Huckabee and the Republic of Gilead

I've always known that the United States has just as many religious fanatics as Iran does....but I didn't think I'd ever live to see the day when it became a Christofascist state.

Or the homophobic Walmart version of the Republic of Gilead.

But now I'm not so sure.

"I feel homosexuality is an aberrant, unnatural, and sinful lifestyle, and we now know it can pose a dangerous public health risk....

If the federal government is truly serious about doing something with the AIDS virus, we need to take steps that would isolate the carriers of this plague."

Uh oh. Hucky Fucky. Here comes Bad Jesus.

But then what do you expect from a country where the Republican leadership candidates spend all their time arguing about who is the better Christian?

Just like Mitt Romney did....with his recent ridiculous ode to theocracy. Which he tried to compare to the speech John Kennedy once made.

Oh boy did he ever...














Even though as Maureen Dowd points out...Mitt Romney is no JFK.

Disguised as a courageous, Kennedyesque statement of principle, the talk was really just an attempt to compete with the evolution-disdaining, religion-baiting Huckabee and get Baptists to concede that Mormons are Christians.

“J.F.K.’s speech was to reassure Americans that he wasn’t a religious fanatic... Mitt’s was to tell evangelical Christians, ‘I’m a religious fanatic just like you.’

Even though Mormons aren't really Christians.

I mean just tell the Holy Roller Republican base that the followers of Moroni believe Jesus is the brother of Satan.

And that Mormonism is the only TRUE FAITH.

And it's no wonder Mitt's little speech went down almost as well as this one...



You know ....the frightening thing is our hairy ancestors were drawing those kind of horned creatures on the walls of their caves.

The only difference is that back then religion was just harmless Ju Ju Monkey nonsense.

Now it's getting dangerous...

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P.S. I just LOVED what Chris Kelly had to say about Romney's speech in the Huffington Post.

"Mitt Romney made his religion speech during Hanukkah because he's the only candidate oily enough to burn for eight days...."

He burns now.

We burn later...

Pickton and the Pig Farm Murders

When I heard that Robert Pickton had been convicted of second degree murder in the case of the missing women of Vancouver, at first I was disappointed. It didn't seem fair.

It didn't seem enough for a man who not only murdered so many women. But also tried to destroy all traces that they had ever existed. Just like the Nazis did.

But then I realized the convictions would probably be enough to keep him in jail forever. I remembered that this case was bigger than that miserable monster. And it was NEVER fair.

All those women who disappeared were failed first by society. And then by the police. Because they were poor, and so many were native women, or drug addicts, or sex workers, police didn't care about them enough...until it was too late. And the pig farm was soaked in blood and full of shredded body parts.

Even though every human life counts .... no matter how poor or how miserable. Even though all the women had families and friends who loved them. Just like Sarah De Vries did.













You can read more about Sarah De Vries....and see some haunting video of her...in this post.

If there is a second trial....and there should be one....Sarah and the 19 other women Pickton is accused of killing will get a measure of justice. And so will those who loved them.

But of course it's way too late. And it will never be enough.

So what I am hoping for is a full public inquiry. Not just to determine once and for all why things went so terribly wrong. Why a killer was allowed to go on killing. And so many lives that could have been spared were lost.

But also because hopefully it will finally bring some help to the desperately poor and vulnerable people of the Downtown Eastside. So they can be treated like human beings at last. And escape the nightmare that is Canada's shame.

During my brief stay in Vancouver a few years ago I saw some sights in that neighbourhood that haunt me to this day. It wasn't scary or threatening just terribly depressing and sad. I saw so much poverty and despair it was hard to believe I was really in Canada. So I can only imagine what it must be like to live and die there.

Just like so many women who disappeared did. And so many desperate women still do.

In her diary not long before she disappeared Sarah DeVries wrote:

"Will they remember me when I'm gone...or will their lives just carry on? Will the tears fall from their eyes? When they try to say their goodbyes..."

Nobody who loved these women ever had a chance to say goodbye. Their tears will flow forever. And life does carry on.

But if the rest of us want to remember Sarah and all the others...and try to extract some good out of this monstrous tragedy and horror show.

The only decent and Canadian thing to do is try to make sure that something so cruel and so horrible... and so shameful.

Never ever happens again...

While the Planet Burns....

John Baird in Bali.

"Our major economic competition is with the United States....You can have unilateral disarmament. Some might call it noble - but it's not necessarily smart."

Michael Ignatieff in Question Period.

"Mr. Speaker, the government is going to Bali refusing to commit to any carbon pollution targets unless everyone signs on. That is like saying, “I won't recycle unless every one does. I won't pick up litter unless everyone does. I won't stop dumping garbage in the lake unless everyone does”. What kind of Canada have we become when that passes for international leadership?"

David Suzuki on the crime against humanity.

"Failure to act is an "intergenerational crime;" we are leaving a mess for our children and grandchildren who had nothing to do with making it, and we are creating a precarious world for the poorest and most vulnerable peoples who were not the cause of the current crisis."

Stephen Harper in his own words.

"We can debate whether or not... CO2 does or does not contribute to global warming. I think the jury is out."

“Kyoto does virtually nothing to deal with pollution and to deal with the quality of the air that we breathe. Let’s forget about this unworkable treaty…. Kyoto’s never going to be passed.”

These Cons must think we're really stupid. And maybe we are.

How else to explain how a modern, civilized, and educated country could elect these climate change deniers and oil pimps to speak in OUR name?

And shame us in the eyes of the world.

It's bad enough that they are brutalizing and ruining the Canada we love.

But if they help sabotage what could be the planet's last chance to avoid catastrophe.

Future generations will NEVER forgive us.

And the shame will go on and on...

Bothwell and the Gay Couple. Part II

About a week ago I wrote a post about a gay couple who complained that they had been terrorized by a bunch of homophobes in the small town of Bothwell, Ontario.

And although I admit I had to look up the town on Google Earth ....I've learned quite a bit about Bothwell ever since.

As you can see in the comments...I have been engaged in an interesting... and respectful.... discussion with some Bothwell residents who feel their town has been unfairly portrayed as a hateful place.

I promised them I'd keep an open mind and update the story as soon as I could. But there have been no follow up stories in the two papers that ran the story. So I have been following the debate in the letters to the editor pages of the local media. Like this one.

From what I've read quite a few residents seem to suggest that the Hamiltons were the authors of their own misfortune:

The saying goes, if you want to have good neighbours, you need to be a good neighbour.When these men moved into Bothwell, they met people with, “Hi, I’m Terry (or Ryan) and I’m gay.”Who cares?They made sure people knew they were gay, like they were more special than others. I have never met anyone with, “Hi, I’m Lori and I’m heterosexual.”

And Erin has more to say about that in a long comment you can read at the bottom of my last post:

i have been doing investigations into this matter and there are several more instances this has come about including the owners of two businesses that were approached within the first week of the hamiltons living in town about if they would serve the couple because they are gay.. now is that somehting most homosexual people would do i don't think so it sounds to me that they were digging...

...the spray paint incident happened on October 16th only two weeks before the hamiltons moved (which was planned before the event happened) tell me they felt threatened before then guys come on nothing happened before then except a couple kids stole their lawn orniments and out them on the roof of the building besonde them give me a break look at the facts ....

Others are outraged that the whole town has been smeared:

It sickens me that the Hamiltons have succeeded in portraying Bothwell as some gay-hating, redneck town that runs people out. Secondly, this isn’t news, it’s libel.This story has destroyed the credibility of many wonderful people, who have worked and continue to work hard to make Bothwell a wonderful little town in which to live. If they Hamiltons think they’re upset, just think of how the volunteers and business people feel to hear that they’re rednecks and anti-gay. Many residents didn’t even know this couple existed.

And then there's the former resident who worked at the local paper:

Does this latest incident surprise me? No. Regrettably, during my time at The Spirit of Bothwell I would hear derogatory comments being made in the community about a variety of groups -- be it because of their nationality, sexual preference, race, etc.

So is Bothwell the exception to the rule? Not at all. This sort of narrow-minded attitude is prevalent in other small towns and, for that matter, every big city you can think of. But the idea of ‘just leave us alone, other places are like this as well’ is moot. While it is true such bigotry happens elsewhere, right now, Bothwell, you’re in the spotlight and you must address what has occurred.

By simply saying ‘oh well’ and hoping the storm subsides is not going to accomplish anything. The odious and abhorrent thoughts of a few have, unfortunately, tarnished what so many in Bothwell have worked in trying to accomplish for decades regarding their town -- to be an appealing, quaint place to raise a family.

After reading all of this I'm not going to even TRY to judge who I think is right or wrong. Firstly who am I to judge? Secondly..... I have no reason to believe anyone isn't telling the truth as he or she sees it. And of course I haven't heard a word from the Hamiltons.











But I will say this: In the original newspaper article the Hamiltons said most of the hate came from a "handful" of residents. So it's not fair to blame the whole town for the actions of a few. And I think most people understand that so the town should relax a bit.

On the other hand.... whether or not the two gay men were prickly neighbours... or whether or not some incidents may have been blown out of proportion...nothing can justify the attack on the Hamiltons the night the lights went out .....or the "Die Fags" scrawled on their house.

That's a HATE crime and the person or persons responsible should be charged ...or severely reprimanded whether they are juveniles or not. And the fact that nobody has so far is troubling.

As the former resident who worked at the local paper wrote:

So while I am personally bothered by the latest incident, what’s troubling is that I’m not actually shocked.What will shock me, however, is if those residents of Bothwell who are ill at ease over what has happened simply shrug it off.

The good news? The people of Bothwell ARE standing up for their town. They have a facebook page called "Bothwell--not full of homophobic people we deserve the right to a rebuttal" If you have a facebook account you should check them out.

And the best part is...whether they intended to or not ....they ARE sending out a powerful message of tolerance. Homophobia or any kind of hate stinks. And we don't want it in our town.

At least I hope that's the message people hear.

Because it's a good one.

And judging by Google Earth.

It does look like a pretty town...

Global Warming and the Threat From the Deep

When you stare at our beautiful, but small and fragile planet, it's not hard to imagine how life could be wiped out by an all-out nuclear war....or a collision with a giant asteroid.

But what if the threat came out of the blue? What if the planet itself was able to exterminate life?

What if it already had?

New geochemical evidence is coming from the bands of stratified rock that delineate mass extinction events in the geologic record, including the exciting discovery of chemical residues, called organic biomarkers, produced by tiny life-forms that typically do not leave fossils. Together these data make it clear that cataclysmic impact as a cause of mass extinction was the exception, not the rule. In most cases, the earth itself appears to have become life's worst enemy in a previously unimagined way. And current human activities may be putting the biosphere at risk once again.

The evidence suggests that as greenhouse gases released by huge volcanic eruptions raised global temperatures oxygen levels fell in the oceans. And that allowed a deep ocean bacteria to bloom and rise to the surface...releasing massive bubbles of toxic hydrogen sulphide gas that devastated life on earth.

But could it happen again?

The so-called thermal extinction at the end of the Paleocene began when atmospheric CO2 was just under 1,000 parts per million (ppm). At the end of the Triassic, CO2 was just above 1,000 ppm. Today with CO2 around 385 ppm, it seems we are still safe. But with atmospheric carbon climbing at an annual rate of 2 ppm and expected to accelerate to 3 ppm, levels could approach 900 ppm by the end of the next century, and conditions that bring about the beginnings of ocean anoxia may be in place.

But is that scenario too optimistic?

The U.N.'s climate change panel has predicted that CO2 levels could reach 550 ppm by 2050. But what if carbon dioxide levels rose faster than that? And didn't just continue to rise steadily. But suddenly jumped.

Because the oceans couldn't absorb enough carbon dioxide.

Same thing for the rain forests which we continue to destroy. Studies now show that rising CO2 levels can inhibit not enhance plant growth...like we once thought. So they won't be able to absorb as much carbon dioxide either.

What if almost ALL the carbon dioxide we produce went into the atmosphere?

What if rising temperatures caused vast amounts of methane gas to escape from the melting permafrost of Canada and Siberia?

The sudden melting of a bog the size of France and Germany combined could unleash billions of tonnes of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere.
What if what we thought was a steady and predictable increase....turned into an unpredictable....and unstoppable.... chain reaction?

I guess what I'm trying to say is when the world leaders meet in Bali to discuss how to stop global warming they better be super serious and VERY careful.

Because here's the thing. The reason we didn't figure out sooner what really caused those mass extinctions....was that the tiny killers didn't leave a fossil record. We couldn't see them...so we didn't know what happened.

Which makes me wonder what other hidden threats are lurking out there? What else don't we know?

And should remind us all....to demand that our political leaders in Bali take immediate action NOW before it's too late. If only just in case.

Because what we know is scary enough.

But what we don't know could KILL us....

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P.S. If we want to help save Canada AND the planet....

" It would take more than one letter to explain what’s wrong with Kyoto, but here are a few facts about this so-called “Accord”:
— It’s based on tentative and contradictory scientific evidence about climate trends.
— It focuses on carbon dioxide, which is essential to life, rather than upon pollutants..."

Stephen Harper 2002

First we gotta get rid of this crazy oil pimp....

Iran Hangs Another Gay Man

Remember the story of the young gay man in Iran who was going to be hanged for having sex with other boys his age...when he was just thirteen?

And how it looked as if his life was going to be spared?

Well ....sadly... it wasn't.

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) has learned today that despite an order by the Iranian Chief Justice to nullify his death sentence, Mr. Makvan Mouloodzadeh was executed in Kermanshah Central Prison at 5 a.m. this morning, Iranian time. Neither Mr. Mouloodzadeh's family or his lawyer were told about the execution until after it occurred.











Mr. Mouloodzadeh was a 21-year-old Iranian citizen who was accused of committing anal rape (ighab) with other young boys when he was 13 years old. However, at Mr. Mouloodzadeh's trial, all the witnesses retracted their pre-trial testimonies, claiming to have lied to the authorities under duress. Makvan also told the court that his confession was made under coercion and pleaded not guilty.

One more murdered gay man.....in a country where 4,000 are believed to have been executed.

Too bad. For a moment I allowed myself to believe that along with all the others who raised their voices in protest I had actually helped save a life. I guess it was too good to be true.

But it doesn't matter The struggle for freedom continues.

The evil religious fanatics who run that country may not be building a nuclear bomb.

But they're still guilty of crimes against humanity.

And one day they'll pay for them...

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P.S. One big gay blog in the U.S. suggested that rather than sending letters and postcards to Iranian officials.... we might want to send them dog shit in the mail instead.

But that wouldn't work for me.

Even if I could put my old lab on a four poops a day regime....and collected all the other poop in the doggie park...I still wouldn't have enough to let them know how I really feel....

Because Sometimes in Iraq.....

....it's better to laugh than cry.









I don't know what the Iraqis think about this party patrol.

But it sure beats killing them....

The Westboro Baptist Church Strikes Again

Just when I thought religion couldn't get crazier...and that the saga of the Teddy Bear and the Teacher was a shoo in for my monthly Bad Monkey Ju Ju Awards.

Along comes the Westboro Baptist Church and steals the show again....


Remember my fellow Fag Beasts.

If we didn't have these crazy homophobes to make a mockery out of religion.

We'd have to invent them ....

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P.S. If you want to make a statement against religion....and come out as an atheist...click on the big A in my sidebar.

Rufus, Judy, and a Gay Night to Remember

Although I'm not religious I do have quite a few heavenly visions. From the one where I'm on a tropical beach surrounded by a bevy of hunky naked non virgins fanning me and feeding me grapes and stuff.

To the one where I'm a marijuana plantation owner with a big straw hat.....and Stephen Harper is a nasty looking porker in a pen squealing for piggy treats. And I'm not giving him any.

But in every version Rufus Wainwright is always singing and playing the piano in the bar around the corner.

So I'm glad to see the Guardian agrees with me. Rufus is brilliant.









His richly textured tenor is like no other in pop: such is its power that even in the largest of theatres he can pull out the plugs and sing with no amp. That voice was put to full use in Wainwright's song-for-song recreation of Judy Garland's legendary 1961 Carnegie Hall concert, released as a record today. Showbusiness does not get any bigger.

And Rufus singing Judy's songs from the concert that many have called the greatest night in show business does not get any better or GAYER.

Because the night Judy came back after recovering from a serious illness .....that many believed had ended her career.....her most faithful fans were there.

Judy Garland walked out on the Carnegie Hall stage last evening and let them have it. That is, she let them have it as soon as they let her let them have it.

They were mostly stage people, taking in a show on their night off. And being of that particular breed, they were, of course, demonstrative, They knew Judy and she knew them, so first of all they had to stand up, clap and holler.

Back then we were the stage people. Now we're the gay people. But they loved Judy. As the cops found out when they raided a bar a few days after her death. And setoff this riot.

Just like I love Rufus.













Proud but moody gay boy....tortured soul....young man of many faces...chrystal meth survivor...and now a bright Canadian star lighting up the show biz universe.

You can't ask for a better story than that.

Although as Canadians...wasn't it OBVIOUS long ago that this kid was going places?



Yup.

Never mind those heavenly visions. These days a Canadian story with a happy ending. Or a new beginning.

Is more than good enough...

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P.S. I guess I should also include a video to show you how far he's come. And this version of a Leonard Cohen song is one of my favourites...

World AIDS Day 2007

World AIDS Day 2007. More than twenty five million dead. More than 33 million living with HIV. Some encouraging progress. But still no reason to celebrate.

Across the world more and more people are being tested for HIV and put on treatment, the cost of which is at levels unimaginable just a few years ago.

So why aren’t we having a big celebration on this World AIDS Day? Because overall — and certainly in consideration of our abilities — we’re not doing nearly enough to address the disease.

And nowhere is the situation worse than in Africa.

....out of the 33 million , 27 million are in Africa, and only about one million are receiving treatment. That means that nearly 2 million Africans will die of AIDS this year and roughly that number will be infected.

And many more will be affected...or devastated.

Imagine how many people would be directly impacted if YOU were dying of AIDS. Would it be 4, 6 or 10? Certainly 6 is a conservative figure to settle on. That’s the multiplier that should be applied to all AIDS data. Six times 27 million Africans is how many people are really directly impacted. That translates to virtually one-third of the continent.

If you want to know what some of those faces look like check out a video that was released today by Queen and Paul Rogers for Nelson Mandela's 46664 Organization.



Meanwhile in Canada about 2500 people get infected every year, and the real figure is believed to be almost double. More young women are getting sick. Aboriginal people made up 22 per cent of positive HIV tests in 2006...even though they only make up about five percent of the population. So the battle continues.

"It is regrettable that during this time when the HIV/AIDS epidemic is unstable and increasing within some populations, your government has cut funding which will affect the very programs and services aimed at abating the epidemic.... This signals a lack of leadership on and commitment to the fight against HIV/AIDS in Ontario, and across Canada."

Remember the dead. But also remember and support the living. Like Kenn or my friend Billy.

And if you're young and gay...or straight...or for that matter any age...or anyone.

Remember to live long enough to find the one you love...