World chimes in on Boy Scouts

It's nice to see all the articles bashing the BSA (Boy Scouts of America) for its new schizophrenic policy that says gay scouts are fine but gay leaders are representatives of Satan. These articles are popping up all over. Here's an excerpt from an article at CNN:

"They're teaching them to be bigots essentially," she said. "This world is changing so quickly. You can't raise leaders for tomorrow on principles founded 100 years ago."

It looks like the organization's effort to ooze on by while retaining their bigotry isn't getting rave reviews. Good. These people are as bad as the Vatican. Their hatred of gays is so intense, they can't let go.

I really don't understand the virulence of people like this. Why is hating gay people so important to them? Why is it similarly important to the Vatican? And why do the people at NOM and all the other hate groups despise gay people with such a passion?

I don't know what happened to these people to make them so ugly and hateful, but it's time for them to shut up and go away. They've harmed too many innocent people for far too long. And thankfully, the public agrees.

They would know

AP headline today: Argentine Gays Not Thrilled with New Pope. I can't think of anyone better qualified to tell us about the new guy.

Nearly three years before Argentina became known as home to the first Latin American pope, it made history as the first country in the region to approve gay marriage — an action that then-Cardinal Bergoglio actively opposed. 

Esteban Paulon is president of the Argentine Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transsexuals. He says Bergoglio waged a "war of God" against a gay-marriage proposal headed for Congress.

There's not much more to the "story" -- it tells us nothing we didn't already know. Frankie the popeyguy will be at least as awful as the last guy. And let's face it, if Frankie was a decent man operating in a world where some countries want to kill gays on sight (that would be the world we actually live in, BTW) -- he'd speak up for gay marriage rather than oppose it.

But Roman Catholic priests know nothing of morality. They reveal this every day.

US Bishops oppose Violence Against Women Act

Lest they miss a chance to be evil, the US bishops are totally against the new Violence Against Women Act. And why? You knew without asking, didn't you? Yup, they're carting out the same tired old crap.

The act...is intended to protect women from domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking...[b]ut for the first time since the original act became law in 1994, it spells out that no person may be excluded from the law's protections because of "sexual orientation" or "gender identity" -- specifically covering lesbian, transgender and bisexual women.

(snip)

"These two classifications are unnecessary to establish the just protections due to all persons. They undermine the meaning and importance of sexual difference," the bishops said in a statement released by the USCCB on Wednesday.

"They are unjustly exploited for purposes of marriage redefinition, and marriage is the only institution that unites a man and a woman with each other and with any children born from their union," the statement continued.

Of course, this makes absolutely no sense, just as their arguments against gay marriage make no sense. What the church is really saying is that women should suffer from violence because the church hates gay and transgender people. There is no other meaning in their statement. Just thought I'd point this out.

And look who's among the bishops who signed this statement. Why, it's Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of San Francisco, chairman of the Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage. This wingnut is one sick cookie. He was appointed by Ratzinger to whip the hell out of the diocese of San Francisco. But all he's doing is showing Californians how vicious and evil his church is. Yay, Sal! You go, girl!

Gays, Boy Scouts and good ol' Southern bigotry

Over at the Daily Beast, Michael Tomasky eviscerates southern bigots for their reaction to the Boy Scouts' statement that they'll (probably) allow gay scouts and adults in the organization. Here's a tidbit:

As I've written previously, we are past the point in this country now where one's views on homosexuality can be called a "matter of conscience." No. Being against equality here isn't a matter of conscience anymore than having been against racial equality in 1955 was. It is just bigotry plain and simple. Enough. Piss off. Go form your own Boy Scouts. Go form your own stupid country. You aren't America anymore.

Scroll down on the "reaction" link to read what the Southern Baptist Convention had to say about opening up the Boy Scouts' ranks to gays. These cavemen have to go.

Ed Brayton's great suggestion

I assume my readers are internet mavens, familiar with what goes on each day on these intranets. Therefore, you all know about the bigoted NC restaurant owner who gave two lesbian customers an anti-gay letter as they were leaving his establishment.

Here's Ed Brayton's suggestion:

Here’s what I think should be done here. Every gay couple in the area should go there at the same time, sit down and order something really small, like an order of french fries. Then when they leave they should each give him a letter telling him that he should go to college and get an education, which might free him from the bigoted views of his false religion.

I love it. But I'd just have coffee. I don't want to get fat, even in the pursuit of justice.

A flawed protest

The headline says 4 women strip, protest Vatican gay marriage stance.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Four women have gone topless in St. Peter's Square to protest the Vatican's opposition to gay marriage.

Police quickly took the women away Sunday, and the pope appeared not to have been disturbed as he delivered his traditional prayer from his studio window overlooking the piazza. 

Of course the very gay, anti-gay pope wasn't "disturbed". I'm sure he didn't even glance at the women. Now, if male protesters had gone bottomless -- that would have gotten the pope's attention (and wormed its way into his dreams). Alas, only women took part in the protest. Even a topless male would have drawn the pope's glance. Who plans these things?

What is wrong with Obama's brain?

I was disgusted to read the news today. Obama, after having an anti-gay preacher (Rick Warren) offer an "invocation" at his first inauguration, is having another anti-gay preacher (Louie Giglio) do the "benediction" at his second inauguration.

This makes me ill. What is wrong with Obama that he can't do the right thing? Ever? He always has to let some rightwing crazy piss on his efforts.

If the country was 1/6 Jewish, would he invite a Nazi to do the "benediction"? That would be the exact same situation.

I will never feel good about this president. Yes, he's better than the devil. But that's as far as I can go.

Update: All right!!!

Meaningless move by Church of England

Is this the dumbest thing you've ever heard?

The Church of England has lifted a ban on gay male clergy who live with their partners from becoming bishops on condition they pledge to stay celibate, threatening to reignite an issue that splits the 80-million-strong global Anglican community.

What a ridiculous position. Thanks for nothing, C of E.

You have to wonder about that anti-gay crowd

Hat tip to Ed Brayton on this. He quotes from an article about Russia's inane charges against Madonna for championing gay rights during a concert. Apparently, the hearing on the matter was hilarious, even to Russians.

The ruling came after a one-day hearing that bordered on the farcical. During it, plaintiffs claimed that Madonna’s so-called “propaganda of perversion” would negatively affect Russia’s birthrate and erode the nation’s defense capability by depriving the country of future soldiers. At one point, the judge threatened to expel journalists from the courtroom if they laughed too much…

You really have to wonder about these religious-right, anti-gay loons. To even say such a thing -- that Russia's birthrate would plunge because the word "gay" was mentioned during a concert -- seems to indicate that the people making the charges experience same-sex attractions. Why else would they think this is a logical outcome of even mentioning teh gay? They must be fighting their own internal demons. They want to be gay, they want to act on the feelings that nearly overpower them. Therefore Madonna saying there's nothing wrong with being gay will cause hordes of men to seek out other men for sex.

Anti-gay loons are closet cases. I've always said this. And seeing this play out in a Russian courtroom only intensifies my suspicions.

I love the wording

PARIS (AP) — Gay marriage and adoption are in the spotlight in France as the Catholic Church is using a religious holiday to urge politicians to protect heterosexual traditions.

Just amazing. And "heterosexual traditions" need a lot of protection, you know. If someone doesn't nurture them, they'll die out, for sure.

I've heard this song before

AP:

Internal documents from the Boy Scouts of America reveal more than 125 cases in which men suspected of molestation allegedly continued to abuse Scouts, despite a blacklist meant to protect boys from sexual predators.

Gee, that seems familiar. Now, let me see...Oh, yes, it reminds me of a certain church. Isn't it odd that the Boy Scouts of America and the Roman Catholic Church are the loudest and most virulent enemies of GLBTs -- and yet we see rampant child abuse within both organizations, abuse that each organization was long aware of, yet never corrected?

What's wrong with this picture?

Bad...but also good?

You've seen the news, I assume.

As police and store employees grappled with graffiti that appeared overnight on the back wall of a Torrance Chick-fil-A, online supporters and protesters alike criticized the vandalism.

"Tastes like hate" was scrawled in large black lettering on the wall of the restaurant, mimicking the chain's advertising.

Listen, kids. It's not okay to do this. Vandalism is not a virtue. But on the other hand, a zillion newspapers and web sites carried the image you'll find at the link, or at least printed the phrase "Tastes like hate" (often in the headline). As a result, this slogan is now burned into people's minds.

And that's a good thing. Because Chick-Fil-A does taste like hate.

Breaking news from the Vatican!

I imagine we'll be seeing "breaking news" headlines from the Vatican now that they've got an official Fox News spokesperson.

In his new job as the Vatican’s senior communications adviser, Burke, 52, will be counseling Pope Benedict XVI and his closest staff on how to better project the Catholic Church’s image to the rest of the world.

I can just see it now. The popey guy appears on-screen. Below his image, big red letters blink with the word: "ALERT ALERT ALERT". And then the popey guy says, breathlessly, "A miracle has occurred in Transylvania! The Blessed Virgin Mary has appeared to thousands!"

Oy. It fits right in, doesn't it? Heck, he can use direct Fox News feeds and call them his own. After all, they say the same sorts of things the popey guy says: anti-gay, anti-Obama, anti-sanity stuff. It's a miracle! And I heard on Fox News that this whole set-up was preordained in the Bible!

Bishops' confused morals take center stage

Y'all know about the Fortnight for Freedom, right? It's the sleight-of-hand introduced by the Catholic bishops group led by Cardinal Timmy Dolan. It has that freedom-ish name, and it's described as taking place "during liturgical feasts for martyred defenders of the faith". Oooh, it's freedom-ish and somehow connected to "martyred defenders". It sure must be important.

Of course, it's merely a Bright, Shiny Thing campaign designed by Dolan and the Vatican to take the wind out of Obama's sails -- because the Roman Catholic Church is the GOP. It is also NOM, the despicable organization whose only purpose is to harass gays.

Timmy tries hard to make the campaign sound plausible. Instead of revealing what it is -- a campaign against the president, against women and against gays -- Dolan describes it this way:

"In only the past few years, we've experienced rampant disregard for religious beliefs in this country," wrote New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan, in an e-book released for the "Fortnight" effort. Among the examples he cites are approval for embryonic stem cell research, legal justification for torturing prisoners and support for same-sex marriage. 

Timmy figures if he throws torture in there, no one will notice what he's really doing. This faux campaign is about denying contraception to women, about denying the rights of non-Catholic employees of the church, about deflecting attention from the priest child-abuse scandal and Timmy's own contribution to that scandal: paying off the priests who raped children, and it's about the church's intense, pathological hatred of gay people.

Fortnight for Freedom indeed. Note the GOP newspeak name for the campaign. I wonder why that is. Duh. The church is the GOP. Here's another excerpt:

"We can see that there is a loss here of a sense of truth and objective moral norms -- rules of conduct that apply always, to everyone, everywhere -- an infringement of religious liberty and an 'eclipse of the sense of God and of man,'" wrote Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

We've lost our moral norms, eh, Timmy? Ahem. Priest rapists. Have you forgotten about that, Timmy? The man does not own a mirror. But he doesn't go unchallenged in the article:

Opponents are unconvinced. "This bishops' project isn't about religious freedom — it's about privilege," said the Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. "They are asking for preferential treatment from the government, and if they are successful, it would undercut the rights of millions of Americans."

That's quite a church they've got there. I can't imagine why anyone remains Catholic.

It's all about the gays

An excerpt from the popey guy's tour promoting "families" appears in a story headlined, Pope looks forward to families meeting in Philly:

Chaput, who heads the five-county archdiocese that has about 1.5 million Catholics, also said the visit would highlight the importance of the family, which he said "is founded on a deep and loving union between one man and one woman for mutual support and the nurturing of children" and is "the basic evangelizing unit of the Church." 

It ain't got nuthin' to do with families. The families who flock to these events are pawns in the pope's campaign to destroy the lives of gay men, lesbians and transgendered people everywhere in the world.

There is no rational reason for the church to oppose gays. None at all. Whenever you see a priest, ask him why the church attacks gays. Everyone should do this, all day long, every day. They can offer no answer, only mumbles and senseless words. This is a campaign of hatred. Call it what it is, and do so to their faces. They should not be allowed to get away with this.

Note that the NY Times story about the pope's "family tour" ends with this:

The announcement of the papal visit comes as jurors are deliberating in the landmark trial of a former Roman Catholic church official charged with conspiring to hide priest-abuse complaints and endangering children by keeping predators in ministry. 

Monsignor William Lynn, the former secretary for clergy, is the first U.S. church official charged for his handling of child sex-abuse complaints. He said he tried to get the Philadelphia archdiocese to address the problem, only to be rebuffed by his archbishop, the late Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua. Prosecutors maintain that Lynn could have quit or called police.

They can't hide what they are anymore. Those days are a distant memory.

Nuns won't sit still for Vatican thrashing

I'm sure readers of this blog are aware that the Vatican attacked American nuns with unusual, public viciousness a few weeks ago. "Radical feminist agenda" indeed. American Catholics aren't pleased about this development -- and the nuns aren't taking it lying down. Two days ago, they responded.

Let's take this from the top. The boys club that is the Roman Catholic church is upset that American nuns won't echo the Vatican's hateful teachings about gay people and women. You must engage in the Vatican's hate campaigns in order to be an official Catholic these days. That is the Vatican's message.

But it's basically a man vs. woman thing. This male-only church hates women. And the very idea that American nuns question this antipathy drives them wild. So what is the Vatican going to do? Put a man on the case, of course.

Archbishop Sartain was assigned by the Vatican to spend five years revising the statutes of the sisters’ organization, vetting their speakers and publications, and making sure their events featured the eucharist, which can be administered only by a priest.

I love that. With this bit of prestidigitation, the nuns must include a bigoted male priest in all their activities. I roared laughing when I read about this. As Sister Christine Schenk, executive director of futurechurch, put it:

“Here you see women, very competent, highly educated, doctorates in theology, masters in ministry, C.E.O.’s of hospitals, heads of school systems, being treated as if they were children,” she said. “That in itself goes to the issue of where are the women in the decision-making structures in Rome.”

Indeed. This won't fly in America. Won't fly at all. The popey guy really stepped in it this time.

In Cleveland on Wednesday night, about 650 people, including laypeople, about 100 nuns and a handful of priests in their Roman collars, gathered for a prayer service inside a Catholic church to honor the nuns. When the nuns were asked to stand for a blessing, the congregation responded with a spontaneous standing ovation that lasted nearly five minutes, said several people who attended. 

And that's the way it's going to go in this country. Popey guy: no; nuns: yes!
 
PS: Even I like nuns.

Popey guy says absolutely nothing

Here's what the popey guy said to his capos (bishops) recently about gay marriage:

"Particular mention must be made of the powerful political and cultural currents seeking to alter the legal definition of marriage... Sexual differences cannot be dismissed as irrelevant to the definition of marriage. Defending the institution of marriage as a social reality is ultimately a question of justice, since it entails safeguarding the good of the entire human community and the rights of parents and children alike."

That doesn't even mean anything. It's just a bunch of words. It's ultimately a "question of justice"? Well, yes it is: justice for gay people who want to marry and should be able to. But what is the popey guy talking about? "[S]afeguarding the good of the entire human community and the rights of parents and children alike"? How? 

The church has been viciously attacking gay people for many, many years yet they have never been able to state one rational reason for their actions. Why do they attack gays? It's a question sorely in need of an answer.

But of course, the answer is a reason "that cannot speak its name". They do this because they're a bunch of closet cases. Because they're gay, and they've stupidly chosen to live within a church that condemns them for what they are, they lash out ever more furiously at...themselves. That's what closet cases do. They're the original one-trick ponies.

If I'm wrong about the church's motives, then pray tell, what is the real reason for this virulence? The popey guy's words are empty. They tell us nothing. It's an amazing travesty and I can't believe that anyone who's Catholic -- and awake -- will remain with this church much longer. And that, in case you're not keeping track, is a good thing.  

Good rejoinder

GOP wingnut Rep. James Lankford recently said that there should be no legal protections for gay people who suffer discrimination. He thinks it's fine to fire an employee for being gay. Why? Because he subscribes to the typical fundamentalist notion that we are straight people who decided to stay up late one night and went gay.

His argument goes like this. Since being gay is a choice rather than something immutable like race, where you're born one color and stay that way for life, it's nonsensical to provide legal protections for gays.

Ed Brayton had the perfect response:

Great, so you’re fine with removing religion as a prohibited basis for discrimination, right? People change their religion all the time, so it’s clearly a choice. They’re obviously demanding “special protections” that should only be accorded based on immutable traits, right? Right? Yeah, I didn’t think so.

These people are amazingly dimwitted. Were they dropped on their heads repeatedly as infants? Was there no protein in their diets before the age of 12? How does this happen to someone?

Bill Donohue's hail to the penis

You know that blowhard, Bill Donohue, of the Catholic League? He's the dimwit who says bigoted, stupid things on behalf of Roman Catholicism. He serves the role of unofficial far-right spokesman for the church. This guy is a twit extraordinaire. He's also big on making Catholics look like victims, no matter the truth of the situation. There's nothing so low that Billy won't reach for it. Personally, I figure the reason he's so vicious is that he's a closet case. Anyway, you know the guy, I'm sure.

So Christine Quinn, the Speaker of NY's City Council, is getting married to her longtime partner this weekend. And because she's marrying a woman, the dimwitted Donohue couldn't keep his trap shut:

Bill Donohue, the president of the Catholic League, wished Quinn and her partner the best, but said he will never recognize their marriage.

"The people who go know they are not witnessing a wedding," he said. "I will be at a bar [on Saturday] watching the Preakness. The horses are a lot more fun - and it's real."

So this marriage isn't "real" enough for Billy. And no one who attends will be "witnessing a wedding". I think I know why Billy chose these words for his remarks. This is a big shout-out to the penis. After all, if there's no penis involved, how could a marriage be "real"? I've heard him make slights about two men marrying, but his words didn't have this particular, dismissive tinge. Methinks Billy is upset by the very existence of lesbians. (He's probably equally horrified by the existence of women. Just saying.)

Donohue is the mental equivalent of an emotionally damaged 10-year-old boy rampaging in a schoolyard. Poor little, dimwitted Billy. He never grew up. What a sad lump he is. But at least he makes the church look awful. There's always that.

Media notices Timmy Dolan is anti-gay

An article in today's New York Daily News reveals the ugly, blackened heart that sits in the chest of NY's recently minted cardinal, Timmy Dolan. Here's an excerpt:

The conflict was set in motion after Carl Siciliano, founder of the nonprofit Ali Forney Center, sent a letter to Dolan, saying his “loud and strident voice against the acceptance of LGBT people” creates “a climate where parents turn on their own children.”

Dolan fired back: “For you to make the allegations and insinuations you do in your letter based on my adherence to the clear teachings of the Church is not only unfair and unjust, but inflammatory,” he wrote. “Neither I nor anyone in the Church would ever tolerate hatred of or prejudice towards any of the Lord's children.”

He won't "tolerate" hatred or prejudice. What a joke. Dolan is the Vatican's point-man for bigotry against GLBT people. He is the primary voice of American religious hatred against gays. It's not like this is a secret. The man travels far and wide to spread his special kind of poison. And the end result is a worsened situation for GLBT people throughout the United States (and the world). This causes increased discrimination, rejection, depression and death for this population of "the Lord's children". And it's particularly harmful to young GLBT people, who are generally without resources and sometimes resort to suicide.

This is who Timmy Dolan is. He is a creature filled with hatred for GLBT folks -- and this is true despite there being no rational reason for the hatred. GLBT folks never did a thing against the church. It's all from the church's side: hate, hate, hate. It's sickening and I'm glad to finally see the general media covering this issue. I hope they stay with it.

With this sort of thing going on, day after day and year after year, I don't know how anyone remains a Catholic. I say to these people: look toward your church, see the hatred it spews against an innocent group, and then leave the church forever. It's obvious that the Roman Catholic Church has no connection to a "loving god". You've been duped.