The Progressive Puppy

Washington State Lawmakers vs Haters Like Joseph Backholm

That sound of wailing and gnashing teeth you hear is coming from anti-gay bigots on the West Coast ...

It appears that Washington will become the seventh state to allow same-sex nuptials, following in the footsteps of Iowa, New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut - not to mention the forward-thinking District of Columbia.  On VerdictJustia.com, Joanna Grossman, law professor at Hoffstra University, reports that Marriage Equality is all but assured for committed gay and lesbian couples living in the Evergreen State:  The state senate passed Bill 6239, by a vote of 28-21.  That bill would repeal an existing statutory ban on same-sex marriage and replace it with an explicit authorization of such marriages.  The state’s house of representatives is expected to pass the bill by a wide margin, and the state’s governor, Christine Gregoire, has stated publicly that she will sign the bill...  (O)ne might have predicted that older legislators would have had to be gradually replaced with younger ones, for the legislature to accept same-sex marriage. (Young people are dramatically more likely to support same-sex marriage than older ones, regardless of political affiliation.)  That Washington State was able to embrace same-sex marriage now is thus surprising, as well as heartening.  Meanwhile, same-sex marriage bills are working their way through a variety of other state legislatures, including New Jersey’s and Maryland’s.  Same-sex marriage is an inevitable, eventual reality.  But as in a game of Othello, the chips are starting to flip.  Polls show ever-growing support for same-sex marriage, and even deeply entrenched opposition may dissipate sooner than we thought.

America's anti-equality forces, hopped up on hate, are coiled and ready to strike.  From USA Today:  Washington's bill may be challenged by opponents, who are expected to make a push to have the question of same-sex marriage put on the ballot in November, Murray said.  Pastor Joe Fuiten, one of the leaders of a campaign for a referendum that would overturn the bill, said he and others oppose the measure because it would change the definition of marriage and affect what children are taught in schools...  Fuiten said the opponents' camp in Washington is made up of about 40 organizations...

Let's take a look at one of those anti-gay hate groups.  Like the Southern Policy Law Center, The Progressive Puppy only uses the word "haters" to describe individuals, advocacy groups, or religious denominations that knowingly lie in order to smear LGBT citizens.  (Examples:  Maggie Gallagher and Brian Brown of NOM are haters.  OK Rep. Sally Kern is a hater.  Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council is a hater.  The Two Ricks, Perry and Santorum, are haters.  Donald and Tim Wildmon are father/son tag team haters.  The leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention are haters.)  These homobigots realize that they're spreading misinformation about committed same-sex couples.  They are aware that they're breaking the 9th Commandment by bearing false witness against their neighbors, but they do this willingly for two reasons:  One, they believe in the old adage;  "The ends justify the means."  And secondly, perhaps more to the point, seasoned propagandists and Religious Right zealots earn BIG paychecks by fleecing their sheeple.  Fair-minded Americans shouldn't expect them to give up those cash cows anytime soon.

There are few more mean-spirited and deceitful anti-equality orgs in the country than Washington's Family Policy Institute, led by homo-obsessed Christian extremist Joseph Backholm (picture above).  FPIW squandered $200,000 of its donors' hard-earned money to defeat Referendum 71, which merely added a few basic civil rights to domestic partnerships.  The referendum passed by a wide majority.

Carlos Maza writes on Equality Matters:  Although FPIW presents itself as a typical “pro-family” organization, the group openly promotes anti-gay propaganda has ties to some of the country’s most notorious anti-gay hate groups.  On its website, FPIW offers visitors a number of “Marriage Legislation Resources” explaining “why you should care” about the threat posed by marriage equality. The page links to a number of documents containing typical anti-equality talking points, including a list of classic horror stories about gay marriage and religious liberty.  Also included in the “Resources” page is an article by George Dent – Professor of Law at Case Western Reserve University – titled “No Difference?: An Analysis Of Same-Sex Parenting.” The article contains a number of anti-gay smears, including the myth that homosexuals molest children at higher rates than heterosexuals.  (Below are a few sickening blurbs from that pdf document:)

The claim that living with a same-sex couple does not affect a child’s sexuality is implausible. It would be surprising indeed if children’s own sexual identities were unaffected by the sexual identities of their parents.  (This assertion is really ignorant.  Gay and lesbian youngsters of my generation - and I blush to admit I'm referring to the sixties - were all raised by moms and dads in a traditional family structure.  So why didn't our folks' heterosexuality make us straight?)  The tendency of male homosexual acts to spread disease may help explain the revulsion many people feel about them.  Lesbians also suffer high rates of certain diseases and drug abuse. Homosexuals also have higher rates of suicide, mental illness, and drug and substance abuse.  (All of these spurious claims are linked to a discredited researcher/clinician named Paul Cameron who was thrown out of the American Psychological Association and the American Sociological Association for his unceasing ethical violations and for misrepresenting the findings of legitimate scientists.)  Every child raised by a gay male couple has at least one unrelated male adult in the home. There is no reason to think that such a child will fare better than a child living with an unrelated heterosexual male. The high rates of child sex abuse among homosexuals and bisexuals are also a cause for concern.  (This is perhaps the vilest lie of all, and anybody with an LGBT friend or family member knows it to be false.)

FPIW directs its readers to the websites of similar SPLC-designated hate groups.  Bigotry loves company.

Wife-Dumpers Chuck Norris and Fred Thompson Endorse Newt

Newt Gingrich behaves as if his deceit and faithlessness were part of some clever disguise that camouflages his dazzling virtue.  He has pulled the wool over the eyes of religious zealots, many of whom may actually prefer Rick Santorum's brand of squeaky-clean homophobia but see in Newt a more bloodthirsty candidate.  The GOP's fundie base have convinced themselves that Gingrich is a political pit bull capable of ripping out Obama's throat. 

Newt's defiant response when confronted with his many marital infidelities has drawn the admiration of similar-minded hypocrites.  Look!  Two ancient Hollywood icons are shuffling into the media circus, blond trophy wives at their sides ...

Creaky action figure and religious right loon Chuck Norris issued this statement:   "Newt has the heart of a conservative reformer.  We believe Newt’s experience, leadership, knowledge, wisdom, faith and even humility to learn from his failures (personal and public) can return America to her glory days. And he is the best man left on the battlefield who is able to outwit, outplay and outlast Obama and his campaign machine."

Law and Order alum and 2008 presidential primary hopeful Fred Thompson added his croak to the Republican swampland:  "I have come to the growing realization that Newt Gingrich is the guy who can articulate what America is all about."  (If waging war on poor people, demonizing LGBT citizens, insulting black and Latino voters, being relieved of his position as House Speaker over ethics violations, and working for Freddie Mac lobbyists is what "America is all about," our beloved nation is indeed in sorry shape.)

Which brings us to the social conservatives' "most sacred institution" - heterosexual marriage.  Like Gingrich, Norris and Thompson are not opposed to dumping inconvenient (read: aging) spouses for much younger females.  In 1988, the Walker, Texas Ranger star abandoned his first wife of three decades for a former model more than 20 years his junior.  In 2007, Fred Thompson was asked by the Associated Press to name his favorite possession.  Fred replied, "Trophy wife." 

Chuck Norris is 72-years-old, Fred Thompson is 70, and Newt is 69.  The three of them must keep stocks soaring for the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, which markets Viagra.  Predictably, the wizened trio of oft-divorced horndogs are vehemently opposed to any legal recognition for committed same-sex couples.  This isn't surprising since they've never been too keen on honoring their own wedding vows.

The "Morality Police" at CVS Pharmacy

A Texas man who was humiliated by the employees of a CVS Pharmacy in Mesquite is teaming up with the ACLU to sue the company.  Pharmacist Minni Matthew refused to fill a prescription of Plan B emergency contraception for Jason Melbourne's wife, who was unable to accompany him to the drugstore.  One staffer at the pharmacy actually insinuated, within earshot of other shoppers, that Melbourne might be a rapist seeking the morning-after pill for his victims. 

From the Dallas Observer:

In order for him to buy the meds, the pharmacist said, she’d need to talk to and see the ID of his wife, who was at home with their two young children. He asked why, and she pointed to the fine print on the medication’s box, which says it can only be sold to someone age 17 or older. Melbourne pointed out that he was well over 17.  "I've bought this plenty of times in my life, and it's never been a problem," he said. "Are you telling me every other place I’ve bought it from has been wrong?"  Didn’t matter, Matthew said, since the medicine obviously wasn’t for him...  "You're the only person who has it in the city, and I've driven 15 miles to get here," Melbourne recalls telling her. "My wife is home with our 4-year-old and newborn son. She's breastfeeding. She can't drag my infant child out of the house and down here just to satisfy you." ... A pharmacy technician, who gave his name only as "Robert," jumped in.  He let Melbourne know that they don't sell emergency contraception to men because they might be giving it to "rape victims."  By then, Melbourne says, he was starting to freak out.  "I'm standing in line trying to get something that's already a little controversial, a little embarrassing," he says. "It's for my wife. There are three customers behind me when the guy says that, so it looks like I'm a piece of shit now."

This isn't the first time CVS has treated its customers shabbily (in accordance with some asshole's judgemental beliefs) - and CVS isn't the only offender.  Certain Walmart stores also use rank intimidation to keep Plan B out of patients' hands.  (Read this article by Paul Joannides, PsyD, on Psychology Today.) 

Over at Crook and Liars, Susie Madrak observes that "in 2010, ACLU received reports that Walgreens stores in Texas, Mississippi and Oklahoma were refusing to sell emergency contraception to men. Walgreens relented when the ACLU confronted them publicly."

And of course there's this unsurprising law from The Hate State:  Tennessee Code Ann. 68-34-104 allows physicians or any agent of such an entity to refuse to offer contraceptive services, supplies, or information if it interferes with a moral or religious belief.  States that physicians or other agents may not be held liable for this refusal.

It's a shame that some pharmacists behave like petty tyrants, prissily refusing to help people based on their own personal "religious convictions."  They should do everybody a favor and find another line of work.  (Editorial toon courtesy Clay Bennett.)

"Whites Only" Pool Lady Defiant, Unapologetic

A racist landlord in Cincinnati clearly violated the state's Civil Rights Act when she posted a "WHITES ONLY" notice in front of the swimming pool on her rental properties.  Prior to hanging the offensive sign, Jamie Hein had hurled accusations at the daughter of an African-American tenant, claiming that the girl's hair product was turning the water in the pool "cloudy."  (No proof was ever provided by Hein.)  After experiencing a avalanche of negative news coverage, the woman started whining to reporters:  "I'm not a bad person.  I don’t have any problem with race at all.  It's a historical sign."  (Many Southern-fried conservatives use that same excuse when demanding to hoist their Confederate flags in town squares.)  Needless to say, the Ohio Civil Rights Commission didn't believe the woman's lame posturing. 

From BET:  Back in May, witnesses confirmed that a sign reading "Public Swimming Pool, White Only” was posted at the gated entrance of the pool.  Hein said she posted it because a Black female, who was visiting her parents at the duplex, used chemicals in her hair that made the water “cloudy.” The family filed a discrimination charge and moved out of the duplex to "avoid subjecting their family to further humiliating treatment," the Commission said in a statement.

From ABC News:  Hein, 31, was unapologetic about the racist origins of the sign that she displayed at the entrance to her pool. She said she collects antiques and was given the sign as a gift.  She also said that even though the sign seems to indicate that the pool is public, the pool is on her private property and "everybody has to ask before getting in my pool."

Marie Diamond at Think Progress observes:  Landlords and business owners are subject to the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and Fair Housing Act, which prohibits them from discriminating against customers and tenants on the basis of race, sex, religion, color, handicap, familial status or national origin. 

Below is another statement made by Jamie Hein to reporters ... 

"I've never said anything to that child!  If I have to stick up for my white rights, I have to stick up for my white rights!  It goes both ways."

Poor Jamie.  Caught with her pointy hood down.

Brilliant Pro-Equality Ads, and More Homo-Hate Inside Russia

Created by the folks at Get up! Australia, this first video may be the most touching promotional ad for marriage equality I've seen.  The second is an effective anti-bullying ad from de Kinderombudsman in the Netherlands (based on a true story).

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Now let's hear from the anti-gay Philistines who continue to oppose equality.  The third video is a blast from the past, using a police "detective" to scare children straight.  Last, and definitely least, watch NOM's Maggie Gallagher explain how to share her bigotry with your family over the holidays.

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It seems that lawmakers in Russia are using similar tactics as some conservative politicians and Religious Right leaders in the United States (and many African nations including Uganda, Sudan, and Nigeria) by lumping child molesters together with gays, lesbians, and transgendered individuals; thus transforming law-abiding citizens with non-heterosexual identities into targets for physical violence and discrimination.  The city of St. Petersburg, once renowned for its diversity and culture, is considering a measure which would criminalize the "promotion of homosexuality, transsexuality and paedophilia to minors" without defining what is actually meant by the word "promote."  

Nikolai Alekseev reports for the GuardianUK:  St Petersburg, which is deemed the cultural capital of Russia, the place where many famous gay people created our artistic heritage, entered into the 21st century's hall of shame by drifting into medieval barbarity.  The bill that was proposed in St Petersburg sets administrative fines for the propaganda of homosexuality, transsexuality and paedophilia but it does not explain what "propaganda" actually means. For what is the difference between the public expression of someone's loving feelings and the promotion of a lifestyle? Can a work of art be considered propaganda?  Can a protest for human rights be considered as imposing one's personal characteristics on others?  The St Petersburg bill does not answer these questions. In fact, it not only equates homosexuality to paedophilia but also separates homosexuality and heterosexuality, as the latter, in the MPs' view, can be promoted...  Gay people are being used as scapegoats in Russian politics, where society is still largely homophobic.  This atmosphere is made clear when the governor of Tambov called for gays to be torn into pieces and thrown in the wind, or when former Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov called us alternatively "satanic", "faggots", "western weapons of mass destruction" and made us responsible for the spread of HIV."  (Read The False Link on Psychology Today.)

The U.S. State Department has issued a mild rebuke to Russian leaders who are pushing this draconian legislation. 

Members of the pro-fascist organization 'Rus' regularly attack and murder gays and lesbians.  Their violent crimes often go unreported and unpunished by a legal system which sympathizes with the anti-gay crusaders.  Legislation like this will spread fear and inflame the passions of those already predisposed to bigotry.  (A tourist boycott of St. Petersburg wouldn't go amiss.  Let them see how much "culture" Christian extremists and neo-Nazis bring to their fair city.) 

Below is Part 1 of Current TV's documentary on Neo-Nazism in Russia called "From Russia, With Hate" ...

Hate is hate, wherever it originates.  White supremacists in Russia not only have LGBT folks in their cross-hairs; they're also vilifying and dehumanizing immigrants.  This they have in common with America's right-wing pastors and pols. 

Now go back and watch that first video again.  You'll feel like you've taken a refreshing shower.

The Stupid Never Stops:  Mayor Jose Benitez of Huarmey, Peru, is warning people who elected him that tap water will turn their youngsters gay.  Gawker has the story.

RELATED POST - Gay Rights and Penalties with Global Map

Right-Wing Values: Arrogance, Greed, Bigotry and Ignorance

Herman Cain has ordered his minions not to speak to him unless he addresses them first.  (Just like Catherine the Great!)  One wonders if Cain's underlings must also avert their faces while backing away from The Presence, bowing and cringing as did the courtiers of old.  Do they grovel over his ring before or after they kiss that flaccid ass?

Multi-millionaires will be wallowing in even more (mostly inherited) wealth under Rick Perry's much-ballyhooed tax proposal.  There is both more and less to the governor's "20% flat tax plan" than meets the bloodshot eyes of Tea Party activists.  (As with all GOP economic schemes, low income families will suffer the worst.)  Seth Hanlon reports that "billionaire Warren Buffett, who has lamented the fact that he currently pays only 11 percent of his adjusted gross income in federal income taxes, would pay as little as 0.2 percent under Perry’s plan." 

Corporate entities might shower contributions on the Republican presidential hopeful from Texas, but independent voters are unimpressed by the politician's debating skills.  Recognizing his weakness in this area, Perry has announced that he may skip future televised debates.  The decision isn't sitting well with Perry's fellow GOP candidates.  (If Perry is too timid to debate opponents who share his ultraconservative views, he would truly be out of his depth in a debate with Obama.)

This video will make you nauseated and incensed at all those sanctimonious "Christians" who defend anti-LGBT bullying.  (In this instance, the homophobic student who attacked his gay classmate was suspended for only three days.  The principle of the school called the brutal assault "unfortunate."  Local prosecutors are twiddling their thumbs.)

The spouse of that gay soldier who was booed during a Republican debate speaks out on MSNBC Live.  At the behest of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, Josh Snyder is suing to overturn the unconstitutional Defense of Marriage Act.

Andrew Brown refutes common talking points presented by a young earth creationist (and really, religious fundamentalists are the best argument we have for human beings evolving from lower life forms).

Despite numerous arrests and heavy-handed police tactics, protesters involved in the Occupy Wall Street movement (now gone global) show no sign of abandoning their acts of civil disobedience.  After cops injured an Iraq War veteran during a confrontation in Oakland, leaders of the demonstration vowed to "shut the city down."

Professor PZ Myers doesn't understand why Texas politicians even bother consulting climate scientists since the state's GOP officials invariably ignore their findings.

Mississippi conservatives are getting serious about providing "personhood" rights to two-celled zygotes, criminalizing birth control, and keeping their "little ladies" pregnant and submissive.  (Suggested reading: Biblical Battered Wife Syndrome)

A federal judge is hearing arguments on whether or not Missouri's Camdenton School District can continue using Internet filtering software that blocks websites dealing with LGBT issues.  From the Associated Press via CBS News:  In 2010, Camdenton schools began using an Internet filtering service provide by URL.BlackList.com that the ACLU contends infringes on First Amendment rights by grouping some non-sexual websites related to gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender issues into a blacklisted category of websites dealing with sexuality...  (Defense attorney Thomas) Mickes argued that the school had not censored any websites based on their viewpoints.  He said sites dealing with gay and lesbian issues that get blocked by the filtering software are treated the same in the review process as any other website that gets flagged by the filters.   (As you know, the Old Testament is chock full of incest, rape, human slavery, torture and mass murder.  Do these filters block sites like Bible Gateway as well as, say, the It Gets Better Campaign?)

And finally ... I-Couldn't-Make-This-Shit-Up-If-I-Tried:  Terry Jones, the Florida pastor who drinks from the Jug of Fame by burning copies of the Koran, has decided to run for President of the United States.  (Honestly, who would this idiot choose for his running mate?  Shirley Phelps-Roper?)  Needless to mention, Preacher Jones needs your cash donations.

(Bottom illustration courtesy Lisa Towers.)