Ron's Log

DHS Pool Party

A few of the guys at Saturday's party which was wonderful and long overdue. The house is situated so it will never have neighbors on the north or west and has tremendous views across the valley.

Massachusetts Sues U.S. Over DOMA

The Commonwealth of Massacusetts is suing the federal government, saying the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional.

Massachusetts risks losing millions in dollars for MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid program for the poor, and for veterans’ cemeteries overseen by the state Department of Veterans Services, unless it obeys the Defense of Marriage Act. The federal government has told the state that it cannot provide federal funding for MassHealth benefits given to same-sex spouses. It also informed the state it will lose Veterans Affairs funding if it buries the same-sex spouse of a veteran in a cemetery, as the state does for heterosexual spouses of veterans.

Federal Suit Against Prop 8 Gets New Support

ACLU, Lambda Legal and the National Center for Lesbian Rights have reversed themselves and now support the "Olson/Boies" lawsuit in federal court that was filed by the American Foundation for Equal Rights. That lawsuit seeks to overturn Prop 8 because it so obviously violates the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The suit was initially opposed by every gay group (and the ACLU) because if it ends up before the Supreme Court with its current membership, the case could lose. The groups do not say why they've changed their minds, but it could have something to do with both Attorney General Brown and Governor Schwarzenegger announcing that they would not defend Prop 8. That's still no guarantee of a favorable decision, but it may mean the case can proceed more quickly...if that's a good thing.

A Chart To Help You

For those who think visually, here's a graphic overview of same-sex marriage by Patrick Farley.

Larger image.

(via, via)

Take A Bad Idea And Run It Into The Ground

Studio 360 has come up with the needless notion of designing a new flag for gay pride. The idea is taking a lot of criticism. Which caused Studio 360 to immediately backpedal:

Our contest is meant to be lighthearted and fun. We're not seeking to denigrate the rainbow flag at all, and recognize the history behind it. We'd like to offer the opportunity for some creative thinking on how else gay pride could be expressed aesthetically today. We're opening this up to everyone to be imaginative and come up with a visual representation of what pride means to them. The flag was designed in 1978... but if it were created in 2009, perhaps it would look different. Maybe the rainbow can't be beat, but we'd like to see what other ideas might bubble up.

This criticism says it best, I think:

Oh I get it... this is a joke. Rather than use Pride Month as a stepping off point to serious discussion, the producers of Studio 360 chose hipster iconoclasm that reinforces the stereotypes of "the gays" as trivial fashionistas.

Why not make this an annual event? Everyone will be dying to know what this season's Queer Logo will be! Oooh, oooh and we can make it a reality show: Isaac Mizrahi's Gay Flag Makeover. Twelve edgy young designers vying to be this years Shepherd Ferry! Think of the shopping as we all rush out to the stores to re-accessorize! I mean, it's what we live for right?

I'm sure that Studio 360 believes that they are elucidating some important points about branding and pop cultural image-making. They are...and who can blame them. It's what they do, cover pop culture and the Arts. But let's not confuse pop culture with real life. Pop culture is what we do to decompress from real life, from jobs and taking care of homes and kids and elderly parents. Real life is what we do in working for a little dignity in a culture that sees our entertainment value rather than the content of our character.

Uh oh, I'm having another gay moment (we are SO creative). Here's an idea for an episode of Studio 360!

Dude! Next time let's hire us some creatives to re-brand hipster culture. Those all-black outfits, awesome eyewear and fabulous haircuts are sooo Twentieth Century! I'm sure they would recommend a little bit of cosmetic surgery to remove the sneer from the hipster lip.

Here are some of more notable mistakes:

by lara.mn. The designer says he or she takes the colors from the American flag, but obviously that color of blue is not on the American flag. What she's got there is (was?) the flag of Serbia and Montenegro with a bird on it (not a dove) that has been shot with paintballs.

by Sugar Pond. WTF?! Romulus and Remus were brothers, not gay lovers.

by divaboy1. Even if we could get past the narrowness of the statement and the fact that it is in English, there would be endless bickering over which font to use.

by Steve Jerman. ¿¿Umm...chronically depressed square hole looking for a square peg??

Two Men Marry In NYC

Hakim Nelson and Jason Stenson, two men, were issued a New York marriage license on May 16 (or thereabouts) and returned to the City Clerk's office on May 26 for the wedding ceremony. When Hakim Nelson got a State Benefit ID card in April, the official who issued it put an "F" for female on it, assuming that Hakim Nelson was a woman. Hakim Nelson is a pre-operative transsexual. The official at the City Clerk's office saw the "F" and asked no questions.

The marriage is as valid as one of the Gavin Newsom marriages; that is, debatable.

The New York Post article says at least one one other male couple got married after hearing about the Stenson-Nelson union.

It's Those Damned Coaches and Guidance Counselors!

Pat Robertson explains that homosexuals are, you know, "that way" because of abuse by "a coach or a guidance counselor or some other male figure." Mr. Robertson doesn't distinguish here between gay men and lesbians, so I guess any abuse perpetrated by any male on anyone can turn them gay. I suppose priests are included in that category of "some other male figure." Maybe in some other discussion he explains away all those heterosexual people who were abused by male figures. I suspect (but I don't know) that he'll want to say the love of Jesus saved them from that abomination, but that would still leave all those abused, non-Christian heterosexuals out there unexplained.

And what about those gay people who were NOT abused by male figures...hold on a moment...I've just noticed Mr. Robertson says "male figure," not the usual "male authority figure." Does he have something like this in mind?

[by dromidor]

I've been seeing "male figures" in museums since childhood, although they just hang on a wall or sit on their pedestal. No abuse involved, that I recall.

Inquiring minds will also want to know what happens to a child who is abused by a "female figure." All those adolescent boys who are getting done by their female teachers are certainly not being turned gay, but what is happening? Are they becoming vegetarians? Democrats?

Doing It Again, Expecting A Different Result

Without any community input, a small group of people, including Cleve Jones, have decided (behind closed doors) there should be another national gay march on Washington, D.C. This is the same sort of gay leadership that helped get Prop 8 approved in California. They've picked October 10-11, 2009 which is Columbus Day weekend. This means all of Congress will be out of town. Has anyone checked the White House schedule to see if it's remotely possible that Obama will be in town. They certainly didn't bother checking with the National Park Service about the availability of the Mall. Also scheduled on the Mall that weekend are "a three-day walk-a-thon against breast cancer, a Treasury Department event, and the Million Man March for God."

Kip Williams of One Struggle, One Fight has decided that "The call to action has a single demand of full equal protection on all matters covered by civil law, and the philosophy that we're part of a broader movement for peace and social justice across the world." He also has this to say about the organizational structure for this march:

We believe in a decentralized organizing strategy that involves people organizing by congressional district across the country. So the hope is that the organizing of the march will lay the groundwork for an ongoing infrastructure after the march, based on 435 congressional districts across the country.

That's a lot like one of the primary reasons the Libertarian Party makes the effort to run a candidate for President: a high-publicity, national campaign that gets people organized locally where they actually may stand a chance to elect a Libertarian to local office. And we see how well that's worked for the Libertarians.

Gay Wedding Announcements In Kansas City

Michael and Chuck Hewitt's request to publish their wedding announcement in the Kansas City Star and Independence Examiner was turned down by both newspapers, but generated some internal discussions. The Kansas City Star decided to change its policy and begin publishing same-sex wedding announcements, saying "We couldn't come up with a compelling reason why not to."

The Independence Examiner, however, has not changed their policy saying it's not a political statement, it's just their policy to "follow the law of the State of Missouri." Using that same reasoning, the Examiner will reject stories about marijuana sales in the Netherlands or even California; it will reject travel stories that include visits to a nude beach; and it will reject stories about governors from states that have 2-year terms for their governors - Missouri elects their governor for 4 years.

EVERYONE Favors The End Of Don't Ask/Don't Tell

According to a Gallup poll released yesterday every demographic favors the end of DADT. In response to the question "Do you favor or oppose allowing openly gay men and lesbian women to serve in the military?" a majority responded "in favor" in these demographic categories:

• All adults
• Conservatives
• Moderates
• Liberals
• Republicans
• Independents
• Democrats
• Attend church weekly
• Attend church nearly weekly/monthly
• Attend church seldom/never
• Men
• Women
• 18-29 years
• 30-49 years
• 50-64 years
• 65+ years
• East
• Midwest
• South
• West