I love Dan...

Q. The intro to your column about losing your virginity—it went into the birth of Jesus—was craptastic. Did you have to degrade Jesus and Mary? Before you write me off as a Fox News –watching, Wal-Mart–shopping, Bush-supporting Bible-thumper, please note that I am a liberal Democrat living in a blue-collar city in a blue state. I voted for Dukakis, Clinton, Gore, and Kerry. But I also try to live a Christian life. Your statements were sacrilegious. Jesus and Mary deserve a little respect.—Your Friend

A. I don't see how it's disrespectful, degrading, or theologically incorrect to point out that if Mary was a virgin when she conceived, and if you don't buy off on the Virgin Birth (the idea that Jesus somehow passed out of Mary's uterus and down through her vaginal canal without disturbing her hymen), then Mary's hymen broke when the Kid was born. Isn't the whole point of the Jesus Thang that He was the Word made flesh? And if Mel Gibson could portray His death in detail so gory it bordered on the pornographic, how can an aside about the mechanics of His birth be off-limits? And to Rob in Albany who felt my aside was proof of my intolerance and hypocrisy: Joking about Christianity isn't evidence that I'm intolerant—hell, I'm perfectly willing to tolerate Christians. I have never, for instance, attempted to prevent Christians from marrying each other, or tried to stop them from adopting children, or worked to make it illegal for them to hold certain jobs. I don't threaten to boycott companies that market their products to Christians, and I don't organize letter-writing campaigns to complain about Christian characters on television. It would indeed be hypocritical for me to complain about fundamentalist Christians who've done all of the above to gay people if I turned around and did the same thing to them, but I've done no such thing. Intolerant? Hell, I'm a model of tolerance! Oh sure, I joked about the Virgin Birth because I think it's silly and sexphobic. And I'm free to say as much, however unpleasant it is for some Christians to hear. Fundamentalist Christians, for their part, are free to think homosexuality is sinful and unnatural, and they're free to say so, however unpleasant it is for me to hear. But fundamentalists aren't willing to just speak their piece, Rob. Nope, they seek to persecute people for being gay, and that's where their low opinion of homosexuality—which, again, they have an absolute right to hold—transubstantiates into intolerance.

Current Mood: amused

You know, I have never even met krull in person, and yet after laughing hysterically at this picture and visiting the TshirtHell.com website, he was the first person I thought would appreciate this...

Ha ha ha! I think this is an ideal entry to start off 2006.

Now, why don't I have a baby to buy this shirt for?

For those who aren't also reading my husband's LiveJournal, I thought I should show you some kitty goodness, too...

( Read more... )

Current Mood: amused

So I promised I would get around to discussing stressful things...

The most paramount would be the Seattle Monorail Project, which could be facing a dead end (AP via The Guardian) after suddenly slipping into a coma about six weeks ago.

I kinda expected after all of this time to be happily watching final design -- and even early construction starts -- at this point. I did NOT expect to be spending 10+ hours in meetings every week for the last month and a half, schmoozing with various local reporters, drafting letters to the editor and editorial pieces, and generally playing the political game on this issue. And I certainly did not expect it to be this frustrating!

The really, really short version follows for those outside of Seattle, or trapped indoors with no media access this summer:

1. Agency finally concludes NINE MONTHS! of secret contract negotiations
2. Staff recommends contract, but doesn't call attention to creative financing plan attached to it.
3. Shit hits the fan when media notices that the proposed finance plan would mean $9 Billion in interest (on top of $2B cost) and take 50+ years of levying the tax to pay off
4. Opponents work themselves into a frenzy like sharks smelling blood in the water
5. Executive Director and Board Chair resign over Fourth of July holiday
6. Board quickly rejects financing plan.

Life has been hell ever since. Regional and state politics are affecting this in all sorts of ways. Everyone has an opinion of what to do. Supporters cannot find agreement on what to do. Public and private betrayals and disappointments have occurred. And on and on and on... (Read the news briefs on our Friends of the Monorail website if you continue to be interested in more details)

I won't bore people with details. If you're interested in them, y'all know how to get a hold of me. This has just seriously consumed large amounts of my free time. And I have alternated between anger, frustration, depression, and a few other emotions with the way the politics have gone, how uneducated people are sometimes about their own community, and how some of us have been and continue to be treated by leaders who should know better.

I don't know what's going to happen right now. It's rather upsetting to feel like a cause that I have been working for in one way or another for over five years may be DEAD by the end of the year. It's rather depressing to consider that some of the progressive ideals which first excited me about this project have been utterly destroyed by certain individuals. And it's just frustrating right now, because I don't quite know how I feel any more, and what I want to do.

Sometimes I just want to say fuck it all and go home and watch TV or play with the kittens. That's not so easy when I have been this involved for this long. It's not so easy when I am currently the elected President of one of the supporter's groups, and involved with keeping many folks informed and organized.

I need to really ask myself why I got involved in this Monorail Dream in the first place. Was it my idealism? Support for the environment and public transit? Its progressive ideals and people-powered politics? Are these things still there? Could they be resurrected?

Do I want a new monorail in Seattle? No matter what it looks like, who it serves, and where it goes?

Which do I value more: beautiful urban design or utilitarian transit speed and capacity?

Can I support a shortened line after we promised citizens 14 miles and up to 19 stations? Even if the alternative could very possibly be no monorail? No in-city rapid public transit?

And what happens if I walk away from Friends of the Monorail? Or if I come out against the Board or this Agency when it makes its final decision?

Current Mood: frustrated
Current Music: KUOW

Re-posted after realizing a date-stamp mistake

So, my life really isn't any less stressed than it was the last time I wrote a real entry; of course, when is it really ever not stressed? In all honesty, though, it has become progressively worse in some ways, and I have been borderline depressed on more than one occasion.

As usual, though, I have no one to blame but myself for all of the issues and organizations that I get myself involved in. And I still need to write more about the recent crap in here, to get around to better working through some of the stress and emotion.

Thankfully, one just cannot stay annoyed or stressed out when coming home to kittens every day...

( Hurray for pictures of kittens! )

Guinness and Mohini came into our lives in just the right way, too. We have been thinking about adopting pets for awhile, but have never been quite happy when we have gone looking. A couple weeks ago, one of kubrickfan's co-workers mentioned that her parents were coming to Seattle from Yakima that weekend with some kittens to give away. Her mother found them abandoned in a well!

Well, I was still undecided, but agreed to visit them and meet them. Well, it was definitely love at first sight! They were only about five weeks old at the time (when these photos were taken), and they are so cute. So we quickly headed off to Petco to get the house prepared... and we have been loving them ever since!

A more recent development finds my former roommate Janet temporarily moved in with us, as well. Now, you would think my issues about having people in my "space" would be flaring up -- not to mention the fact that I am still in the process of finding places to put all of our stuff since we moved, and re-decorating and such. Much to my happiness, however, I am managing to share spaces. I am also really happy to have the time with Janet again, and could not have realized how much I miss living with her.

Don't know how long she will be with us, but -- for the moment at least -- I am glad to have her around also!

Current Mood: loved
Current Music: "The First Man You Remember" from Aspects of Love

Canada Lawmakers OK Gay Marriage Bill

Current Mood: happy
Current Music: "All This Time Still Falling out of Love" by Erasure

Boxes and dust and piles... oh my!

What kind of a window is 8-Noon for the movers to show up?

Intellectually, I know that we are probably around halfway moved out of the apartment; and we have until Sunday night to get the place cleared out.

And I know that we hired movers so I don't have to stress about "the big stuff," or get completely tired out. That will also really clear this place out by tonight.

Still, I irrationally feel like there's so much to do yet to get out of this place.

And I'm stressing because I have lots of work that's not getting donw, and I'm afraid will literally get "lost in the shuffle" -- or at least misplaced for several days.

*SIGH*

Moving sucks...

Current Mood: stressed

Well, kudos to the few of you still paying attention to the stuff I post here, since I don't believe I've made much of a life update since the start of the year. Thing is... life's taken quite a jump forward in the last month.

It wasn't that long ago that I was just being weird about getting married and turning 30 last year. Aging and maturing and moving across the board in the game of Life. Well, it turns out I wasn't quite done yet.

kubrickfan and I bought a townhouse! And we're moving next weekend...

With that, and the sudden uptick in my Board and Committee and political commitments, I've been quite busy lately. Rather like "the old days," actually.

At any rate, I was most definitely not expecting to be a homeowner before we have even celebrated our one-year wedding anniversary. Oh sure, we had been to one of those home-buying seminars and talked to a realtor to set up a MLS search; but I was thinking end of 2005 at the earliest for serious intentions.

Well, life has a way of sneaking up on you sometimes. I wanted to begin driving around and checking out neighborhoods, and really begining to talk about where we want to live. And then as I began to identify listings that might fit our criteria, I thought it would be good to narrow those criteria by maybe visiting a couple and seeing what was in our price range. You know, like when you go shopping for any major purchase. You want to go around to a few stores, see what's available, ask questions, compare features...

Well, about a month ago, we did our first visit of a couple of places, and the last one we saw that night was -- in a word -- perfect. Cute neighborhood, right price, good layout. And, well, it was one of those opportunities where we decided we couldn't not make an offer even if we weren't as prepared as we had wanted to be.

I didn't mention it because I didn't think our offer would be accepted. We offered list price. It had only been on the market a couple of days. Didn't want to jinx things.

But this whole process has definitely been one of those instances in our lives where it just seems like it's meant to be because things work out so easily and in our favour.

I won't go into all the details. But it really has been almost divine. We've gone from offer to closing in a month. As far as we know, there were no other offers. We had little in negotiations. Home inspection went as expected. Putting the finances together went smoothly. We were able to roll closing costs into the price/mortgage. We forgot about a credit from our realtor towards closing, kubrickfan received a large tax refund, he was able to roll over some monies and cash out an IRA, and we even managed to get some of our earnest money back at closing.

This has allowed us some necessary fundage for moving and purchasing a few needs for the new place -- such as a new bet set. And now we're full of decorating ideas and more...

Anywayz, I was very leery of writing anything in here about it or make any efforts towards moving such as packing or changing any mailing addresses or anything until we actually signed the title papers and officially closed.

I just kept waiting for something to screw it up. It couldn't possibly go this smoothly, could it? But, so far so good. And I can write that we are officially homeowners now!

Current Music: Brian's Madonna mix CDs

CanWest News Service, Canada, February 16, 2005

ADDRESS BY PRIME MINISTER PAUL MARTIN ON BILL C-38 (THE CIVIL MARRIAGE ACT)

FEBRUARY 16, 2005

HOUSE OF COMMONS

I rise today in support of Bill C-38, the Civil Marriage Act. I rise in support of a Canada in which liberties are safeguarded, rights are protected and the people of this land are treated as equals under the law.

( Read more... )

The second argument ventured by opponents of the bill is that government ought to hold a national referendum on this issue. I reject this - not out of a disregard for the view of the people, but because it offends the very purpose of the Charter.

The Charter was enshrined to ensure that the rights of minorities are not subjected, are never subjected, to the will of the majority. The rights of Canadians who belong to a minority group must always be protected by virtue of their status as citizens, regardless of their numbers. These rights must never be left vulnerable to the impulses of the majority.

We embrace freedom and equality in theory, Mr. Speaker. We must also embrace them in fact.

Third, some have counseled the government to extend to gays and lesbians the right to "civil union." This would give same-sex couples many of the rights of a wedded couple, but their relationships would not legally be considered marriage. In other words, they would be equal, but not quite as equal as the rest of Canadians.

Mr. Speaker, the courts have clearly and consistently ruled that this option would offend the equality provisions of the Charter. For instance, the British Columbia Court of Appeal stated that, and I quote: "Marriage is the only road to true equality for same-sex couples. Any other form of recognition of same-sex relationships ...falls short of true equality."

Put simply, we must always remember that "separate but equal" is not equal. What's more, those who call for the establishment of civil unions fail to understand that the Government of Canada does not have the constitutional jurisdiction to do so. Only the provinces have that. Only the provinces could define such a regime - and they could define it in 10 different ways, and some jurisdictions might not bother to define it at all. There would be uncertainty. There would be confusion. There would certainly not be equality.

Fourth, some are urging the government to respond to the decisions of the courts by getting out of the marriage business altogether. That would mean no more civil weddings for any couples.

It is worth noting that this idea was rejected by the major religions themselves ( Read more... )

For a prime minister to use the powers of his office to explicitly deny rather than affirm a right enshrined under the Charter would serve as a signal to all minorities that no longer can they look to the nation's leader and to the nation's Constitution for protection, for security, for the guarantee of their freedoms. We would risk becoming a country in which the defence of rights is weighed, calculated and debated based on electoral or other considerations.

That would set us back decades as a nation. It would be wrong for the minorities of this country. It would be wrong for Canada.

The Charter is a living document, the heartbeat of our Constitution. It is also a proclamation. It declares that as Canadians, we live under a progressive and inclusive set of fundamental beliefs about the value of the individual. It declares that we all are lessened when any one of us is denied a fundamental right.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: impressed

I didn't go to work yesterday. I took the day off so kubrickfan and I could drive down to the State Capitol to join about 700 people from all over Washington state and take part in a faith-based rally for equality for the LGBT community sponsored by The Religious Coalition for Equality.

"We have allowed the far-right fundamentalists to distort the truth," Pastor Stephen D. Jones of Seattle First Baptist Church told the crowd. "God loves each and every one of you, all of us, and reaches out to us with acceptance and love. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

Exactly! I'm sick and tired of feeling like if I participate in a religious community and study Scripture and have "moral values" that I should apparently be supporting the hateful things preached by the evangelical religious groups in this country.

We gathered on the steps of the Legislative building, where the state Senate is considering a bill to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in housing, jobs and insurance. On the other side was the state Supreme Court, where arguments are scheduled for March 8th in our state's marriage case.

Unfortunately, we were standing in the shade and it was cold! But one of the things that made it worth driving down for and using a vacation day was that at least 20 people were there from our synagogue!

Sure, dozens of leaders from different faiths - Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Unitarian - attended the rally wearing brightly colored robes and prayer shawls. Sure, they were joined by hundreds of other people from their congregations and others. And, sure, we attend a very welcoming, progressive congregation that has many gay and lesbian couples (and families) as members... But what made this so meaningful was that kubrickfan and I were the only same-sex couple there from our congregation. (That doesn't speak well of the commitment of those folks, but I digress...) Our fellow congregants took time out of their day to come down and stand with us, to bring some of their children with them to teach them about politics and standing up for what you believe in, and to be a small part in a truly historic struggle happening all around us right this very moment. I couldn't feel more loved and accepted by our religious community than I did at that moment.

The second experience that made yesterday worthwhile was how the rally ended. One of the last speakers was a cantor from Bellevue who is a plaintiff with his partner in the marriage case here. After speaking, and chanting a Hebrew prayer before all of us, he lead a fellow Jew in blowing the shofar -- to call on everyone to stand up, to fight for freedom, to heed the call to action...

I just stood there in awe. Listening to the sounds of the shofar echo between the buildings and across the Capitol campus. I could never have imagined such an intersection of my faith and Washington state politics. I could never have associated the sounds and ideas of biblical Israelites and struggles for freedom with the politics and struggles going on right now. Today. In my life. For that brief moment, it truly was a faith-based rally for me.

kubrickfan

Current Mood: cheerful

I was going through some old papers yesterday and I came across a snippet of an e-mail dated 3/23/01 from kubrickfan. It was the very first e-mail he ever sent me, saying he'd had a good time out with me the previous night and giving me his phone numbers so that I could call him to spend time together again.

Who could have imagined when I printed that out where it would lead to almost four years later???

Current Mood: nostalgic

Courtesy of ldystardust:

If you read this, even if I don't speak to you often, you must post a memory of me. It can be anything you want, it can be good or bad, just so long as it happened.

Then post this to your journal. See what people remember about you.

Current Mood: nostalgic

Awwwwww... This is so kewl!

~Mickymse~

LJ friendsCollage.

Brought to you by pratibha75 and teemus.

Current Mood: impressed

Current Mood: thoughtful

Happy Birthday to Me! Happy Birthday to Meeeeeeeeeeee.... Happy Birthday to Me!

So, I'm 30 years old today. And I'm surprisingly less annoyed by it than I expected to be. I think I've been all crotchety in the lead-up to it, but now that it's here I'm pretty darned happy. It could also be that I've spent quite enough time sweeping out the silly expectations and other societal detritus and got around to putting my personal perspective back onto it.

I'm 30 today. I got married this past year -- to a wonderful, loving man who respects me, challenges me to be a better man, and makes me smile, laugh, cry, and more. In fact, about the only problem with him is that he's a kubrickfan! ;-p

I've basically been sitting around the apartment all day doing absolutely nothing because I took the day off from work. Not because it's my birthday, actually, but because I've been sick. Head cold or something. I hate when that happens because I have recurring bronchitis and it flares up and I have trouble sleeping. So I decided to rest today, aside from doing some grocery shopping at Trader Joe's.

Now I'm getting ready for a bunch of folks to descend on me for a potluck and party orchestrated by my husband, who went to the trouble of making me tiramisu from scratch! Mmmmmmmmmmmm...

So, despite my previous protestations to nearly every soul around me for the past few months, I am about to gracefully enter my third decade on this earth.

And how could the day not conitune to be great? It began with two of the sweetest, most wonderful phone calls. One from kubrickfan's parents, who sang Happy Birthday to me on the phone, and from my friend jimmybobob79, who I haven't had a chance to spend time with since he started school but still remembered to take a moment out of his day to let me know he was thinking of me.

*SIGH* How could I not be happy about Time passing, when it has surrounded me with so many people who care about me?

Current Mood: loved

Oh sure... the rest of the country thinks the 2004 Election is over...

Here's an update on the politics consuming my attention recently:

Would you believe we didn't know who won our Governor's race until last night? This race has been capturing the attention of media and folks all over the country because it is not only unsettled weeks after November 2nd, but it has been see-sawing back and forth for days. First the Democratic candidate, Gregoire, was up. Then down. Then down more. Then up. Then down. Back and forth. Up 1,000. Down 400. Up 100. Down 45. Up 19. Down 62. It's been crazy as each county posts its updated counts, sometimes just minutes apart.

Technically, we still don't know the winner, as the final count gave a win to the Republican candidate, Dino Rossi, by LESS THAN 300 VOTES! That triggers an automatic recount. On the other hand, the count is where many folks projected it to be, and no past recount in the state has ever changed the outcome.

*SHRUG* On the other hand, no outcome has ever been this close either. Yikes!

Speaking of close outcomes... Not only did my friend Derek win by under 1,000 votes, but Sandeep Kaushik, who writes for the Seattle independent weekly The Stranger, has some insightful things to say about what his win means for the Democrats in this article at TomPaine.com:

What Kilmer’s success tells me is that the bright lights of the liberal commentariat are going at the problem wrong. They are setting up false dichotomies: left vs. center, issues vs. values, substance vs. vision, realism vs. idealism. In the you-can’t-run-and-hide world of retail politics in non-urban America—in Derek Kilmer’s world—these distinctions don’t apply. It is not that they can be integrated into a compelling, distinctly progressive, message. It is that they have to be.

A year ago, it sounded like elevated thinking: Hire local talent to design Seattle's new monorail stations before a construction deal is signed, so the project would get off to a running start and create an architectural splash.

So the Seattle Monorail Project (SMP) spent $2.3 million commissioning seven architecture firms to design custom stations for each neighborhood.

A King Street hub was envisioned with leaning walls, glass floors, bamboo in an Asian garden, a roof with 15 peaks, and exposed trusses to complement the nearby stadiums. Near the Space Needle, designers imagined a station of vertical, illuminated glass walls. The design for a Ballard stop featured umbrella-shaped curved roofs.

But the sole company bidding to build the monorail isn't obliged to use any of the designs — and chances are, the actual stations will wind up more modest and much cheaper than the images the SMP has released so far.

Current Mood: Wonky

Oh my G-d! Now I feel scared and depressed... USA Today compiled a county-by-county map of the vote totals.

Although John Stewart said it all with his opening line on last night's Daily Show: I miss voter fraud.

Current Mood: distressed

Random entry, I know... but haven't I been rather random since returning from my unannounced hiatus???

I've been meaning for some time now to put together a list of my Top 10 Favorite Films. It's mostly for my own record, and to see how it changes over time, but I know a couple of folks have been rather curious as well. Keep in mind that there may be other movies that I absolutely love, but I would not necessarily place on my Top 10 List; while at the same time, there may be films on this list that hold particular significance for me or strike me in a particular fashion that others might not view as featuring exceptional film-making techniques. That's why it's my list. ;-)

At the moment, these are in no particular order, however. I simply wanted to get the list put together, so I could start thinking about an order, any comments I might make, and whether I've simply forgotten one that's more deserving of a place on this list than one posted below:

--The Shawshank Redemption

--The Sixth Sense

--Donnie Darko

--The Goonies

--Before Sunrise / Before Sunset

--The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

--The Empire Strikes Back

--When Harry Met Sally...

--Hook

--The Nightmare Before Christmas

Current Mood: contemplative

First, a quick background: I don't mind that Washington Mutual chose to donate $85,000 to the Monorail "Recall" folks. What whoever controls the money decides to do with their money is their business... but when supporters obtained the following e-mail that was sent out by Washington Mutual to its employees, many of us got rather pissed off:

Message for Washington State Employees about Washington Mutual’s Involvement in the Upcoming Washington State General Election

The nation’s Nov. 2 General Election is less than a month away. In the coming year, elected officials will be making key policy decisions that will greatly impact the financial services industry, Washington Mutual’s operations, and may influence Washington Mutual’s bottom line.

.... (non monorail section clipped) ...

Seattle’s Nov.2 ballot will also include Initiative 83 – voting “yes” on this initiative would effectively halt the Seattle Monorail Project (SMP) by barring the Monorail from city streets. The Monorail, a planned 14-mile transit system extending from Ballard to West Seattle, is estimated to cost $1.6 billion and would be paid for by an annual excise tax of 1.4 percent of the value of a motor vehicle. WaMu has become engaged in the Monorail debate because as downtown Seattle’s largest private employer, the company believes the Monorail will not deliver the kind of solution that improves transportation and relieves traffic congestion for the City of Seattle and for our employees. There are higher, more pressing transportation needs in the region, particularly the Alaskan Way Viaduct. Therefore, Washington Mutual is supporting the voters’ right to re-vote on the Monorail.

If you have questions contact Suzanne Dale Estey at (206) 377-4081 or suzanne.daleestey@wamu.net.

Unbelieveable. Another national, billion dollar business has staked out a political position against the citizens of Seattle so that they can enrich their own bottom line at the average person's expense.

Their logic is incredible - downtown's largest employer is against a fast, convenient system that will speed thousands of their employees between home and work every day. I wonder how many parking spaces they are including in their new building on 2nd. I'm sure it's a fraction of the number of employees they will have on the property.

So, what could your average citizens do about it? Well, with a little help from The Stranger -- who seem to be behind every grassroots political action lately -- we gathered some folks Downtown to let WaMu know how we felt by protesting and withdrawing funds from the bank.

I made it to the Downtown branch yesterday a little late and a little wet, but it is Seattle after all. We had a good little group waving official signs and homemade ones, as well:

We
Asked for
Monorail!
----------
Understand???

A reporter from The Seattle Times, and a camera and reporter from one of the TV stations were there.

I recognized Grant Cogswell, Dan Savage, Josh Feit, Amy Jenniges (I think), and several monorail supporters. WaMu was apparently scared enough to call out the police to stand in front of the building, which is fine with us. We stood out by the street waving signs and talking to passersby.

According to Amy, she estimated $171,000 was taken out of WaMu by monorail supporters, which nicely doubles the $85,000 they gave to the "Recall campaign." I'd look to next week's Stranger for actual reporting,
though...

I think my favourite was the young woman who brought her two children Downtown to the bank with her. She said she and her husband didn't have much besides their small home, but they withdrew their entire life savings, of I think she said $41,000. Now that's the right kind of political lesson to teach your children!

Maybe next time the corporate folks will think before sending an e-mail out to their employees telling them how to vote and show support for a ballot initiative!

From AndrewSullivan.com:

SOMETHING ABOUT MARY: I keep getting emails asserting that Kerry's mentioning of Mary Cheney is somehow offensive or gratuitous or a "low blow". Huh? Mary Cheney is out of the closet and a member, with her partner, of the vice-president's family. That's a public fact. No one's privacy is being invaded by mentioning this. When Kerry cites Bush's wife or daughters, no one says it's a "low blow." The double standards are entirely a function of people's lingering prejudice against gay people. And by mentioning it, Kerry showed something important. This issue is not an abstract one. It's a concrete, human and real one. It affects many families, and Bush has decided to use this cynically as a divisive weapon in an election campaign. He deserves to be held to account for this - and how much more effective than showing a real person whose relationship and dignity he has attacked and minimized? Does this makes Bush's base uncomfortable? Well, good. It's about time they were made uncomfortable in their acquiescence to discrimination. Does it make Bush uncomfortable? Even better. His decision to bar gay couples from having any protections for their relationships in the constitution is not just a direct attack on the family member of the vice-president. It's an attack on all families with gay members - and on the family as an institution. That's a central issue in this campaign, a key indictment of Bush's record and more than relevant to any debate. For four years, this president has tried to make gay people invisible, to avoid any mention of us, to pretend we don't exist. Well, we do. Right in front of him.

From Noted Now:

VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY CHASTISES SEN. KERRY'S REFERENCE TO HIS DAUGHTER'S SEXUALITY

CHENEY IN FT. MYERS, FL: You saw a man who will say and do anything in order to get elected. And I am not speaking just as a father here, though I am a pretty angry father, but as a citizen.

ELIZABETH EDWARDS ACCUSES LYNNE CHENEY OF "SHAME" OF HER DAUGHTER: She's overreacted to this and treated it as if it's shameful to have this discussion. I think that's a very sad state of affairs… I think that it indicates a certain degree of shame with respect to her daughter's sexual preferences… It makes me really sad that that's Lynne's response.

LYNNE CHENEY AT POST-DEBATE RALLY: The only thing I could conclude is that this is not a good man. This is not a good man. And, of course, I'm speaking as a mom. And a pretty indignant one. This is not a good man. What a cheap and tawdry political trick.

DICK CHENEY TO NBC AFFILIATE WHO: I would have said Sen. Kerry was out of line to bring my daughter into it. I thought it was totally inappropriate.

WHAT KERRY SAID: And I think if you were to talk to Dick Cheney's daughter, who is a lesbian, she would tell you that she's being who she was, she's being who she was born as.

KERRY CAMPAIGN: Senior Kerry aide acknowledges "it was not his best moment," but calls charges that it was inappropriate "ridiculous… The woman is in her thirties. She's public about her sexuality. It was brought up in the last debate. So, what the hell?" ABC News' Marc Ambinder reports…

LOG CABIN REPUBLICANS CHASTISE BOTH CAMPAIGNS: For Sen. Kerry and Sen. Edwards, you do not need to talk about the Vice President's daughter in order to discuss your positions on gay and lesbian issues. For President Bush and Karl Rove, you have a moral obligation to stop using gay and lesbian families as a political wedge issue.

From Counterspin Central:

WHERE WAS LYNNE CHENEY: When Alan Keyes said Mary Cheney was practicing "selfish hedonism?"

She had a chance to directly respond to what Keyes said, but let her other daughter do the talking instead.

We're here, we're queer -- GET OVER IT!

Visit LMAW.org to learn more about marriage equality, and support the cause that kubrickfan and I are working for every day!

Current Mood: annoyed