Academy Award Winner and Screenwriter Dustin Lance Black Speaks At The LGBT National Equality March in Washington, DC on October 10th. We are excited to see him here at the gay rights rally and made one of many great speeches that should stick in our brains and motivate us to all be activists for love and equality. Here is the video of Dustin Lance black at the rally on Sunday-

Sally Kerns, a Republican Oklahoma state representative in district 84, known as the Bethany and Northwest Oklahoma City part of town will have a challenger in the ring come next fall.  Brittany Novotny, a local transgender attorney, plans on putting her hat in the ring and with all the big mouthed junk that has came out of Sally Kerns mouth in the last few years we can only hope Brittany wins!

Brittany Novotny is a Democrat and hopes to win the race by not focusing on her being transgendered but her being a better politician for the people of Oklahoma.  This is quite ironic for the Kerns campaign as she has spelled out her dislike (more on the hate side) for homosexuals in the past comparing us to terrorists and such.

This could backfire for Kerns or it could backfire for Novotny. While I think it is a great thing for someone to run against Kerns in this election we better make sure Novotny is well-funded and has her name out there.  No one has been able to beat Kerns yet and Novotny better think of a strategy to beat witch Kerns out.  Kerns is nothing but a talking big mouth wishing for a future with Fox News or some crazy outfit as a commenter but she really has no future.   She has Sarah Palins that have taken her big mouth job on the road.  Kerns holds her state rep. position and there is no visible end in that future unless the GLBT can really stand together and get her out of office.  Then we will be done with this lady.  She can go sit in her husbands Baptist church or help out with some community service if she gets outed but there is a mere chance that will happen unless we build momentum NOW.

While the gay, lesbian, and bisexual community worked earnestly to see a positive and gay-friendly candidate in office, the realities have been somewhat less positive than the promises. What has been accomplished since Obama took office in January and what has not? Are steps being taken to see campaign promises made reality?

The two most critical campaign promises to the gay and lesbian community were the big issues, the Defense of Marriage Act and Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. The current Defense of Marriage Act prevents the recognition of same-sex marriages across state lines and on a federal basis. This poses questions of states’ rights as well as individual rights. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell has led to the expulsion of many qualified military personnel, a practice which still continues.

Unfortunately, the only action on the Defense of Marriage Act has not been positive. On June 12, 2009 the Justice Department filed papers defending DOMA. The official administration statement is that President Obama supports a legislative repeal of the act, but until that time the Justice Department will continue to defend DOMA. Critics contend that the Justice Department brief was especially problematic as the cases quoted backing their argument included a state not recognizing an incestuous marriage and states not being required to recognize underage marriages.

While the Defense of Marriage Act requires legislative repeal, some political experts believe the enforcement of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell could stop immediately with an executive order. This might cause some amount of political fallout; however, pressure from the Obama administration could likely eliminate this piece of legislation altogether. Moreover, public polls support the open service of gays and lesbians in the military, making a repeal likely to pass the House and Senate with ease. Why then, are officers and enlisted service people who have worked hard to serve, served faithfully and given of themselves being given dishonorable discharges?

Gay and lesbian federal employees have seen a positive change. At last, federal employee benefits extend to the partners of gay and lesbian employees. Unfortunately, this change seems a paltry offering to a community that fought for change.

The GLBTQ community has been patient. We have been supportive. For many of us, our patience is beginning to wear thin. It is time for the current administration to make good on their promises and to see change. States are making positive changes and it is time for the federal government to follow.

When I first read this headline the other night It was on Yahoo News and it said “3 Dead in Tel Aviv Gay Club Attack” it was quite shocking. I clicked on the link and could still not believe that it was such a horrible tragedy that happened. It was a gay youth center not a gay club and there were two dead but when they say injured there is no telling how badly the injury can be.

This is an attack on a gay group in Tel Aviv and it really sets gay rights in Israel back in time as the world is becoming more gay accepting. Tel Aviv is ranked highly on the scale of the gay holiday or vacation destinations and could lose a great deal of tourism from this tragedy.

Offer Nissam, a world-wide known DJ with a huge gay following is based out of Tel Aviv but there is no word on his myspace blog or anywhere about this. Madonna also plans a concert to end her Sticky and Sweet tour in Tel Aviv on September 2nd in Tel Aviv, Israel at the Yehoshua Gardens.

Hundreds of Israelis on Sunday staged a protest at the Tel Aviv Gay and Lesbian Association, where on Saturday two people were killed and 11 injured in a shooting described by some officials as a hate crime. “What happened last night takes us back years in the fears of parents and families. But we cannot let anyone or anything take us back into the closet,” said Tel Aviv resident Joseph Berg.

There is no doubt that things are improving in our world. More and more states are legalizing gay marriage and recognizing civil unions. According to polls, support for gay marriage is increasing across the country. Unfortunately, the news is not all good.

As of this writing, six states in the United States have legalized gay marriage via legislative or judicial actions. Same sex couples can currently marry in Iowa, Massachusetts and Connecticut. Vermont and Maine will allow gay and lesbian couples to marry as of September, 2009. Gay marriages will be performed after January 1, 2010 in New Hampshire. While New York and the District of Columbia will not allow gay couples to marry, they will recognize marriages from other states. Current legislation is pending in New York to allow same sex marriage.

New Jersey offers civil unions that include all state rights given to heterosexual married couples. A number of states, including Colorado, Hawaii, Maryland, Nevada, Oregon, Wisconsin, Washington and the District of Columbia offer civil unions or domestic partnerships that include some degree of rights and responsibilities.  These range from minimally guaranteeing hospital visitation privileges and some inheritance rights to more comprehensive unions requiring insurance protections, impacting tax laws and more.

Some forty states restrict marriage to a man and a woman. Some of these states do offer domestic partnerships or civil unions. Nineteen states ban any recognition of civil unions, partnerships or gay marriage. Federal law, under the Defense of Marriage Act, does not recognize gay marriages or civil unions; however, some federal employee benefits have been extended to gay partners.

What can we expect to change across the United States? While Obama promised an overturn of the Defense of Marriage Act, this is still to come. Massachusetts has challenged this law on the basis that it is discriminatory, relying on the defense that family law is typically a state matter. Other suits are being brought against the Defense of Marriage Act by private parties. It is expected that other states with legal gay marriage will join in the fight against DOMA.

See http://www.npr.org/news/specials/gaymarriage/map/ for an easy state by state breakdown of gay marriage laws.

If you ever get on CraigsList you may discover more and more massage or “money needed” ads in the mainstream section of the personals.  The men seeking men or the casual encounters posts are free to post but the erotic services posts actually required you give them your credit card information.  I looked on there today and when you try and make a post it came to a error page so I guess they have already taken the ability to post away but leaving up the remaining massage service providers.

We are speaking of a site that is 14-years-old and generates more than 20 billion page views per month in 50 countries and has had one murder case in Boston change the entire category for every city.  I know the Rick Sanchez and Bill O’s have been bitching for weeks about it but they are looking for an excuse to have the sections removed.  They scrape through the news everyday to find things they feel are not acceptable for others they feel should be changed.  The real wanna-be gods of our generation…because we are not adult enough to do things ourselves.

The section is not completely removed though.  It is now a Adult section under Personals in which the service providers pay a $10 fee and approved ads will be eligible for reposting at $5.  The ads will be approved by a person which will be different from the algorithm they used before.

On this same subject I watched Elliott Spitzer speak on Prostitution with Rachel Maddow yesterday and in the interview Spitzer answered as if prostitution was a victim crime and it should not be legal (but yet it was for him to take part in it).  Whether it is massage with a happy ending or more physical intercourse I think that prostitution really is not a crime that has a victim.  It is two adults consenting and unless someone is being forced into having sex like they do in some countries as slaves or such then there should be nothing wrong with it.

The Defense of Marriage Act and lack of federal marriage rights impact gays and lesbians across the country in so many ways. These range from basic day to day issues to problems and legalities that can be destructive to relationships and lives. There are some 1,049 legal rights and responsibilities conferred with marriage under federal law, and approximately 400 more conveyed by the states. Even in states with legalized gay marriage or civil unions, lack of the ability to legally marry at a federal level penalizes gay families financially and personally. Federal income taxes, social security, inheritance laws, immigration regulations and more are all significant issues integrally connected to legalized federally recognized gay marriage. Some of these rights can be granted by private entities or legal documents, but others cannot.

Some of the most significant of these rights and benefits are largely financial or property rights. Without the protections of legal marriage, couples are not be entitled to survivor’s benefits, pension rights, medicaid, income tax exemptions and deductions and certain veteran’s benefits. In the case of the loss of a partner, inheritance is not automatic and property may be held up in probate even if a will is present or ownership was joint. Couples also lack the rights of legal divorce, including property division laws.

In personal and family terms, without legal marriage rights, adoption and child custody issues are problematic. Child support may not be legally mandated during a break up. Children of the relationship, if not legally adopted or biological, will not be entitled to survivors’ benefits and other rights. Bereavement, maternity and paternity leave, and sick leave are not legally protected outside of marriage. In case of a medical crisis or the death of a partner, marriage confers automatic next of kin status and the right to make all medical and end of life decisions. Immigration law impacts many couples and families. A married citizen can legally sponsor their spouse for legal status or citizenship. Gay couples have no such option and in some cases end up opting to live outside the US or separately.

In the courts, gay individuals may have less protection against domestic violence. Judicial protections and spousal immunity only apply to legal marriages. Wrongful death benefits, including the right to sue, only apply to the legal next of kin.

The full repeal of DOMA and federal recognition of same-sex marriages will allow couples across the country to access federal marriage rights, even if their own states do not support or allow for gay marriages. This offers the potential for equality for all couples and families in terms of both financial and legal rights.

They call themselves the Westboro Church but as you can see they are better known as the Westboro Hate group.  The UK Border Agency speaking of Fred Phelps and his daughter said “Both these individuals have engaged in unacceptable behavior by inciting hatred against a number of communities.”  They went on to say “The Government has made it clear it opposes extremism in all its forms. We will continue to stop those who want to spread extremism, hatred and violent messages in our communities from coming to our country.”

Members of the Westboro Church had plans to protest The Laramie Project, which is a play about Matthew Shepard who died from being brutally beat to death in Wyoming.  It was hate that caused this death.

I am glad to see the UK take a stand and not allow such extremism in their country.  Free speech is one thing but to protest soldiers funerals and plays which try and teach love instead of hate then these people are nut bags that should not be allowed to leave the mental home for one thing.

I wonder if this means that the hate filled rhetoric which Sally Kerns is on this list as well?

Where is the love with all these big mouths anyway?  Do they not know how to love or is all they do obsess and hate other groups?  They need to get a life for one.  They don’t want you in the UK and we certainly do not want you in our towns so stay home you haters.

Yes, we love the UK!

As we look back on 2008, we can see a victory in the election of a new president, but many sorrows as well. Proposition 8 passed, leaving so many couples worried about the legalities of their marriages and many of us wondering about the possibilities in our states. What can the queer community expect or hope for in 2009? Is there anything we should prepare ourselves for in a negative context and what can we all do to reach for equality with a new president and government.

Marriage remains a big issue this year. New Hampshire and Maine will likely see marriage equality in 2009. New York, California, and New Jersey all have a good chance of truly equal marriages at the state level this year as well. See gayrights.change.org for a breakdown of the issue in each state and the chances of success.

During his campaign, Obama pledged his support for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, a full repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, hate crimes legislation, and a repeal of don’t ask, don’t tell legislation. Unfortunately, all of these require not just presidential authority, but also the support of the House and Senate. Democratic gains in these important races in the 2008 elections may make all the difference here as well.

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act or ENDA was approved by the House in 2007, but died in the Senate. It is reasonable to expect that ENDA or a similar bill incorporating protections for sexual orientation and hopefully, gender identity, will be passed in 2009.

While the chances of a full repeal of DOMA in 2009 seem slim, a Repeal DOMA protest is planned for January 10, 2009 nationwide. More information is available at queersunited.blogspot.com.

An improved federal hate crimes law including sexual orientation and gender identity seems ripe for passage this year. The Matthew Shepard Act passed both the House and Senate in 2008 and was nearly sent onto the president as a part of a Department of Defense Reauthorization package. A threatened veto prevented the possible passage of this bill. The 2007 Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act (LLEHCPA) includes protections and data collection for hate crimes based on sexual identity, gender identity and gender. Dailykos.com offers a thorough overview of this issue.

While repealing don’t ask, don’t tell remains a priority for this administration, experts do not expect action to be taken in 2009. After the clear failure of don’t ask, don’t tell as a means of correcting long term military policy towards gays and lesbians, it is likely that this issue will be a sensitive one.

What can you do? Write your congresspeople. Write your senators. Call them. If there is an opportunity in your state for a town hall meeting, take the chance to speak to them in person. If issues come up in your town, city or state, be aware and do what you can. Be a face and a voice for change.

Watch out for people such as Sally Kerns who will be out there saying the craziest of things to get attention and make sure crazy witches like her do not get re-elected.  We should start now and prepare ourselves for the governor races for next year in states such as California and Texas.  There is a lot to do!

Bill O’Reilly is THE biggest hypocrite on the planet. He wants to take away our privacy in some ways then when it comes down to protecting his sheltered and blinded people he wants to act like they are the innocent ones. For some unknown reason I was watching his show on Fox News and noticed some lady from Townhall.com who almost didn’t add anything to the discussion but accusing Google of doing wrong in this. They actually accused Google of being the bad guy of letting people map out who donated from what neighborhood to fund Proposition 8. How is this any different than any other map online to find out what your neighbors are doing.

The privacy thing online I will agree has gone too far. We should not be able to see what our neighbors are doing or have done. Even if they did something horrible they should still have a chance to be forgiven and not treated like the scarlet letter. This is certainly not Google’s fault this is happening. It is the fault of the jerks such as Bill O’Reilly who want all the doings of people be stated all over the place. They started this and now they don’t want to be the ones in the spotlight. They do not want their houses appearing as the jerk or pinhead or bad guy or soul less person.

Eightmaps.com is where you can find the proposition 8 supports and see if they live in your neighborhood. This is a fantastic idea given that EVERYTHING and anything else can be detected online these days. I guarantee these same pinheads that want to do away with everyone’s privacy will start wishing they had some privacy of their own. This is also a good idea because its good to be able to see what neighbor donated to Prop 8 and is fake to your face. Talk about “coming out” of the closet.

Bill O’Reilly discussed this on his show as if it would be used as a violent weapon. This is used not for violence but to find out who near them they know are against what they believe and find out who they can trust in their neighborhood. It will show people to think twice before they donate towards hate. Eightmaps showed great initiative in doing this and I applaud them.

After all would you rather live in a neighborhood where Sally Kerns lives or one of these freaky prop 8 supporters. Those people looked scary from the videos.. I mean how long since they have been laid or are they also coming up for the Child Molestation on the map pins as well? That would be like living on Freddy Kruger lane.

Who owns 8 maps?  This site is privately listed just like most of the sites on the internet so the hag from Townhall.com saying that the owners of the site are hiding out and are cowards has no idea what she’s talking about.  Although, I do think there needs to be more regulation on private domain names because I have had many people copy my site and end up having to try to find the owners for stealing my content.  Billoreilly.com is not even listed in his name Bill O’Reilly.  Hey, if the owner of 8 maps wants to contact me then please do so because I would love to advertise on your site and support it!