People outside of Indianapolis coming here to tell us how to live

One of the things that needs to be pointed out about Proposition 622 is that many of the people opposing it don’t live in Indianapolis and wouldn’t be affected by it.
For example, in today’s Indy Star, there are several letters from people opposing this ordinance. One of them is from Eric Miller, the director of Advance America. It’s signed Indianapolis, but Eric doesn’t live here in Indy. Neither does the guy who wrote the letter signed from Avon, Indiana.
And neither did half the people who got up to speak at the first City-County Council Committee meeting to discuss Prop. 622. Many of them were bussed in from around the state by the aforementioned Miller. The city-county council caught on to this eventually, and at the second hearing, they made people state their address or township before speaking to highlight that the testimony needed to be coming from residents. About half the opposition who planned to speak stepped down, because they were busted.
The city-county council members made it clear that they were only considering letters and phone calls from their own constituents, so the American Family Association, a group that is based outside Indianapolis, is pouring money into the Indiana Family Institute (also based outside Indy) to fund robot phone calls to blanket the houses of people in Indianapolis, asking them to do the dirty work of calling the council for them.
Don’t let people outside Indianapolis tell you how to live your life or conduct your business. Email your councilors (you can contact them through this form from Indiana Equality — a group that lives and works right here!!)

Continue ReadingPeople outside of Indianapolis coming here to tell us how to live

I’m blogging because Fox 59 News is filming me right now

The News came to talk to us about Proposition 622, and I’m doing an action shot right now where they’re filming me at the computer, so I have do something. So I’m writing this blog entry. Say hi to the news!!
I’ll be on Fox 59 news tomorrow night at 10 p.m., so don’t forget to record it. Spike was a hit with Kara, the reporter, and Scott, the cameraguy, so he’ll probably show up on TV, too.

Continue ReadingI’m blogging because Fox 59 News is filming me right now

Bush Illegally spies on US Citizens

According to the New York Times, and later also reported by the Washington Post:

Bush Secretly Lifted Some Limits on Spying in U.S. After 9/11, Officials Say
Months after the Sept. 11 attacks, President Bush secretly authorized the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on Americans and others inside the United States to search for evidence of terrorist activity without the court-approved warrants ordinarily required for domestic spying, according to government officials.
Under a presidential order signed in 2002, the intelligence agency has monitored the international telephone calls and international e-mail messages of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people inside the United States without warrants over the past three years in an effort to track possible “dirty numbers” linked to Al Qaeda, the officials said. The agency, they said, still seeks warrants to monitor entirely domestic communications.
The previously undisclosed decision to permit some eavesdropping inside the country without court approval represents a major shift in American intelligence-gathering practices, particularly for the National Security Agency, whose mission is to spy on communications abroad. As a result, some officials familiar with the continuing operation have questioned whether the surveillance has stretched, if not crossed, constitutional limits on legal searches.

One of the groups they’re spying on the QUAKERS, and other local anti-war organizations. The Quakers are pacifists, people. They believe in NOT blowing shit up.
The Quakers are one of thousands of organizations on a 400 page list (that’s 400 pages not 400 groups) that the Administration has been spying on inside the United States. All of them are left-wing organizations.
None of the investigated are right-wing groups. You know, right-wing ones, like the guys who bombed the Olympic park and abortion clinics. Like the ones who sent Anthrax to the Democratic leadership. The ones who blew up the Oklahoma Federal Building. The ones who keep killing doctors. Yeah, nobody’s investigating them. I feel so safe.

Continue ReadingBush Illegally spies on US Citizens

All I Want

All I want to do with my life is to go to work, work hard all day, come home, and sit down with my dog and my girlfriend and read some books. And then later, take a walk around the block.
Why is it I can’t seem to make that happen? Why does everything always seem to get in the way of that?

Continue ReadingAll I Want

Hate Crime Legislation: A Respectful Response to Common Assertions

I had this article on my site a few years ago while the State legislature was debating the hate crimes legislation. It was written by Chris Douglas. I’m re-posting it because he needed to find it again, and because it’s an informative and well-written piece.
It’s quite long, though, so I’m putting the body of the piece below the jump.

Continue ReadingHate Crime Legislation: A Respectful Response to Common Assertions

Dingell’s HOLIDAY Jingle for O’Reilly and House GOP

Christmas Tree
Christmas Tree

Washington, DC – Congressman John D. Dingell (MI-15) (original link, no longer active – http://www.house.gov/dingell/documents/press_releases/109th_Congress/12-14-05_2.htm) recited the following poem on the floor of the US House of Representatives concerning House Resolution 579, which expressed the sense of the House of Representatives that the symbols and traditions of Christmas should be protected. “Preserving Christmas” has been a frequent topic for conservative talk show hosts, including Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly:

‘Twas the week before Christmas and all through the House
No bills were passed ’bout which Fox News could grouse;
Tax cuts for the wealthy were passed with great cheer,
So vacations in St. Barts soon would be near;
Katrina kids were nestled all snug in motel beds,
While visions of school and home danced in their heads;
In Iraq our soldiers needed supplies and a plan,
Plus nuclear weapons were being built in Iran;
Gas prices shot up, consumer confidence fell;
Americans feared we were on a fast track to…well…
Wait— we need a distraction— something divisive and wily;
A fabrication straight from the mouth of O’Reilly
We can pretend that Christmas is under attack
Hold a vote to save it— then pat ourselves on the back;
Silent Night, First Noel, Away in the Manger
Wake up Congress, they’re in no danger!
This time of year we see Christmas every where we go,
From churches, to homes, to schools, and yes…even Costco;
What we have is an attempt to divide and destroy,
When this is the season to unite us with joy
At Christmas time we’re taught to unite,
We don’t need a made-up reason to fight
So on O’Reilly, on Hannity, on Coulter, and those right wing blogs;
You should just sit back, relax…have a few egg nogs!
‘Tis the holiday season: enjoy it a pinch
With all our real problems, do we honestly need another Grinch?
So to my friends and my colleagues I say with delight,
A merry Christmas to all,
and to Bill O’Reilly… Happy Holidays.

Continue ReadingDingell’s HOLIDAY Jingle for O’Reilly and House GOP

Weekly Grocery Lists for Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, Summer 1962

WEEK ONE
Beans
Bacon
Coffee
Whiskey
WEEK TWO
Beans
Ham
Coffee
Whiskey
WEEK THREE
Beans
Bacon
Coffee
Whiskey
K-Y
WEEK FOUR
Beans
Pancetta
Coffee (espresso grind)
Whiskey
2 tubes K-Y
WEEK FIVE
Fresh fava beans
Jasmine rice
Prosciutto, approx. 8 ounces, thinly sliced
Medallions of veal
Porcini mushrooms
1/2 pint of heavy whipping cream
1 Cub Scout uniform, size 42 long
5-6 bottles good Chardonnay
1 large bottle Astroglide
WEEK SIX
Yukon Gold potatoes
Heavy whipping cream
Asparagus (very thin)
Eggs
Lemons
Gruyere cheese (well aged)
Walnuts
Arugula
Butter
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
6 yards white silk organdy
6 yards pale ivory taffeta
Case of Chardonnay
Large tin Crisco

Continue ReadingWeekly Grocery Lists for Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, Summer 1962

New Year’s Resolution: More Gay Sex

More Gay Sex StarburstRight-wing “media advocates” Accuracy in Media (AIM) are urging people to “Quit Gay Sex” and promoting a false parallel to news organizations that are urging people to “Quit to Live” smoking. They claim, falsely, that: gay people are in “the dangerous and addictive homosexual lifestyle” and “Life-threatening sexually transmitted diseases among homosexuals are on the increase.” The seem to be ignoring some facts…

1. “Homosexuality” is not just about sex, but about relationships and love.
2. Homosexuality is not “addictive” but an at-birth characteristic.
3. Not all “homosexuals” are men.
4. Lesbians have lower instances of sexually-transmitted diseases than heterosexuals.
5. Most gay men are not HIV-positive.
6. Most gay men aren’t promiscuous; most don’t practice unsafe sex.

In light of this, I’m planning to start a “More Gay Sex” campaign, urging gay people to have more (safe, healthy, responsible) gay sex during the new year. Casual encounters can be easy, just check these best places in Philly. And I’ll pledge to do so myself, as a New Year’s Resolution. I’ll be using a free fuck app to find people in my area. Who’s with me?And if you’re not gay, please use this perfect remote vibrator and have more heterosexual sex in solidarity, to show your support for my new campaign. If you’re looking for an escort service, try Houston escorts; you will definitely satisfy your sexual drive.

 

One person pointed this out: “Instead of ‘Quit Gay Sex’ how about we substitute ‘Make a Promise to Be Faithful to Just One Partner.’ Oh wait. That’d be gay marriage, wouldn’t it? My bad.”

2022-03-15 Update:
Yeah, isn’t that adorable that I had to put that parenthetical state on that starburst? Not my most sex-positive moment, despite the resolution.
Continue ReadingNew Year’s Resolution: More Gay Sex