Money is No Object as Florida Republicans Race to Meet Ballot Deadline

If they’re going to whip up anti-gay hysteria, they better hurry. St. Petersburg Times:

…dozens of workers, a fleet of 55 vehicles and three aircraft would be pressed into service today to get enough signatures collected for Florida’s anti-gay marriage amendment

Groups seeking to place proposed constitutional amendments before Florida voters this fall have until 5 p.m. today to get enough signatures validated…

Volunteers who support a ban on same-sex marriage in Florida’s Constitution are among those racing against time. Orlando lawyer John Stemberger, chairman of Florida4marriage.org, said the effort was about 200,000 signatures short Tuesday, but he said dozens of workers, a fleet of 55 vehicles and three aircraft would be pressed into service today to get enough signatures collected.

Well. What they lack in popular support, they make up in sheer moolah. Works for me.

As alert PR readers know, Florida Republicans have shelled out $150,000 of the $193,000 raised to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot that will outlaw gay marriage, which is already outlawed by the Legislature. The whole exercise is intended to fire up rightwing voters, and is likely taking place in a voting booth near you too.

Backs to Wall, GOP Plays the Bigot Card — Again

Every two years: If it’s an election year, it must be time again for the Republican Party leadership to whip up its base of mouth-breathing knuckledraggers by inciting their terror of gays and lesbians.

The final irony of McCarthy’s reign of terror is that it was an open secret among journalists that he was gay — as was his assistant Roy Cohn (who died of HIV disease in the 1980s) and other members of the commie-baiting committee

Yes, friends, according to Republican Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, the Congress will leave aside petty problems such as the rampant corruption among Congressional Gops, their president’s illegal domestic wiretaps, his staff’s treasonous revelation of the identity of a CIA secret agent, the administration’s lies about the reasons for the war in Iraq — not to mention the health care crisis, disaster recovery in the Gulf states, the collapsing educational system and more — in order to focus on what is really important: preventing gay people from marrying.

The purpose of the Marriage Protection Amendment is not to “protect marriage,” but rather to put Democrats up for reelection in Red and Purple states on the record supporting gay rights (or not) in order to use the record against them among the majority of voters who are sexually confused and intimidated.

This is nasty, cynical political gamesmanship at its sleazy extreme. It is also an indictment of the pathetic low to which the Republican Party has fallen. It is no longer acceptable for them to (openly) express their hatred of African-Americans, Jews, latinos and other minorities. The only group left that is socially acceptable for these these bullies to bash is gays and lesbians.

Of course, as an exercise in lawmaking, the GOP’s last run at
instilling hatred and vitriol into the U.S. Constitution did not work out for them in 2004:

After Senate Republicans’ cloture motion to force a direct vote was defeated in July 2004 and House Republicans failed to secure the 290 votes required for adoption of the amendment in September of that year, the legislation was reintroduced in early 2005. In November, the Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution voted the Marriage Protection Amendment into the full committee by a vote of 5-4, positioning the legislation for a reemergence in time for this year’s midterms.

On the other hand, 11 states, including Ohio, put anti-gay initiatives on their ballots that are credited in drawing millions of unsmart Americans to the polls in the presidential elections — and their vote in Ohio may have tipped the balance toward President Bush, thus re-installing him in office.

Of course, as a gay man entering his 27th year of unmarried bliss with my partner, I take this personally. My “gay marriage” has not caused any straight couples to divorce. It is ridiculous on its face.

It is not gay marriage but the Republican Party that is the danger to our society. They are using the same hateful, fear-engendering tactics today that they have been using since the 1950s when, under Sen. Joseph McCarthy, they concocted a campaign of fear of imaginary communists to enflame their base and gain power.

Sen. Frist, his henchmen in the Senate and counterparts in the House follow Joe McCarthy’s tactics, play by play.

[…]

BlogActive Warns Closeted Gay Senator

Outing: This is intriguing. Mike Rogers at BlogActive posted this letter to a closeted senator today — and it is not Sen. Barbara Mikluski, the Maryland Democrat:

Mr. Senator:

Tomorrow you will be faced with a vote that may have the longest aftereffects of any other you have cast in your Senate career.

Tomorrow you will decide if your political position is worth more than doing what is right for others like you. For others like you, Mr. Senator, who engage in oral sex with other men. (Although, Mr. Senator, most of us don’t do [it] in the bathrooms of Union Station!) Your fake marriage, by the way, will NOT protect you from the truth being told on this blog.

How does this blog decide who to report on? It’s simple. We report on hypocrites. In this case, hypocrites who vote against the gay and lesbian community while engaging in gay sex themselves*.

When you cast that vote, Mr. Senator, represent your own…it’s the least you could do.

Michael Rogers
blogACTIVE.com

*While votes on many matters are considered, votes “FOR” either the Alito nomination and the Federal Marriage Amendment are enough to qualify legislators for reporting on this site.

Who is the gay senator? Any guesses?

Gay for Pay: 82nd Airborne Caught Appearing on Porn Site

For the money: Members of the 82nd Airborne stationed in Fort Bragg, NC, have apparently been nabbed appearing on a gay porn site that originated in nearby Fayetteville. Via Pam’s House Blend:

This apparently goes on a lot — a whole lot — but only comes to the surface on rare occasions like these when the story goes public.

Army officials are investigating allegations that members of the celebrated 82nd Airborne Division appear on a gay pornography Web site, a spokeswoman said Friday.

Authorities at Fort Bragg have begun an inquiry into whether the paratroopers’ actions violated the military conduct code.

Division spokeswoman Maj. Amy Hannah declined to say how many paratroopers are involved or identify their unit within the division. A defense official speaking on condition of anonymity said up to seven soldiers are involved.

Hannah said soldiers questioned will be allowed to seek legal assistance, but she declined to say if any one had been charged.

“Once the investigation is complete, the chain of command will take appropriate action,” Hannah said.

The military-themed Web site does not appear to make any direct reference to the 82nd Airborne or Fort Bragg. The registered owner of the Web site’s domain name lists an address in Fayetteville, the city that adjoins Fort Bragg.

There was a very similar situation here on the West Coast a few years back. The upshot was, these young guys are on leave with no money. The pornster buys them beers, offers to pay them if they’ll pose for him.

This apparently goes on a lot — a whole lot — but only comes to the surface on rare occasions like these when the story goes public.

From the perspective of 20/20 hindsight, it seems to be a pretty risky thing to do, but the military guys apparently make the calculation that anyone they know in the service who might see the photos is probably gay and closeted, and so won’t rat them out.

What’s interesting is that the military apparently does not have a problem with personnel appearing in porn — as long as it’s straight porn.

The military is currently looking into the matter and will likely persecute the men involved under the “don’t ask, don’t tell charade.”

Pam at the Blend found the link to the website (which no one in the local traditional media seemed to be able to do) — here’s the link — but the site has apparently been taken down.

‘Dishonest’ – Oh Look, There’s a Picture of Florida Republicans in the Dictionary

Worried Florida Republicans are behind a proposed state constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, according to the St. Petersburg Times. Of the $193,000 raised by Florida4marriage.org, $150,000 was given in a lump sum on Nov. 25 by the Florida GOP.

“It certainly was helpful,” Florida4Marriage chairman John Stemberger said of the donation, which he said was unsolicited. “I’m not at liberty to discuss the details, but they came to us and gave us the money.”

The big contribution was something of a surprise because the effective head of the state party, Gov. Jeb Bush, has been decidedly tepid about the proposed constitutional amendment. He has characterized it as well-meaning (sic) but unnecessary because state law already bars same-sex marriage.

That’s right. It’s already illegal to marry just anybody in Florida. The point of this sham movement is to get out the frenzied GOoPer vote. Cynical leaders are betting their high moral principals will ensure these wingers vote to force gays to continue living in sin. And while they’re there, they will vote to keep corrupt Republican lawmakers in office.

Still, it’s turning out to be a little harder sell than anticipated. Their side needs 600,000 signatures by Feb. 1 to get the phony amendment on the primary ballot. So far, they only have 250,000 but

volunteers are working feverishly at 10 makeshift processing centers at churches and offices in Central Florida.

“It is clear we are not where we want to be,” [Florida4Marriage chairman John Stemberger] said, “but we are seeing tens of thousands (of signatures) a day and if the pace continues we could easily do this.”

Ski Resort Fires Women Because They Got Married

You’re fired: Yes, Dorothy, you can be fired for being gay in George Bush’s America. It happened to a lesbian couple from gay-friendly Asheville, N.C., who got married in Massachusetts – only to be fired forthwith by Wolf Laurel Slopes, a ski resort in nearby Mars Hill. Pam’s House Blend, based in even-gay-friendlier Durham, is on it:

This kind of hatred and bigotry has no place in my state. While I am not surprised at the depth of contempt some have for gay and lesbian citizens, this story is a reminder that you can be fired simply for being gay.

Here’s how the couple described what happened on their website:

We at All Terrain Images, Inc., are sorry to say that we will not be able to provide photography services for skiers and snowboarders at Wolf Laurel this year.

Just before opening day, the owners of Wolf Laurel Slopes, Orville English and Rick Bussey, informed us that we were not welcome back, despite the excellent service we have provided for the past two years. The owners of Wolf Laurel Slopes have both admitted that one of the reasons they will not have us back is because All Terrain Images, Inc., is owned and operated by a lesbian couple whose wedding announcement was placed in the local Asheville newspaper. We believe this is the only reason for termination of our agreement.

Tell Wolf Laurel Slopes how you feel about workplace discrimination: marketing@skiwolflaurel.com.

Anti-Gay Pastor Arrested for Soliciting Male Undercover Officer

Better to be known as a sinner than a hypocrite: Lonnie Latham, senior pastor at the South Tulsa Baptist Church and member of the executuve board of the Southern Baptist Convention (the largest Protestant denomination in the U.S.), was arrested Tuesday night for “offering to engage in an act of lewdness” with an undercover police officer. According to the Associated Press report, Latham propositioned the officer, asking him to return with Latham to his Oklahoma City hotel room for oral sex.

The arrest was in a section of Oklahoma City where residents had complained of male prostitutes flagging down drivers and propositioning them.

When he left jail after posting $500 bond, Latham reportedly said: “I was set up. I was in the area pastoring to police.”

So that’s what they call oral sex in South Tulsa, huh?

According to the AP:

[Latham] has also spoken out against same-sex marriage and in support of a Southern Baptist Convention directive urging its 42,000 churches to befriend gays and lesbians and try to convince them that they can become heterosexual “if they accept Jesus Christ as their savior and reject their ‘sinful, destructive lifestyle.”‘