Gay Alabama Lawmaker Threatens to Expose Affairs Over Gay Marriage Ban

I will not stand by and allow legislators to talk about ‘family values’ when they have affairs, and I know of many who are and have. I will call our elected officials who want to hide in the closet out.

— Alabama State Rep. Patricia Todd (D) warned her colleagues there would be consequences if they continues to oppose same-sex marriage, the Times Daily reports.

Congressional Candidate Calls Gays ‘Gremlins’ in Facebook Post

Same-sex marriage is “a pestilence that has descended on our society, against our will, by those in the courts and government that do not value the traditional family. Same sex couples that seek to destroy our way of life and the institution of marriage are NOT cute and cuddly but rather (for those of you that are old enough to remember the movie), Gremlins that will only destroy our way of life.

— Anthony Culler (R), who is challenging Rep. James Clyburn (D) for a South Carolina congressional seat, referring to same-sex couples as “gremlins” and “bullies” in a Facebook post, according to The Hill.

Zaltzman: Phelps’ Death Was “Tragically Late”

There’ve been two main stories that have been absolutely bombarding our inbox this week. One, I’ll come to in due course. And the other is the tragically late death of the Westboro Baptist Church leader, Fred Phelps, the massively anti-gay, hate-fueled preacher who died at the undeserved age of 84.

— Andy Zaltzman, asking co-host of the Bugle Podcast John Oliver (most recently of the Daily Show) if he was preparing one of the show’s “fuckeulogies” for Phelps. Oliver responded that Phelps was unworthy of a fuckeulogy, heretofore reserved for the likes of Osama bin Laden and Moammar Gadhafi, calling him a “sniveling little prick” who doesn’t deserve the oxygen it would take to create one. Oliver continued that the sooner Phelps is forgotten, the better. Which kind of sounded like a fuckeulogy.

S.C. Lawmakers Cut Public Colleges Budget Over Same-Gender Relationship Books

$70,000

Amount South Carolina lawmakers voted to cut in funding from two public colleges that assigned books about same-sex relationships, The State reports. Said state Rep. Gary Smith (R): “One of the things I learned over the years is that if you want to make a point, you have to make it hurt. I understand academic freedom, but this is not academic freedom… This was about promoting one side with no academic debate involved.”

Will Marriage Equality Come to North Carolina Next?

After Republicans hijacked North Carolina’s general assembly, an anti marriage equality constitutional amendment was presented to voters, and it passed. But with the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, which ended the ridiculous Defense of Marriage Act, some local officials are doing the right thing anyway.

[Buncombe County Register of Deeds Drew] Reisinger told Reuters: “Lord knows I’ve had a handful of close friends who are in same-sex relationships come in and ask for a marriage license. It’s hard to get the words out to tell them, ‘No.'”

He said licenses were sought by six same-sex couples, including a lesbian couple together for 20 years whose request had been repeatedly denied.

“I have concerns about whether we are violating people’s civil rights based on this summer’s Supreme Court decision,” said Reisinger, 30, who is married and was elected to his post in Asheville, North Carolina, three years ago.

In Pennsylvania, Attorney General Kathleen Kane, who also is a Democrat, said in July she would not defend her state’s ban on gay marriage in a case before federal court in Pennsylvania, calling it “wholly unconstitutional.”

Reisinger’s office issued a statement formally requesting the North Carolina attorney general’s review.

If You Have a Sister, Be Thankful She’s Not Like Liz Cheney

In 2004, Dick Cheney proved that even conservative Republicans are one gay child away from a sensible view on marriage. In 2012, Liz Cheney is proving that Republicans will sell out a sibling to win a primary.

— LOLGOP, National Memo columnist, noting that Wyoming Senate candidate Liz Cheney declared herself against marriage equality in an effort to prove she is even more conservative than incumbent Sen. Mike Enzi. Cheney’s sister, Mary, is openly gay.

Stephen Fry Calls for IOC to Move Winter Olympics from Russia

Stephen Fry published an open letter to British Prime Minister David Cameron and the International Olympic Committee, calling for the IOC and world pressure to move the winter games from Russia and its increasingly hostile environment toward the LGBT community. Here’s an excerpt:

I am gay. I am a Jew. My mother lost over a dozen of her family to Hitler’s anti-Semitism. Every time in Russia (and it is constantly) a gay teenager is forced into suicide, a lesbian “correctively” raped, gay men and women beaten to death by neo-Nazi thugs while the Russian police stand idly by, the world is diminished and I for one, weep anew at seeing history repeat itself.

In response to Fry’s erudite, well-reasoned and heartfelt letter, Cameron responded with two posts on Twitter:

Thank you for your note @stephenfry. I share your deep concern about the abuse of gay people in Russia.

However, I believe we can better challenge prejudice as we attend, rather than boycotting the Winter Olympics. DC.

The IOC has remained characteristically mum on the topic.

After a 56 Month Hiatus, Marriage Equality Returns to California

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In May 2008, a court ruling made California the third state in which same-sex marriage was legal. (It is often forgotten but this ruling came after the California Legislature passed legislation legalizing gay marriage twice, only to have both bills vetoed by Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger — who was at that very time hiding the fact that he had conducted an extramarital affair with his family’s housekeeper.)

In November that year, thanks primarily to a propaganda campaign laced with lies that was sponsored by anti-gay groups and paid for by rank-and-file Mormons in Utah, Proposition 8 passed, making gay marriage illegal in California.

Now, 56 months later, marriage equality has returned to California, making it both the third and thirteenth state to legalize gay marriage.

Rally in West Hollywood Celebrates Supreme Court Decisions on DOMA, Prop 8

Proposition 8 lawyers David Boies and Ted Olson, along with their clients and West Hollywood and Los Angeles city officials and a crowd of thousands, rallied in West Hollywood last night to celebrate the Supreme Court’s rulings yesterday that overturned the federal Defense of Marriage Act and a finding on Prop 8 that could lead to the resumption of same-sex marriage in California.

Unfortunately, the demise of Prop 8 may not be a slam dunk. The foes of marriage equality are not done and the grindingly slow processes of the federal courts may give them a window of opportunity in which to delay the reinstatement of marriage rights in California. The 9th Circuit Court has already announced that due to procedural technicalities there will be at least a 25-day delay before marriage licenses can be issued to same-sex couples in the state — an announcement that essentially countermanded state Attorney General Kamala Harris’ order to county clerks to begin issuing the licenses within two days after the ruling.

Marriage-rights opponents will almost undoubtedly use the delay to litigate against overturning Prop 8:

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