up and fight like real Americans for real principles in a way that shows how fierce and tough and committed we can be.

TCF turns three

Happy Blogiversary to That Colored Fella (who's also a Big Brass Blog contributor)!

Jeb's faith-based prisons

Florida has no scientific study to back up claims that inmates attending church lowers the number of disciplinary actions or has affected recidivism rates, never mind all the dicey church/state separation issues.

I wonder how the fundies feel about Wicca and Scientology being among the "supported" religions in these prisons? (ABC):

Florida is where nearly half of all felons released end up back in prison within five years. The state's prison system doesn't seem the most likely to enlighten its inmates.

In December 2003, Gov. Jeb Bush converted the medium-security Lawtey Correctional Institution into the nation's first entirely faith-based prison. The governor put his plan into motion by stating "people of all faith, people who believe in a higher power are compelled to take actions in their lives that improve their chances of living a wholesome life that is crime-free."

At Lawtey, 28 different religions are represented — Christianity, Orthodox Judaism, Wicca, Scientology.

...But what about the separation of church and state? Isn't this violating that mandate? Officials at the Florida Department of Corrections say no, because all the religious materials and time devoted to religion come from more than 600 volunteers representing a variety of faiths.

But Rev. Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State called this arrangement "constitutional quicksand." Lynn said that "parts of a government cannot be run by religion, and it's just as wrong for the state of Florida to set up, in any way, a faith-based prison as if it were setting up its own faith-based schools, its faith-based fire department or police department."


Fireman for Jeebus.

Since Gov. Bush oversaw the conversion of Lawtey, Florida's Department of Corrections has opened two more faith- and character-based prisons — one for inmates serving long sentences and another that's exclusively for women. The state plans to open as many as 30 more. The state believes that these kinds of programs mean less disciplinary action and lower recidivism, but no scientific study has proved anything of that nature.

Spineless leadership

It's painful to continue posting about this, but when the Dems, as well as our supposed lobbying voices in the community, can't find a spine, you have to call it out.

The Washington Blade's Chris Crain has a spot-on column about the spineless Dems and the "new face" of the Party, Virginia Governor Tim Kaine. I have quibbles with Chris from time to time (a big example here), but lately he has been on the mark.


You'll recall my recent rant about the rotten pick of just-inaugurated Kaine to represent the Democratic party's "American values" in the official response to Bush's State of the Union address. He is 'not comfortable' with the language' but will sign off on the heinous marriage amendment when it hits his desk, and where are the gay Democratic organizations? Are they holding his feet to the fire pressuring Kaine to veto it, as it will discriminate against gay and lesbian families, a subset of the "working families" he is attributed with championing?

Certainly, holding the new governor's feet to the fire is warranted, right? The defeatist attitude just blows you away. Chris (with my emphasis):

Not to worry, gay Virginians. You still have plenty of leverage here because Kaine is a Democrat and has aspirations to higher public office. Given the influence gay Democratic groups have within the party, pressure will surely be brought to bear on such an abject betrayal of an important constituency, not to mention the party's historical commitment to civil rights.


Enter Josh Israel, president of the Virginia Partisans Gay & Lesbian Democratic Club, which endorsed Kaine's election. Contacted by the Blade, Israel… well… he didn't exactly call on Kaine to veto the amendment. In fact, he didn't even ask Kaine to pressure the Senate to limit its scope. Instead, Israel begged (apparently from within Uncle Tom's quarters at the plantation, since that term is being bandied about so much these days) the governor to at least make sure the ballot wording is fair.

How's that? The ballot wording? Why not call on him to oppose the measure? Because, according to Israel in a remarkable bit of Orwellian spin, "it's not the governor endorsing this effort when he says he will send it to the ballot. It's just the governor doing his job."

With gay rights activists like that, who needs party hacks?

Maybe the only recourse gay Virginians have is to get the hell out at this point, or perhaps stop paying taxes to a state that is not providing you with adequate representation and basic civil rights as a form of protest. If the folks leading the charge for your rights are folding up the tent, the show is over. It's not much better at the national level either. Empty promises by elected officials who are our allies when they pass the hat around and run for cover when asked to defend us cannot continued to be tolerated.

...The Stonewall Democrats and Virginia Partisans aren't the only gay groups who would much rather brown nose than do the unpopular work of standing up to their political friends. The Log Cabin Republicans have a decidedly mixed record of bucking the GOP, which offers innumerable opportunities on gay issues, obviously. The national gay rights groups similarly waste their energy currying favor and offering political cover to our "friends" rather than leveraging those we can actually influence.

...[T]he issue couldn't be clearer for gay Democratic leaders and the national gay groups. The party that enjoys our votes and our money, and that claims to cherish civil rights, has selected as its "new face" a governor who won't lift a finger to stop the most punitive anti-gay constitutional amendment since Colorado adopted Amendment 2. They should join together to call on Kaine to act and act now, and if he won't he should be stripped from his new role as party spokesmodel.

Exactly. If this is the kind of gay leadership we have to depend on, we're screwed; we're not getting a return on the investment -- on either side of the aisle. We have to expect follow-through from the advocacy groups we give time and money to. We need them to lobby and hold responsible both parties on our behalf in the struggle for civil equality.

Politically closeted lesbian Maryland Senator Mikulski on gay marriage in her state

[UPDATE: Mikulski's against the filibuster re:Alito, more at the end of the post.]

How on earth can a Senator have no opinion on her state's wrestling with the question of gay marriage? Maryland's been in the news for the last week after a judge ruled that an anti-same-sex marriage law violated Maryland's constitutional guarantee of equal rights.


Somehow, Democrat Barbara Mikulski hadn't found time to issue a comment on all the goings-on. As Mike Rogers over at BlogActive notes, Senator Mikulski was outed in the 90s by Queer Nation, but she has managed to keep herself politically closeted.

So, Mike contacted the Senator's office to see if we might have missed Mikulski weighing in on the topic.

I was told by Senator Mikulski's office that there was little chance the Senator would comment since she "usually does not comment on state matters." "Does not comment on state matters?" Is that some kind of fucking joke? Despite her reply, I asked the press spokesperson to ask the Senator -- after all, if there was an "unusual" time this is it.

He finally did get a statement out of her press secretary. Surf over and take a look at the insight and thought Mikulski put into her statement on a major issue being debated in her state.

***

Mikulski against filibuster

UPDATE: Mikulski, by the way, is one of the Senators georgia10 at DKos has identified that has not announced any support for a filibuster re: Alito. That's an unacceptable position for this Senator, let alone a lesbian elected official, given what a rightward swing in the composition of the Supreme Court could mean for LGBT citizens.

Mikulski's line is here: 202-224-4654. You can find the other spineless Dems at the diary. More from georgia10:

Senators Biden, Nelson, Akaka, Landrieu, Dorgan, and Snowe have stated they would likely not support a filibuster. Not a firm stance, like Chaffee, Salazar, Pryor, and Conrad, so there is reason to  keep calling them.

Some key things to keep in mind:

 Pressure from the blogosphere is working.  We've seen that with Senator Feinstein changing her mind and voting against cloture.  
* Fax. The mailboxes of many Senators are full, as are some of their inboxes. You can fax a filibuster fax to 13 Senators for free over at SaveTheCourt.org..  Their form targets the following Senators: Barack Obama, Christopher Dodd, Joseph Lieberman, Joseph Biden, Richard Durbin, Evan Bayh, Olympia Snowe, Harry Reid, Charles Schumer, Hillary Clinton, Lincoln Chafee and Russell Feingold. Fax numbers for all senators will be listed in the comments.

* Do They Want A President Or A King?: This should be the talking point, for Judge Alito has made it clear the Presidency has no one to answer to but itself.  A vote for Alito is a vote for a man who believes the President can thumb his nose at Congress and at our precious system of checks and balances.

* The American People Oppose Alito.: 56% of Americans say Alito should NOT be confirmed if he will overturn Roe. Alito refused to call Roe "well-settled" law, and has throughout his lifetime taken the legal position that Roe should be eroded and overruled.

* Let our Senators know that a vote for cloture is a vote which silences the will of the American people. And let's see if we can pull off a little weekend miracle...

* 1-888-355-3588 is the toll-free number for the Capitol Switchboard. Fax numbers for all senators are here.

My friends to the north -- a message from Paul Weyrich

Here's a snapshot of WingNutDaily's screaming complimentary headline, analyzing the political state of things in the Great White North:



Weyrich, head of the Free Congress Foundation and The Arlington Group, has a screw loose. Too bad we can't ship him up your way so that he can cuddle with Stephen Harper and his boyz. (Toronto Star):

It turns out Canadians are simply too "liberal and hedonistic" to change political orientation overnight and change will take time, says Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation.


"The people of Canada have become so liberal and hedonistic that the public ethic in the country immediately could not be reversed," Weyrich says in an email analysis to allies. "It will take time. But with leadership it well may be possible to change the public ethic."

The culturally conservative organization compared Harper's victory in Canada to the election of Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback, an extreme right-wing, pro-life legislator, to the position of governor of Massachusetts, a liberal state which has legalized gay marriage. [More on Sam "fetus is a citizen" Brownback here.]

Weyrich did not return phone calls to expand on his analysis.

...Weyrich said one Canadian Conservative contact told him Harper had little room to manoeuvre in the new Parliament. "My pessimistic friend said that inasmuch as Harper's is a minority government, Harper could do almost nothing to encourage the country to adopt a more reasonable view of the United States and to correct some premises of Cultural Marxism, which Canadians have espoused, such as same-sex marriage and abortion-on-demand," he wrote.

The solution, he said, would be for Harper to pack the Canadian courts with conservatives.

Alaskan homophobes move to rescind partner rights via constitutional amendment

How homophobic to you have to be to want to roll back basic rights for gays and lesbians that have just been officially recognized? The answer lies in the actions of some horrible politicians in Alaska. These bigots want to amend the state's constitution to prevent even the granting of partner benefits. (Juneau Empire):

Senate Judiciary Chairman Ralph Seekins, R-Fairbanks, told the Legislative Council Thursday evening he has a draft constitutional amendment that could be introduced by his committee as early as next week. A constitutional change would require approval by two-thirds of the House and Senate and approval by a majority of voters in November's election.

The Alaska Supreme Court ruled in October that denying gay couples the same public employee benefits as married couples - life and health insurance, plus retirement and death benefits - violates the Alaska Constitution's equal-protection clause. The court noted that unmarried straight couples also are denied benefits, but they - unlike gay couples - have the option to legally marry.


Bigots: Seekins, Murkowski, Dyson.

Following that ruling, Gov. Frank Murkowski and state Sen. Fred Dyson, R-Eagle River, separately called for changing the state's constitution to strike the ruling. "We have no choice but to defend our actions against an interventionist court that is, in my opinion, hard of hearing," Dyson said Thursday. "We're going to give the people a chance to speak again, this time maybe a little bit louder."

The Legislature in 1996 passed a law that said a same-sex couple is not entitled to the benefits of a married couple, which the Alaska Supreme Court found unconstitutional. In 1998, voters approved an amendment to the state's constitution defining marriage as between a man and a woman. Dyson declined to say what the draft amendment specifically says. He said the debate so far has been whether to expressly ban benefits for unmarried couples or to leave the decision to the state and its political subdivisions.


A Democratic member of the Senate Judiciary Committee said he would wait to see what comes to the panel before making a judgment, but he appeared skeptical. "You're going to have a tough time convincing me that this is an issue important enough to require an amendment to the state constitution," said Sen. Hollis French, D-Anchorage.

To add insult to injury, gay Alaskans will have their tax dollars spent by the state on an attorney who will consult with the legislature on how to best handle the language of the amendment -- to ensure homos' second-class citizenship is ironclad.

The Legislative Council on Thursday approved a $50,000 contract for Anchorage attorney Kevin Clarkson to help the Senate Judiciary Committee refine the draft amendment and provide legal assistance and research.

Marsha Buck, a member of the Juneau chapter of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, said the contract meant lawmakers were seeking state money to prove that her 36-year-old daughter is not equal to their own sons and daughters.

"What happened to liberty and justice for all?" Buck said.

Thanks to Blender Michelle for the pointer.