"Hitchcocked" - A fantistic art film that blurs the lines between fantasy, fear and fun...
Thursday, February 28, 2013
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1265"
"Making One Another Happy Is The Truth Of Love...”
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.
"A Thought To Ponder..."
“Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent”
Victor Hugo
"Black History Month..."
Black History month draws to a close today... And although I didn't include as many posts as I had planned on, I think this post is a poignant reminder that on freedom and equality, were not there yet.
No cause of death has been released yet, but in light of the suspicious circumstances of the case, my mind can't help jumping to various conclusions about what may have taken place given that this occurred in the great and infamous state of Mississippi. I have family roots in Mississippi, and yet I've never had any desire to visit there. I've heard enough about Mississippi to believe it's not the greatest place. I hope my suspicions are wrong about this case, but I doubt it. Nevertheless, this is also part of Black (and GLBT) History in America.
"Fear Eats the Soul"
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1264"
"The Joys Of Life Are Found In Love...”
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 Truth About Love And Marriage..."
32 Years Together
- Randy Pausch
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1263"
"Love Brings Passion To Life...”
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 Imitation Of Life..."
"Hai Chú Cháu" (Uncle & Son) - A poignant story of family love, acceptance and sacrifice.
"The Truth About Love..."
- Ivan Panin
* The author's text has been modified to conform gender pronouns and ideas to this audience.
"In The News Today..."
Republicans Sign Brief In Support of Gay Marriage
By Sheryl Gay Stolberg
February 25, 2013 | The New York Times
WASHINGTON — Dozens of prominent Republicans — including top advisers to former President George W. Bush, four former governors and two members of Congress — have signed a legal brief arguing that gay people have a constitutional right to marry, a position that amounts to a direct challenge to Speaker John A. Boehner and reflects the civil war in the party since the November election.
The document will be submitted this week to the Supreme Court in support of a suit seeking to strike down Proposition 8, a California ballot initiative barring same-sex marriage, and all similar bans. The court will hear back-to-back arguments next month in that case and another pivotal gay rights case that challenges the 1996 federal Defense of Marriage Act.
Read the rest of the story here: The New York Times
Monday, February 25, 2013
"The Night Of The Lover's Moon..."
"Dear Heart, you and I are connected in ways that transcend anything we might have ever imagined."
- Stephen Christopher Harris
I am always remembering...
"The Imitation Of Life..."
"Eric" - A moving portrayal of coming of age, coming out and coming to grips with hatred and fear.
"Fear Eats the Soul"
"In The News Today..."
Apparently, where there's smoke, there is fire...
Cardinal Keith O'Brien Resigns As Archbishop
By Robert Pigott
February 25, 2013 | BBC News
Britain's most senior Roman Catholic cleric, Cardinal Keith O'Brien, is stepping down as the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh.
It follows allegations - which he contests - of inappropriate behaviour towards priests dating from the 1980s.
The Vatican is expected to confirm Pope Benedict has accepted his resignation.
The cardinal is not now expected to take part in the election for a successor to the Pope - leaving Britain unrepresented in the election.
Cardinal O'Brien missed celebrating Sunday Mass in St Mary's Cathedral in Edinburgh, which marked Pope Benedict's eight years in office, ahead of the pontiff stepping down this week.
The resignation of Britain's most senior Roman Catholic cleric in the wake of allegations of improper behaviour creates a crisis for the Church in Scotland, and represents a heavy blow to the wider Church as it battles to shore up its reputation ahead of the papal election or "conclave".
The conclave is already expected to be difficult in the circumstances created by Pope Benedict's unprecedented resignation.
The Vatican is also struggling to deal with reports of internal corruption and mismanagement.
Read more here: BBC News
"Fear Eats the Soul"
"The Truth About Love..."
- Bob Marley
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1262"
"In The End, Life Has But One Reason... Love”
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.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
"In The News..."
My first inclination regarding this story's recent appearance in the MSM was to leave it alone and not promote it. But, having given it some thought, and noting that the story has some legs and is getting some traction, I thought I'd share it. As far as whether there are gays in the Vatican, I have no doubt that there are... some of them have even visited these pages*.
Papal Resignation Linked To Inquiry Into 'Vatican Gay Officials', Says Paper
Pope's staff decline to confirm or deny La Repubblica claims linking 'Vatileaks' affair and discovery of 'blackmailed gay clergy'
John Hooper | The Guardian
21 February 2013
A potentially explosive report has linked the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI to the discovery of a network of gay prelates in the Vatican, some of whom – the report said – were being blackmailed by outsiders.
The pope's spokesman declined to confirm or deny the report, which was carried by the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica.
The paper said the pope had taken the decision on 17 December that he was going to resign – the day he received a dossier compiled by three cardinals delegated to look into the so-called "Vatileaks" affair.
Last May Pope Benedict's butler, Paolo Gabriele, was arrested and charged with having stolen and leaked papal correspondence that depicted the Vatican as a seething hotbed of intrigue and infighting.
According to La Repubblica, the dossier comprising "two volumes of almost 300 pages – bound in red" had been consigned to a safe in the papal apartments and would be delivered to the pope's successor upon his election.
The newspaper said the cardinals described a number of factions, including one whose members were "united by sexual orientation".
In an apparent quotation from the report, La Repubblica said some Vatican officials had been subject to "external influence" from laymen with whom they had links of a "worldly nature". The paper said this was a clear reference to blackmail.
It quoted a source "very close to those who wrote [the cardinal's report]" as saying: "Everything revolves around the non-observance of the sixth and seventh commandments."
The seventh enjoins against theft. The sixth forbids adultery, but is linked in Catholic doctrine to the proscribing of homosexual acts.
La Repubblica said the cardinals' report identified a series of meeting places in and around Rome. They included a villa outside the Italian capital, a sauna in a Rome suburb, a beauty parlour in the centre, and a former university residence that was in use by a provincial Italian archbishop.
Father Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, said: "Neither the cardinals' commission nor I will make comments to confirm or deny the things that are said about this matter. Let each one assume his or her own responsibilities. We shall not be following up on the observations that are made about this."
He added that interpretations of the report were creating "a tension that is the opposite of what the pope and the church want" in the approach to the conclave of cardinals that will elect Benedict's successor. Another Italian daily, Corriere della Sera, alluded to the dossier soon after the pope announced his resignation on 11 February, describing its contents as "disturbing".
The three-man commission of inquiry into the Vatileaks affair was headed by a Spanish cardinal, Julián Herranz. He was assisted by Cardinal Salvatore De Giorgi, a former archbishop of Palermo, and the Slovak cardinal Jozef Tomko, who once headed the Vatican's department for missionaries.
Pope Benedict has said he will stand down at the end of this month; the first pope to resign voluntarily since Celestine V more than seven centuries ago. Since announcing his departure he has twice apparently referred to machinations inside the Vatican, saying that divisions "mar the face of the church", and warned against "the temptations of power".
La Repubblica's report was the latest in a string of claims that a gay network exists in the Vatican. In 2007 a senior official was suspended from the congregation, or department, for the priesthood, after he was filmed in a "sting" organised by an Italian television programme while apparently making sexual overtures to a younger man.
In 2010 a chorister was dismissed for allegedly procuring male prostitutes for a papal gentleman-in-waiting. A few months later a weekly news magazine used hidden cameras to record priests visiting gay clubs and bars and having sex.
The Vatican does not condemn homosexuals. But it teaches that gay sex is "intrinsically disordered". Pope Benedict has barred sexually active gay men from studying for the priesthood.
Papal Resignation Linked To Inquiry Into 'Vatican Gay Officials', Says Paper
Pope's staff decline to confirm or deny La Repubblica claims linking 'Vatileaks' affair and discovery of 'blackmailed gay clergy'
John Hooper | The Guardian
21 February 2013
A potentially explosive report has linked the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI to the discovery of a network of gay prelates in the Vatican, some of whom – the report said – were being blackmailed by outsiders.
The pope's spokesman declined to confirm or deny the report, which was carried by the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica.
The paper said the pope had taken the decision on 17 December that he was going to resign – the day he received a dossier compiled by three cardinals delegated to look into the so-called "Vatileaks" affair.
Last May Pope Benedict's butler, Paolo Gabriele, was arrested and charged with having stolen and leaked papal correspondence that depicted the Vatican as a seething hotbed of intrigue and infighting.
According to La Repubblica, the dossier comprising "two volumes of almost 300 pages – bound in red" had been consigned to a safe in the papal apartments and would be delivered to the pope's successor upon his election.
The newspaper said the cardinals described a number of factions, including one whose members were "united by sexual orientation".
In an apparent quotation from the report, La Repubblica said some Vatican officials had been subject to "external influence" from laymen with whom they had links of a "worldly nature". The paper said this was a clear reference to blackmail.
It quoted a source "very close to those who wrote [the cardinal's report]" as saying: "Everything revolves around the non-observance of the sixth and seventh commandments."
The seventh enjoins against theft. The sixth forbids adultery, but is linked in Catholic doctrine to the proscribing of homosexual acts.
La Repubblica said the cardinals' report identified a series of meeting places in and around Rome. They included a villa outside the Italian capital, a sauna in a Rome suburb, a beauty parlour in the centre, and a former university residence that was in use by a provincial Italian archbishop.
Father Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, said: "Neither the cardinals' commission nor I will make comments to confirm or deny the things that are said about this matter. Let each one assume his or her own responsibilities. We shall not be following up on the observations that are made about this."
He added that interpretations of the report were creating "a tension that is the opposite of what the pope and the church want" in the approach to the conclave of cardinals that will elect Benedict's successor. Another Italian daily, Corriere della Sera, alluded to the dossier soon after the pope announced his resignation on 11 February, describing its contents as "disturbing".
The three-man commission of inquiry into the Vatileaks affair was headed by a Spanish cardinal, Julián Herranz. He was assisted by Cardinal Salvatore De Giorgi, a former archbishop of Palermo, and the Slovak cardinal Jozef Tomko, who once headed the Vatican's department for missionaries.
Pope Benedict has said he will stand down at the end of this month; the first pope to resign voluntarily since Celestine V more than seven centuries ago. Since announcing his departure he has twice apparently referred to machinations inside the Vatican, saying that divisions "mar the face of the church", and warned against "the temptations of power".
La Repubblica's report was the latest in a string of claims that a gay network exists in the Vatican. In 2007 a senior official was suspended from the congregation, or department, for the priesthood, after he was filmed in a "sting" organised by an Italian television programme while apparently making sexual overtures to a younger man.
In 2010 a chorister was dismissed for allegedly procuring male prostitutes for a papal gentleman-in-waiting. A few months later a weekly news magazine used hidden cameras to record priests visiting gay clubs and bars and having sex.
The Vatican does not condemn homosexuals. But it teaches that gay sex is "intrinsically disordered". Pope Benedict has barred sexually active gay men from studying for the priesthood.
*******
* I have logged multiple visits from the following Internet Address:
IP: 46.36.192.2
Hostname: benedict.network-isp.com
Service Provider: network-isp.com
Country Code: VA
Country: Holy See (Vatican City State)
"Fear Eats the Soul"
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1261"
"This Is Real Love...”
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 Truth About Love..."
- George Eliot
* The author's original text has been modified to neuter gender specific pronouns.
"A Hard Place To Be Gay..."
It's pretty clear that it's hard to be gay in "Mother Russia." Anti-gay laws being passed at the local and national level, violent street protests against gays and a culture of hate and fear pervade the country. Last week, one man on the inside dared to come out... This is his story:
By Sergei L. Loiko | Los Angeles Times
February 23, 2013
MOSCOW — The day last month that Russian lawmakers gave initial approval to a bill establishing fines for spreading "propaganda" supporting homosexuality among minors, leading Russian media personality Anton Krasovsky was fired after publicly revealing that he is gay.
While anchoring a late-night TV show on Jan. 25, Krasovsky, 37, said that not only is he gay, he is also "as human as President [Vladimir] Putin, Prime Minister [Dmitry] Medvedev" and the members of the parliament.
Krasovsky, who served as editor in chief of Kontr TV, an Internet and cable television network launched by the Kremlin in December, said in an interview recently that human rights and liberties are violated more and more and that "mutual hatred and resentment is being instilled in the Russian society from above."
Read the rest of Anton's story here: The Los Angeles Times
Gay Russian TV Personality Reflects On His Firing And His Country
By Sergei L. Loiko | Los Angeles Times
February 23, 2013
MOSCOW — The day last month that Russian lawmakers gave initial approval to a bill establishing fines for spreading "propaganda" supporting homosexuality among minors, leading Russian media personality Anton Krasovsky was fired after publicly revealing that he is gay.
While anchoring a late-night TV show on Jan. 25, Krasovsky, 37, said that not only is he gay, he is also "as human as President [Vladimir] Putin, Prime Minister [Dmitry] Medvedev" and the members of the parliament.
Krasovsky, who served as editor in chief of Kontr TV, an Internet and cable television network launched by the Kremlin in December, said in an interview recently that human rights and liberties are violated more and more and that "mutual hatred and resentment is being instilled in the Russian society from above."
Read the rest of Anton's story here: The Los Angeles Times
"Fear Eats the Soul"
"This Made Me Smile..."
The Midshipmen of the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis go Gangnam Style...
Saturday, February 23, 2013
"The Truth About Traditional Marriage..."
By Robert Kirby | Tribune Columnist
Feb 22 2013
I used to believe traditional marriage was a union between a cat and a dog. Proof could be found in the books I read. Fairy tales mostly, but also more contemporary works.
In these books were pictures portraying cats as female and dogs as male. You never saw a cat husband married to a dog wife. It flew in the face of nature and, more importantly, tradition.
Note: Horses (male) also traditionally married cows (female). It was right there in no less an authority than a checked-out library book: A horse read a newspaper while his wife — a cow in an apron — made cupcakes.
So it came as a bit of a shock when I discovered dogs and cats could not get married. They were two distinct species that shared nothing more than the fact that both were covered in hair that rubbed off on the furniture.
Of course I was more mature when I learned this. Second grade, I think. But it still took a long time for the information to sink in.
By third grade I was wrestling with more important traditional marriage ideas, namely the fact that a kid in my class, Myron, could never marry Deborah even though his mind audibly labored whenever she skipped past.
Again the problem was law based on tradition rather than actual sense. Myron was a boy. I knew this because we took swimming lessons together. Meanwhile Deborah was … well, not to put too fine a point on it, a "Negro."
Another note: I’m embarrassed to admit it took another year for me to figure out it wasn’t spelled "knee grow." Hey, it was the ’50s. Also, I’m slow.
Regular guys such as Myron and me (white boys) could not marry complete angels who just happened to be black or even dark brown.
Never mind. The point being that it was against all kinds of laws — civil, familial, religious, social, moronic — for Myron and Deborah to marry.
Why? Well, because their children would be biologically, socially and legally zebras. Everyone in my third-grade class (and an astonishing number of adults as it turned out) believed some version of this nonsense.
It got worse. I later came to understand that tradition-based laws at various times forbade marriage/sex (and even just making out) even between people of the same color.
For example, had I been born in Germany in the years leading up to World War II, it would have been illegal for me to marry a Jew. It would have been a crime (or at least a beating) for me to even date one.
Still later I was sternly cautioned by my own church, under penalty of celestial sanction against our children, not to marry Pam "Foxy Brown" Grier.
Because Pam, who is black, wouldn’t answer my letters and calls, there was little danger of this happening. However, I did have a deeply religious uncle who freaked when he learned I dated a Mexican girl.
Traditional science and religion were cited to support these laws and beliefs, all of which claimed something horrible would happen to the world and to society if such nontraditional unions were allowed to become legal.
Well, except for dogs and cats, they all have. And nothing bad has happened. The world keeps plugging along even though Aryans marry Jews, blacks marry whites and humans marry Klingons (I’ve heard).
The current debate regarding traditional union is over gay marriage. Should two people of the same gender be allowed to get married? Will something horrible happen if they do?
Probably not. Given how often society and government have gotten this sort of thing wrong to the point of idiocy, maybe tradition is something we should reject out of hand.
I’ve always believed marriage should be based on love rather than society and government. But that’s just me. I married a Canadian and nothing bad happened.
Robert Kirby can be reached at rkirby@sltrib.com or facebook.com/stillnotpatbagley.
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1260"
"Love Faces Every Challenge For It's Own Sake...”
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 DOMA Truth..."
Although "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is no more... There is still much more to be won.
Friday, February 22, 2013
"In The News..."
Turkish Court Rules Gay Sex Is Natural
February 19, 2013
By Dan Littauer
An Istanbul court of the first instance delivered a landmark ruling saying that gay sex is natural, contradicting a previous ruling by Turkey's supreme court.
Read the whole story here.
"Fear Eats the Soul"
"Friday Night At The Movies..."
"Aaron... Albeit A Sex Hero" - A suprisingly entertaining full length feature with just enough twist and turns to captivate you. Not the best writing, production values or acting, but still, very entertaining.
"The Imitation Of Life..."
"Eu Não Quero Voltar Sozinho" (I Do Not Want To Go Back Alone) - A beautiful and touching short film from Brazil about discovering love's awakening.
Click on the "closed captions" button for subtitles.
"Fear Eats the Soul"
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1259"
"Let There Be No Doubt... Love Is Love”
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 Truth Requires Bravery..."
Today we have an opportunity to do more: conservatives should start to lead again and push their states to join the nine others that allow all their citizens to marry. I've been married for 29 years. My marriage has been the greatest joy of my life. There is nothing conservative about denying other Americans the ability to forge that same relationship with the person they love."
Former Presidential Candidate, Jon Huntsman
Morman, Republican Governor of Utah
Thursday, February 21, 2013
"The Poet's Corner..."
All love is sweet,
Given or returned. Common as light is love,
And its familiar voice wearies not ever.
Like the wide heaven, the all-sustaining air,
It makes the reptile equal to the God;
They who inspire it most are fortunate,
As I am now; but those who feel it most
Are happier still.
Percy Bysshe Shelley
"The Truth About Love..."
This is how love happens... Sadly, this Italian couple couldn't marry in their own country, so they traveled to New York to unite their lives forever on Valentine's Day.
"Fear Eats the Soul"
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1258"
"Life Is For Loving...”
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.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
"Same Gender Loving People - No. 1257"
"Love Is Cool...”
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.
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