Friday, February 28, 2014

"Gay PDA Is Okay!"

"Love Is Being Happy Together... Live Fearlessly"




"The GIFt Of Love..."







"Passion is born of love and desire..."



"The Poet's Corner..."

 
To find love round your ways,
A shield in evil days;
A robe that keeps you warm,
As ermine, from the storm;
To wear it as a jewel-flame,
A cross of honor, with a royal name;
To sit a prince, unmoved
By want or grief--this is to be beloved.

Caroline Spencer



* gender specific pronouns were modified from the original work

"A Thought To Ponder..."


"Fear Eats the Soul"



"The Truth About Love..."

 
"Love is the hastening gravitation of spirit towards spirit, and body towards body, in the joy of creation."

- D.H. Lawrence



"This Made Me Smile..."


"What can you say about this...?
Those Catholic school girls really want you to know."



"We Were Always There..."


"When we found each other, we found love..."



"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1621"

"Love Is Contentment..."

Positive images of people like me... The truth of the matter is that we all need to see people like ourselves. So everyday, I'll post a photo, drawing or some other artwork that depicts Same Gender Loving People as what we are... Only Human.



"The Artist's Corner..."

"Marvin"
Oil on canvas
Taner Ceylan



Thursday, February 27, 2014

"Gay PDA Is Okay!"

"True Love Is Unafraid... Live Fearlessly"




"The Truth Is That It Really Doesn't Matter..."


One of these men is gay, can you tell which one...?


"Fear Eats the Soul"



"The Truth About Love And Fear..."

 
"All human actions are motivated at their deepest level by two emotions--fear or love. In truth there are only two emotions--only two words in the language of the soul.... Fear wraps our bodies in clothing, love allows us to stand naked. Fear clings to and clutches all that we have, love gives all that we have away. Fear holds close, love holds dear. Fear grasps, love lets go. Fear rankles, love soothes. Fear attacks, love amends."

- Neale Donald Walsch



"And The Truth Shall Set You Free..."


What do you do when you are a gay muslim and still believe in your faith and its teachings?




"Fear Eats the Soul"


"The Truth About Love..."

 
"True love always brings joy to ourselves and to the one we love. If our love does not bring joy to both of us, it is not true love."

- Thich Nhat Hanh



"Sometimes Even Haters Tell The Truth..."




In his haste to post a homophobic tweet in response to a federal judge's ruling striking down Texas' ban on gay marriage yesterday, Texas GOP state Senator Dan Patrick fired off this typo tweet:



"MARRIAGE= ONE MAN & ONE MAN. Enough of these activist judges. FAVORITE if you agree. I know the silent majority out there is with us!"
Patrick is a candidate for lieutenant governor.

He deleted the tweet and spent the rest of the day clarifying how entrenched his homophobia really is.

"Marriage is between one man and one woman. Period," he posted in a later tweet.
He later tweeted that he had meant to say: "MARRIAGE= ONE MAN & ONE WOMAN. Enough of these activist judges. FAVORITE if you agree. I know the silent majority out there is with us!

An hour after that, he added: "oops! #twittertypo. We have a new job opening on our campaign: social media intern. Send resume to contact (at) http://danpatrick.org ... I want to re-emphasize my long held position: Marriage is between 1 man and 1 woman. Period."


******

Does anyone else think he doth protest too much?  
He gives off a very closeted gay vibe to me.

The armchair psychoanalyst in me wants to declare:
"Freudian Slip!"

In any case, even haters sometimes tell the truth. even if by "accident."


"Fear Eats the Soul"



"We Were Always There..."


"He came home to me and we were happy and together from that day forward..."


"The Truth Is Fair And Balanced..."


Just to be clear, not all crazy black homophobes are presidents of African nations...
My heart bleeds over this ignorance... 
"My people, my people, what has become of us!"


The insanity of this man is overwhelming...

"Fear Eats the Soul"


"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1620"

"Love Is Life's Most Joyful Experience..."

Positive images of people like me... The truth of the matter is that we all need to see people like ourselves. So everyday, I'll post a photo, drawing or some other artwork that depicts Same Gender Loving People as what we are... Only Human.



"The Artist's Corner..."

"Natural State"
Oil on panel
Cody Furguson



"Victory In Arizona..."


Arizona's governor, Jan Brewer vetoed the Anti-gay discrimination bill last night.

But make no mistake, the far right is not done yet...


"Fear Eats the Soul"



Wednesday, February 26, 2014

"One By One, The Truth Will Prevail..."

 

U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia ruled Wednesday that Texas' ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. Garcia issued a preliminary injunction on the state's ban, citing Supreme Court precedent. However, Garcia issued a stay on his order, meaning the ban will remain in effect pending appeal. “Today’s court decision is not made in defiance of the great people of Texas or the Texas Legislature, but in compliance with the U.S. Constitution and Supreme Court precedent,” Garcia wrote in the order. “Without a rational relation to a legitimate governmental purpose, state-imposed inequality can find no refuge in our U.S. Constitution.”

Will Michigan be next?


"Fear Eats the Soul"



"Gay PDA Is Okay!"

"Love And A Kiss Is All We Need... Live Fearlessly"




"The Imitation Of Life..."


"It's Not A Cowboy Movie" - In this lovely short film from France, teenagers talk about the movie they watched on television last night: Brokeback Mountain.



"Fear Eats the Soul"


"The Truth About Gay Parenting..."


"No matter what they say, it's only love that makes a family..."



"The Sum Of All Fears..."


Yesterday, love became illegal in another African nation...


"Fear Eats the Soul"


"A Thought To Ponder..."

"It is a risk to love. What if it doesn't work out? Ah, but what if it does...?"

- Peter McWilliams



"The GIFt Of Love..."









"The Joy In Romance Is The Discovery Of Love..."



"The Truth About Love..."

 
"Falling in love consists merely in uncorking the imagination and bottling the common sense."

- Helen Rowland



"We Were Always There..."


"We loved each other and held hand throughout our lives..."



"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1619"

"Love And Happiness Are The Same..."

Positive images of people like me... The truth of the matter is that we all need to see people like ourselves. So everyday, I'll post a photo, drawing or some other artwork that depicts Same Gender Loving People as what we are... Only Human.



"The Artist's Corner..."

"Nat and Cha"
Oil on panels
Sarah Yuste



Tuesday, February 25, 2014

"Gay PDA Is Okay!"

"Love Along The Way... Live Fearlessly"




"The Poet's Corner..."

 
"Love and Light"

There are many kinds of love, as many kinds of light,
And every kind of love makes a glory in the night.
There is love that stirs the heart, and love that gives it rest,
But the love that leads life upward is the noblest and the best.

Henry Van Dyke



"The Truth About Hate..."

Minister Stacy Swimp of Revive Alive ministry in Flint was one of 50 pastors today at First Baptist World Changers Church in Detroit who spoke against same-sex marriage. / Niraj Warikoo/Detroit Free Press
Michigan Pastors Speak Out Against Gay Marriage On Eve Of Lesbian Adoption Trial

February 24, 2014


Ahead of Tuesday’s start of a federal court trial in Detroit involving a lesbian couple wanting to adopt each other's children, about 50 pastors gathered in a Baptist church today to speak out against gay marriage, saying it will undermine family and society.

Speaking at First Baptist World Changers Church in Detroit, the pastors said they represented a group of about 1,000 churches across the state that support the Michigan marriage amendment in 2004 that defines marriages as between one man and one woman. They’re concerned the trial set to start this week would undermine the 2004 law.

The trial set to begin Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Detroit involves a lawsuit filed by two nurses who argue Michigan’s gay marriage and adoption bans violate their right to get married and adopt each other's children. April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse sued in January 2012, initially raising only the adoption issue, but then challenging Michigan’s voter-approved gay marriage prohibition as well.

The trial “is an unjust threat to voting rights,” said minister Stacy Swimp of Revive Alive ministry in Flint. “We are standing here united ... not ashamed to stand up for the gospel of Jesus Christ and for the institution of marriage. God defined marriage and 2.5 million people went to the polls (in 2004) to reaffirm what God has said.”

The pastors said they are part of a silent majority who support traditional marriage, but whose voices are being drowned out by those supportive of same-sex marriage.

“We’re trying to send a message to our elected officials that the people spoke in 2004,” said Pastor Roland Caldwell Sr. of Burnette Inspirational Church in Detroit.

Supporters of gay marriage point out that views have changed over the past 10 years. A majority of Michiganders now back gay marriage, according to a survey released last week by the LGBT group Equality Michigan.

But the pastors said Monday that the laws of God are eternal and can’t change because of the shifting culture.

Quoting from Martin Luther King Jr. and the Bible, the pastors said that gay marriage violates the teachings of Christianity. Swimp quoted from King’s famous letter ‘Letter from a Birmingham Jail’ to say that “we have a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws” that don’t conform the law of God. The majority of pastors at the press conference were African-American.

“It’s going to tear the foundation of the family asunder,” Pastor Caldwell said of gay marriage. “It’s going to have a devastating effect.”

“We ... stand by both our Michigan Constitution and our Judeo-Christian values,” said Pastor Lennell Caldwell of First Baptist World Changers. “We believe that marriage between one man and one woman creates the best possible environment for the health and wellness of children ... no one is entitled to redefine marriage.”

The pastors said their coalition represents Baptist, Church of God in Christ (COGCI), Pentecostal, and Catholic denominations. The Catholic Archbishop of Detroit Allen Vigneron, the spiritual leader of about 1.3 million Catholics in southeastern michigan, has also spoken out strongly against gay marriage. Last year, he told the Free Press that people who support same-sex marriage should not offer themselves to receive Communion.

The president of the Southfield City Council, Sylvia Jordan, attended Monday’s press conference to show her support of traditional marriage, along with her husband, Larry Jordan, the pastor of Family Victory Fellowship Church in Southfield.

“The Bible can’t be changed,” she said. “We don’t change what truth is.”

*******

This hateful ignorance would be right at home anywhere in Africa.  As I listened to this yesterday, I got just a glimpse of how horrible it must be for our GLBT brothers and sisters in those countries where this the societal norm and their government's position as well.

Today, I am truly ashamed to be from Detroit... Not because I live in a crime-ridden, financially and morally bankrupt, third-world-like city in the heart of the most powerful and richest nation in the world, but because I am surrounded by ignorant people who claim to speak for God as they seek to deny me and others the right to love.

Hate is an ugly thing, but even more so when clothed in the garments of religion.


"Fear Eats the Soul"