Buck Naked Politics

Obama's Inspirational Rhetoric Deploring "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"... Meanwhile, White House Alleged to View Gays (& Bloggers! & Gay Bloggers!) as Part of Non-crucial "Internet Left Fringe"

by Damozel |  From the Human Rights Campaign's October 10 banquet:

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Oh, that's nice.  That's really nice.  So it is a bit jarring -- in more ways than one -- to read allegations that the White House apparently considers concerned gays part of the "internet left fringe" (as if that were a bad thing).  From John Aravosis:

Bill Maher: New Rule -- "Everyone Deserves Equal Rights"

by Damozel |  Deb asked yesterday whether Obama's "support" for gay rights will prove to be nothing but more of the president's inspirational rhetoric.  Via HuffPost, Bill Maher speaks out for gays and for the end of "Don't Ask; Don't Tell."  The following's an excerpt:

"Tomorrow night President Obama will speak before a gay rights group, and on Sunday there will be a massive gay rally in Washington, or as I call it, the Million Mo March. Which makes this weekend the perfect time for Obama to announce he's repealing "don't ask, don't tell" and committing to a full-throated endorsement of gay marriage. One, because it's the right thing to do and two, because it will throw the conservative base into such a frenzied, pants-shitting panic that they'll drop all that BS about death panels and socialism and let us all get some actual work done.

"But of course that's not going to happen. I can tell you what the president is going to tell his audience tomorrow: How much he supports them. How much he agrees with them. And how he wishes he was President so he could help them out.

Gay Rights: Is President Obama Merely Talking Again?

by Deb Cupples |  I suppose President Obama deserves snaps for giving inspirational speeches: at least, many people have chosen to feel inspired while watching his speeches. 

Unfortunately, as we've seen regarding some pretty important issues (e.g., renegotiating NAFTA, opposing Telecom Amnesty, closing Guantanamo...), Mr. Obama's words have not always translated into action.

Starting back during the Democratic primaries (and ever since), I've wondered whether Mr. Obama prefers grabbing headlines with (and credit for ) neat words  -- and then simply moving on and leaving those words in the dust.

Apparently, some people feel similarly about some of the words that President Obama recently spoke, at the Human Rights Council (HRC) dinner, regarding gay rights.  The New York Times reports:

The Daily Show: 'Values Voters,' teh Gays, and the Unbelievably Flamboyant Dancing of Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay

In which "values voters" are asked to model their social mores on those of 11 year old boys while Tom DeLay dances with the stars.  

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Colbert, Operation Iraqi: Stephen Stresses Importance of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

by Maggie Temple-Smith  | Stephen Colbert debates the issue with his most formidable opponent, Stephen Colbert.  After the jump...

Gay Marriage Ban Upheld in California

by Damozel | If there's an upside to this affirmation of the right of the Right to make their fellow Americans miserable, it's that the same-sex couples who married beforehand get to stay married.  The New York Times reports:

Today’s opinion, written by Chief Justice Ronald M. George for a 6-to-1 majority, said that same-sex couples still have the right to civil unions, which gives them the ability to “choose one’s life partner and enter with that person into a committed, officially recognized, and protected family relationship that enjoys all of the constitutionally based incidents of marriage.” But the justices said that the voters had clearly expressed their will to limit the formality of marriage to opposite-sex couples.

Justice George wrote that Proposition 8 did not “entirely repeal or abrogate” the right to such a protected relationship, but argued that it “carves out a narrow and limited exception to these state constitutional rights, reserving the official designation of the term ‘marriage’ for the union of opposite-sex couples as a matter of state constitutional law.”

The 18,000 existing marriages can stand, he wrote, because Proposition 8 did not include language specifically saying it was retroactive.

I'll write more on this when I calm down.  For now, check out Memeorandum.

The Daily Show: "This Time Things Will be Different." Obama Blocks the Release of Detainee Abuse Photos, & Won't Intervene in the Military's Dismissal of Crucial Arabic Translator Who Has Admitted He is Gay

"In the war on terror, it was okay to waterboard a guy over 80 times to get him to talk, but God forbid that we keep the guy around who can understand what he was saying...if he has a boyfriend." After the jump.....

Joe the Plumber: Gay People Totally Are Queer, Meaning "Strange & Unusual & Possibly Harmful to Kids"

photo, scary clown garbage can, by Mack Male/mastermaq, used pursuant to CC license]

Self-appointed mouthpiece of white working men Joe the Plumber (Samuel Wurzelbacher) thinks "queer" is a fact, not an insult. (Think Progress)  Gay people, he opines, are "strange and unusual," which he thinks you'll find is what "queer" means.  And he sure wouldn't let one near his children! (Think Progress)   I feel pretty sure the gay friends would feel exactly the same way about Joe the Plumber's children.  I can't wait till some reporter tracks one of them down to ask! 

Charles Lemos at My DD:  "Joe look up the word moron in that dictionary. Your picture should be right there."

Lady in Red: Sarah Palin Deluged by Ethics Complaints

by Teh Nutroots | In other words, Palin's the clear choice for the GOP's next presidential candidate!   The Politico reports:

The complaints run the gamut, ranging from the governor’s use of state funds and staff to the workings of her political action committee and even to a jacket she wore to a snow machine race involving her husband.

It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly how many complaints have been filed because the state doesn’t keep count and the complaints are kept confidential by the attorney general’s office unless the state moves forward with a public accusation of wrongdoing. But in total there have been more than a dozen, and most of those have surfaced in the last seven months.....

"Night of Teh Living Gays:" A Response to the National Organization for Marriage

(A Sadly, No! production)   Wonkette:

The very scary National Organization for Marriage folks have launched this new initiative, “2 Million For Marriage"..... This group is still not considered a parody, for the record.

And so...the sadly-naughts took care of that little problem.

Vermont Legalizes Gay Marriage Over Governor's Veto

by Deb Cupples |  Ahh, Vermont.  Home of Partick Leahy and Bernie Sanders -- my home during my formative years (30+ years ago).  The Burlington Free Press reports:

"Vermont has become the fourth state to legalize gay marriage — and the first to do so with a legislature’s vote.

"The Legislature voted Tuesday to override Gov. Jim Douglas’ veto of a bill allowing gays and lesbians to marry. The vote was 23-5 to override in the state Senate and 100-49 to override in the House. Under Vermont law, two-thirds of each chamber had to vote for override.

Portia di Rossi Apologizes to All Those She Hurt by Marrying Ellen

by Damozel |  Awesome. 

Obama to End "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Policy in the Military

by Damozel | This is according to Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.  Gibbs was answering a question during a Q&A at Change.gov.  Fox News whinges:

The Obama transition team declined to elaborate on that one-word answer when asked by FOX News on Wednesday about a timetable for repealing the policy, which was enacted by Clinton after a protracted public debate. Obama officials also would not explain which lawmakers or Pentagon officials would attempt to repeal "don't ask, don't tell."  (Fox News)

Eleven Gay Bars Targeted in Seattle Ricin Scare

by Damozel | In Seattle, a domestic terrorist/crazy person---let's call it what it is---sent a letter to eleven eight gay bars threatening to attack them with ricin. (Seattle Times)   The police in Seattle are taking the threat seriously.

The perpetrator of this apparent terrorist act/hate crime wrote:

"I have in my possession approximately 67 grams of ricin with which I will indiscriminately target at least five of your clients. ... I expect them to die painfully while in hospital." (Seattle Times) 

The Rick Warren Controversy: Did Obama Get It Wrong? Bloggers Respond

by Damozel | Obama wasn't my first choice for a Democratic candidate and this might be why I am less judgmental toward him now than many progressives who supported his "Change" brand without checking the specs or reading the list of ingredients on the label.  He's determined to bridge that Great Divide. Hey, it worked for Bill Clinton, didn't it?  Oh, it didn't?  Okay, but Obama is going to do it differently, right?  Things are different now, with the right having thoroughly shamed and discredited itself after getting its way for eight years running.  On good days I almost believe this.

But Rick Warren giving the invocation at the inauguration feels like a bridge too far for most of us. Understandably, it's raised a lot of hackles along progressive spines. Bill Kavanaugh sums up the reasons here.

Rick Warren to Deliver Obama's Invocation? Very Disappointing...

by Bill Kavanagh:  So I was over at Pam’s House Blend this morning and noticed this clip from Pastor Rick Warren about Proposition 8.  He’s got a right to be a bigot, I guess.  It’s a free country.  But if President Johnson had asked a preacher who had just recently told all his minions to get out and fight against the Civil Rights Act to give the invocation at his inaugural in 1964, I guess we’d a' thought he was nuts.  What’s more, we’d think he wasn’t too serious in his support for civil rights.

A Crucial Jon Stewart Interview with Mike Huckabee

Stewart questions Mike Huckabee for seven minutes on the gay marriage issue.

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In Jon Stewart Slays the Huckabeast, Pam Spaulding says, and she is so right:

Prop 8: The Musical

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Bigotry for Jesus in Action

by Damozel | What part of "Judge not unless you like being judged yourself" do today's priests and scribes of various organized churches not understand?  It seems pretty straightforward to me.  But both the Mormon Church and the Catholic Church are all up in other people's business these days---even people who aren't answerable to them.  

Start with the Mormons and  Prop 8. The Salt Lake City Tribune has an account of the LDS intervention in California now being "probed"---painfully, I hope---by California's Fair Political Practices Commission.

Hey, if they're going to get involved in politics, let 'em render up to Caesar.

Open Letter to Newt Gingrich from His Sister: "Stop being a hater, big bro"

by Damozel | Newt Gingrich's sister, LGBT activist Candace, has published an awesome open letter to her brother at HuffPost.  In pertinent part, it reads:

I recently had the displeasure of watching you bash the protestors of the Prop 8 marriage ban to Bill O'Reilly on FOX News. I must say, after years of watching you build your career by stirring up the fears and prejudices of the far right, I feel compelled to use the words of your idol, Ronald Reagan, "There you go, again."

However, I realize that you may have been a little preoccupied lately with planning your resurrection as the savior of your party, so I thought I would fill you in on a few important developments you might have overlooked.