In the New York Times, Paul Krugman discusses the rise of religious extremism (what I like to refer to as “religious nujobs”) and how they are endangering democracy here in America and around the world.
How does one balance a desire to respect and protect differences of opinion, when some people’s opinions are intent on demolishing the democracy that protects us all?
This is truly frightening. Not letting us get married is one thing, but refusing to provide health care to gay people is chilling, nazi-esque “load up the trains” behavior.
Doctors or other health care providers could not be disciplined or sued if they refuse to treat gay patients under legislation passed Wednesday by the Michigan House.
The bill allows health care workers to refuse service to anyone on moral, ethical or religious grounds.
The Republican dominated House passed the measure as dozens of Catholics looked on from the gallery. The Michigan Catholic Conference, which pushed for the bills, hosted a legislative day for Catholics on Wednesday at the state Capitol.
The bills now go the Senate, which also is controlled by Republicans.
The Conscientious Objector Policy Act would allow health care providers to assert their objection within 24 hours of when they receive notice of a patient or procedure with which they don’t agree. However, it would prohibit emergency treatment to be refused.
Courtesy of Jeramy Townsley, Adjunct Faculty, Psychology, IUPUI and Univ of Indpls
Below are numerous factual errors from the anti-equal marriage rights advocates who are seeking to prevent equal marriage rights for gay people, with factual analysis and studies included illustrating the mistaken ideas in their arguments.
According to the Associate Press:
SAN FRANCISCO — A Superior Court judge has ruled that California’s law limiting marriage to a union between a man and a woman is unconstitutional. The lawsuits were brought by the city of San Francisco and a dozen same-sex couples last March, after the California Supreme Court halted the four-week marriage spree Mayor Gavin Newsom had initiated when he directed city officials to issue marriage licenses to gays and lesbians in defiance of state law.
They argued that California can no longer justify limiting marriage to a man and a woman, hoping for a ruling that, if upheld on appeal, would pave the way for the nation’s most populous state to follow Massachusetts in allowing same-sex couples to wed.
Since Jan. 1, same-sex couples registering as domestic partners in California have been granted virtually all the rights and responsibilities of marriage, so the arguments for striking down the state’s gay marriage ban have centered as much on the social meaning of marriage as its legal benefits.
As the Washington Post reveals, Bush’s “conversations” with “the people” about social security are anything but that. They are orchestrated, scripted, staged “meetings” with people put in place specifically to agree with him, and the whole point is for the local news to film the “event” and put it on TV as propaganda for Bush’s screwed up plan.
As the WP reveals in their article, and as you can see in this similar New York Times article on the same issue, people who dissent with the president are drowned out, or forced to leave.
So much for democracy and freedom of speech.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/dayart/20050313/Cartoon20050313.gif
Recently the Indiana Senate passed Senate Joint Resolution 7 on a vote of 42 to 8. The proposal to amend Indiana’s Constitution to ban same-sex marriage now moves to the Indiana House of Representatives for their consideration. Authored by Senator Brandt Hershman (R-Wheatfield), SJR 7 would also bar similar legal structures such as civil unions, threaten domestic-partnership benefits, and endanger other legal protections for unmarried families.
If your Indiana State Senator is one of the 42, they are Wanted for Crimes Against the Constitution! Please let your Senator’s constituents know about this! Download a WANTED Poster [PDF] of your senator to send!
For example if you live in ZIP Code 46219, your Senator is probably Patricia L. Miller, Republican.
Photo Set: 2005 Rally Against SJR-7
We had a wonderful, successful rally at the Indiana Statehouse yesterday! Hundreds of people showed up with extraordinary signs to protest the SJR7 legislation. We were getting people’s contact information, and of the people who agreed to sign up, we got 757 contact addresses. That was about 3/4ths of the crowd, so we had about 1,000 people attending.
What I was really impressed with was not just the fact that I saw tons of people I knew (some of whom I’d never imagine going to a political rally) but I saw tons of people I’ve never seen before in my life. That’s really amazing, because when you’ve been out in the gay community as long as I have, you tend to think it’s really small and that everyone knows everyone else. It takes something like this to make me realize that we have a HUGE gay community in Indiana.
There were excellent speakers, and according to some of the people who lobby regularly, we made a great impression on some of the legislators. Nobody expected the size of crowd we had. At the end of the rally we went inside to lobby, and ran into Eric Miller’s Advance America bigots as they were leaving. Most of Miller’s crowd were home-schooled kids and christian school kids who get extra credit for being bussed into Miller’s rally.
So we chanted at them and basically screwed up the end of their rally. Stephanie and I were by the doors, and a group of bigots who were leaving started to bunch up to trap us inside, chanting and trying to intimidate us. So we kissed in front of them and freaked them out. It was GREAT! They RAN outside to get away from us. A reporter from the IU School Paper snapped our photo while we were kissing, and then interviewed us, so we’re likely to end up in the IU paper. It was really exciting.
UPDATE: Stephanie and I were quoted in the IU paper but they didn’t include our picture.
Scott Barrett’s Photos
Marti Abernathy’s Photos
Scott Barnes’ Photos
Wilson’s Photos
Check out this picture of an anti-gay bigot attempting to punch one of the people from our rally:
South Bend Tribune
Another Story of threatened violence from the bigots from a person at our rally: “The Advance America people were filing out —a small group of 5 or 6 young men approached me holding our big IE sign and one said, ‘Don’t you wish we had some torches?!’ The others laughed and they continued on down to the sidewalk.”
NUVO Story: “God hates gays”
Indy Star
WISH-TV
WTHR
The IndyChannel (RTV6)
WXIN – Channel 59 (Indianapolis)
WIBC/Network Indiana
Associated Press
Courier-Journal (Louisville)
Indianapolis Star (Dan Carpenter column) “Inside the anti-gay crusade”
Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne)
Courier & Press (Evansville)
Northwest Indiana Times
365Gay.Com
What follows has been lifted from an article called “Top Ten “Anti-Gay” Companies” that was published in a Christian magazine called Business Reform (hence the anti-gay language). Don’t shop here:
4. Meijer Inc.
Industry: Retail
Why We Picked Them: Meijer made the number 9 spot in 2004 on Forbes’ list of the 200 Largest Private Companies, and yet they still have succeeded where retail king Wal-Mart has failed. No domestic partner benefits, nothing about gays in the workplace written into the company manual, and no overt support of the GLBT lifestyle or agenda.
8. RadioShack
Industry: Retail
Why We Picked Them: With industry mates Borders Group, Best Buy, Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and SC Johnson & Son getting high praise from pro-gay groups like The Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC), RadioShack has retained most of their values when it comes to not supporting the homosexual agenda. The company offers no benefits for domestic partners, and requires no sexual diversity training. RadioShack also does not support any GLBT groups financially.
9. Exxon Mobile
Industry: Energy and Utilities
Why We Picked Them: Exxon, in 1999, was only the second company in
American history to rescind domestic partner benefits for its employees (Perot Systems Corp. was the first-see above). It also rescinded its sexual non-discrimination policy that was once in its employee handbook. Exxon is not exactly on the HRC’s list of favorite companies, given that Exxon regularly donates money to organizations dedicated to upholding traditional family values.
House Democrats in Indiana were concerned about two bills that threatened the rights of Hoosiers; a bill that created an “Inspector General” position for the Governor’s office, which would allow the Governor to appoint his own prosecutor and basically screw up the balance of power between government branches, and a bill requiring voters to present a driver’s license at the polls, which would prevent poor Hoosiers who can’t afford a driver’s license or state ID card from being able to vote.
So they walked out of the House and refused to hear 130 some bills, which killed many of them.
Now the Governor Daniels is calling Democrats terrorists, and accusing them of “car-bombing” his pet legislation, and refusing to apologize for his inflammatory rhetoric.
Of course last year Daniel’s precious Republicans pulled the same “car-bombing” stunt themselves, walking out of the House and killing legislation because they were insisting that their Pro-bigotry and Pro-hate bill on equal marriage rights should be heard. So what Indiana Republicans are saying is that bigotry and hatred are good, and protecting the rights of Hoosiers is bad.
You know what Governor Daniels? If Democrats are “car bombers” then you’re a giant doody-head. (Originally my language was much stronger, but then I decided I shouldn’t try to be a bigger jerk than him).