How Far Will This Go?

Much further...I hope.

State Rep. Mike Fleck (R-Huntingdon) publicly acknowledged Saturday that he is gay, making him the first openly gay lawmaker in Pa. and the only* currently sitting openly gay Republican state legislator in the entire country.

A GOP that has abandoned the culture wars can only be a progressive step for our country.

News Flash - West Point Still Stands...

...even after a lesbian couple gets married there.  Congratulations to the newlyweds!

The U.S. Military Academy's Cadet Chapel at West Point hosted its first same-sex marriage Saturday
Penelope Gnesin and Brenda Sue Fulton, a West Point graduate, exchanged vows in the regal church in a ceremony conducted by a senior Army chaplain.

The ceremony comes a little more than a year after President Obama ended the military policy banning openly gay people from serving.

The two have been together for 17 years. They had a civil commitment ceremony that didn't carry any legal force in 1999 but had longed to formally tie the knot.

The couple live in New Jersey and would have preferred to have the wedding there, but the state doesn't allow gay marriage.

"We just couldn't wait any longer," Fulton said.

The Wise Dr. Laura

I totally ripped this off from a friend on Facebook.  But he ripped it off from someone else!

Read this recently and quite like it (it has been around the internet for a few years):

"Laura Schlesinger is a US radio personality, who dispenses advice to people who call in to her radio show. She recently said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination, according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstances. The following response is an open letter to Dr. Laura which was posted on the Internet.

Spring Or Fall

The recent events of the so-called Arab Spring have been heralded as an age of advance within the Arab world.  I remain skeptical of such predictions due to the significant influence of jihadists, Islamists, the Muslim Brotherhood, and similar terrorist/extremist groups across the region.

Is this really the dawning of a new age?  Is this really an Arab Spring?  Or perhaps it is an Arab Fall, complete with an Indian Summer's false promise of warmth before the deep cold of winter.

A United Nations delegate from Libya’s newly formed government told a human rights panel that gays and other groups threaten “reproduction of the human race,” drawing a stern rebuke from leaders of the international body.
...

But the harsh stance against gays voiced Monday has some critics wondering if the new government ushered in by the so-called Arab Spring is any more tolerant than its predecessor.

"Today's homophobic outburst by the new Libyan government, together with the routine abuse of prisoners, underscores the serious questions we have about the new regime's commitment to improving on the dark record of its predecessor, and about its pandering to Islamists in its ranks," U.N. Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer said.

Now after listening to the news from Washington State on NPR over the last few days, I think it should be obvious that we in the U.S. still have issues with respecting the right of gays to be treated as equal citizens. Not everyone is overjoyed at the prospect of the gay marriage law just signed by their governor.  Pure as the wind driven snow, we ain't.

But we are headed in the right direction.  While the Middle East appears to loping along in the wrong direction at a fairly fast clip. 

The Engine Is Warm Now

As it was with racial integration, so it is with recognizing and validating the service of homosexuals in today's military.  It took a while to overcome the military opposition to racial integration.  But once it became policy, once the order was given, the military attacked the issue until it was essentially a non-issue.

I would expect that we will see the same thing now that people may serve openly in our armed forces.

Marine Commandant Gen. James Amos — who strongly opposed the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell last year — told NPR’s Morning Edition yesterday that he is “very proud” of how the Marines have handled the repeal of the policy last month. “I’m very pleased now,” Amos said and explained that his previous statements in support of the ban were expressing the hesitancy for change within the Marine Corps.

Where The Problem Is - Saudi Edition

We recently learned that a Saudi diplomat has asked for asylum in the United States.  He is afraid for his life if he returns to Saudi Arabia.

Why?  Good question.

He's gay.

He also has a very close friend....lady.....who is Jewish.

He's committed three of the biggest sins you can commit if you live in the Muslim heartland.  And he believes that the government will try him and kill him if he returns home.

It seems that the Saudi's have learned of his "lapses" and opted to terminate his diplomatic position and have recalled him to Saudi Arabia.

Hopefully, our State Department will look favorably upon his request.

Newsflash - Glenn Beck Sane

At least for a moment or two.  He discussed the recent ruling regarding gay marriage with Bill O'Reilly.

And apparently, he isn't bothered by the idea of gay couples marrying.

So we agree there.

Apparently, that wasn't always the case.

Glenn also believes that our country's slide began with the 'progressive movement' and Woodrow Wilson.  If he includes the Income Tax, the popular election of US Senators, and banning opium, cocaine, and marijuana, then I'd have to agree.

Sadly, he believes there is some sort of 'conspiracy' involved.  And thus any modicum of agreement dies an early death.

I know that Glenn is a big fan of former President Calvin Coolidge.  As am I.  So we're back on again!

In any case, I find it interesting that Glenn Beck isn't terribly concerned about gay marriage.

Liberty Expands Again

There once was a time when blacks were considered less than whites.  All sorts of rules and laws were passed to make sure that they never forgot "their place".

Our definition of liberty expanded.

There once was a time when women were little more than a man's property; to be treated as men saw fit and allowed to occupy roles in society as men saw fit to allow.

Our definition of liberty expanded.

Our definition of liberty has expanded yet again.  Freedom works each and every time it is tried.

The fate of gay and lesbian couples who want to wed in California is now in the hands of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which has less than a week to decide whether to block the enforcement of a federal judge's historic toppling of Proposition 8.


The matter was kicked upstairs to the Ninth Circuit court by Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, who last week said the state's ban on same-sex marriage was discriminatory and unconstitutional.

Today, Walker lifted a temporary stay he had placed on those nuptials, but simultaneously ruled that his order not take effect until 5 p.m. Wednesday.

 Let freedom ring!  The Constitution has won again.

CPAC And Gay Republicans

Megan McArdle has a brief story about Ryan Sorba's brief rant condemning CPAC for inviting GOProud; a group of openly gay conservatives.  Mr. Sorba has issues with homosexuality.  Megan indicated that he was booed off stage and suggests that this modest amount of progress is worth noting.

So I went looking for video or audio only to find a much longer story over at Hot Air.  With video....




Now CPAC is a self limiting sample.  There has been an "open tent" trend towards ignoring social issues in favor of the more broadly supported fiscal issues.  However I'm not saying that the GOP is liable to adopt a platform position in favor of gay marriage anytime soon.

But you have to admit that you normally wouldn't have expected a room full of self described conservatives to [largely] boo someone off the stage for suggesting that homosexuality is wrong.  Right?

An earlier look at the issue may be found here.

Gay Rights....Individual Rights, You Can't Have One Without The Other

Okay, Okay....I know.  It seems like it is all gay, all the time around here.  Just bear with me.

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.....well perhaps not all that far....I met my first almost out of the closet gay person.  At the time, he was US Marine.  Even better yet, he was a squared away Marine.  His room was always clean.  His uniform was spotless.  His grades in various aviation electronics schools were great.

He was a poster perfect United States Marine.

Did I mention that he was a Golden Gloves champion in the city he called home?

And he was beginning to realize that he might be gay.  At the time, I don't think he had even gone further than to just hang out with a small group of gay civilians.  His mistake at the time was to admit that he thought he might be gay to one of the Navy doctors.

In a matter of less than a week, he was gone.  All the work he had put into qualifying to repair aviation electronics was wasted.  Three months in boot camp was wasted.  He was just gone.

It wasn't too many years later that I began to notice that gay servicemembers were winning all sorts of awards.  The one that comes to mind the most was the guy that was Sailor of the Year.....for the entire Atlantic command of the Navy.

Add to that the fact that other countries permit gays to serve openly without having their military services completely fall apart.  Countries like: Argentina,  Australia,  Austria, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland.....

Now hold it right there.  The Irish can manage to have gays serving honorably in their military and the U.S. can't???  Sheesh.

...Ireland, Israel, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Romania, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and Uruguay.

Robb Allen over at Sharp As A Marble served in the US Marines at about the same time that I did.  His response is one worth sharing.

In the Marine Corps, we knew there were gays with us. 99% of them were women and there was this one guy who everyone just assumed putted from the other side of the green. It creeped me out that he showered with us, but I got over that fast enough (I had a job to do and that was more important).

The people in the Corps today are generally not the same ones I served with. Today's Marine is more likely to not be as uptight about the gay cooties as I was. And as liberty minded as I am now, I see no reason to not allow gays to openly serve their country. Will it make some people uncomfortable? Sure. And my response is "Fuck 'em". I've learned that discomfort is not a valid reason to trample other people's rights.

I'm still not into the gay thing. It's not my particular bag of tea and I'm just as happy to not immerse myself in that culture. But I have no desire to eradicate that culture or to pass laws that makes people who are different than I am second class citizens. I won't join the Pink Pistols, but I'll be damned if I wouldn't stand side by side with a feather boa wearing drag queen to protect their rights.

It's time to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell.

 Past time, actually.

A Time For Intolerance

My 2.11....and [sigh] declining....readers might not have heard of the recent kerfuffle at Vanderbilt University.  It seems that Vanderbilt Adjunct Professor of Islam at the Divinity School and Muslim chaplain for Vanderbilt, Awadh Binhazim, recently gave his views regarding homosexuality and Islam.

What does the good professor have to say??

Question: Under Islamic law, if a homosexual person began to engage in homosexual relations on an ongoing and permanent way, with no intention of quitting, then the punishment under Islamic law would be death... unless, you know, he agreed to quit. As a practicing Muslim do you accept or reject this teaching of Islam?

Answer: ...I don't have a choice as a Muslim to accept or reject a teaching. I go with what Islam teaches.

...this is captured in other religions as well... so, the punishment is Islam is certain rules... probably a lot of time to explain it... you cannot prosecute someone just because you think they are homosexual. There has to be clear proof...


Question: Under Islamic law, is it punishable by death if you are a homosexual?

Answer: Yes.

You will note a fair number of ellipses in the above.  The reason is that the good professor attempts to weasel his way out of admitting his position that homosexuals can be appropriately punished by being put to death.

He tries to use the "but they do it too" defense by correctly pointing out that Jewish and Christian religious texts also condemn homosexuals to death.  He failed to note that the vast majority of Christians have either learned not to impose their faith on others, or how to ignore the literal translation of some portions of the Bible.

He tries to wriggle out of a tight spot by declaring that no country in the world is ruled exclusively by Islamic laws.  Apparently countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran [scroll down to see how Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ensures that his country remains  where the vast majority of their laws are derived from Islam don't qualify under the good professor's very narrow interpretation as being nations ruled by Islamic law.

This [picture and story from the Washington Post] is how Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ensures that his country remains 100% free from homosexuality.

 Out of 93 countries where homosexuality is a punishable offense, 7 punish homosexuals by putting them to death.  In each of those 7 countries, Islam is the dominant religion.

To be fair, one Christian dominated nation is currently considering putting HIV infected homosexuals to death; Uganda.

Why are Professor Binhazim's comments a concern?  Perhaps because they demonstrate a lack of tolerance for homosexuals.  Perhaps because they demonstrate his acceptance of religion being imposed on those that do not share his faith.

Perhaps because had he been some flavor of Christian, he would have been dismissed from the University, his comments publicly disavowed by students, faculty, alumni, and administration alike.  Tar and feathers would have been discussed.

Intolerance towards such savagery ought not to be considered a vice.  It is a timely virtue.