Binational couple: We want equal treatment (CNN Video Interview)

 

ThinkProgress.org reports “This afternoon, CNN hosted Bradford Wells and Anthony John Makk, a binational couple married in Massachusetts in 2004. Makk — who is an Australian — applied for permanent residency, but his application has been denied since the Defense of Marriage Act prohibits the federal government from recognizing same-sex relationships. Wells had this message for those who support the discriminatory law: “I would like someone to try to uphold the Constitution of the United States. I would like equal treatment. I want my marriage to be recognized just like every other marriage in this country is recognized.” Watch it:

S.F. Gay Married Couple Loses Immigration Battle, Every Gay Loses

As gays we are always in the game of 1 step forward two steps backwards. I think it should be made mandatory to look under the ugly masks of republicans to see if they are hiding any devil horns. We all should be sickened by this story. I feel like a good old fashion Harvey Milk riot should occur. AB

via www.sfgate.com

Citing the Defense of Marriage Act, the Obama administration denied immigration benefits to a married gay couple from San Francisco and ordered the expulsion of a man who is the primary caregiver to his AIDS-afflicted spouse.

Bradford Wells, a U.S. citizen, and Anthony John Makk, a citizen of Australia, were married seven years ago in Massachusetts. They have lived together 19 years, mostly in an apartment in the Castro district. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services denied Makk’s application to be considered for permanent residency as a spouse of an American citizen, citing the 1996 law that denies all federal benefits to same-sex couples.

The decision was issued July 26. Immigration Equality, a gay-rights group that is working with the couple, received the notice Friday and made it public Monday. Makk was ordered to depart the United States by Aug. 25. Makk is the sole caregiver for Wells, who has severe health problems.

“I’m married just like any other married person in this country,” Wells said. “At this point, the government can come in and take my husband and deport him. It’s infuriating. It’s upsetting. I have no power, no right to keep my husband in this country. I love this country, I live here, I pay taxes and I have no right to share my home with the person I married.”

Husband’s pleas READ HERE

Handpicked News: DOMA Red Tape, Legal in Washington, Gavin Newsom 2014, Polygamist Leader…

Same-Sex Marriage Becomes Legal in Washington (at Least One Part) Chief Seattle would be proud. The tribe he led in the late 1700s, the Suquamish, has made a giant leap toward equality by allowing and recognizing same-sex marriage. According to the Kitsap Sun,the Suquamish Tribal Council in Washington State voted Monday to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples on its reservation near Seattle, at the request of Heather Purser, a lesbian tribal member.                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Lesbian Soldier Snagged in DOMA Red Tape  Jessica Lohmeier, who served in the Army Reserves for two years, had a boy in 2009. She told WILX News that after raising James with her partner Lauren Russell for two years, she is ready to reenlist. However, the military requires that all parents with full custody of their children, like Lohmeier, show a marriage license as proof that a spouse will be able to take care of the child if the enlisted parent is assigned overseas. The policy states that the military may not “enlist an unmarried individual with a child under 18,” according to the report.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Gay-Friendly Programming Can Be Family Programming, Among Other Things  The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamationjust named ABC Family the network that does the best job at portraying gay characters — and as portraying them as something other than simply white urbanized men. Apparently, 55 percent of the network’s original programming hours have images of LGBT people, which seems like an impressively high ratio considering the actual number of gay people in the population, though it would be interesting to see also what percentage of their characters are gay, and how many of those programming hours feature gay characters instead of having them in the mix or in the background. 

Romney Signs Anti-Gay Group’s Campaign Pledge Ben Smith reports that Mitt Romney has signed-on to the National Organization for Marriage (NOM’s) anti-gay campaign pledge, joining fellow candidates Rick Santorum and Michele Bachmann. The document — while far less controversial than a  similar effort by Iowa’s FAMiLY LEADER — commits the 2012 contenders to strongly opposing the advancement of LGBT equality.

Gavin Newsom Fundraising In The Lead As Candidates Look To 2014 This article comes to us courtesy of California Watch. By Chase Davis The semiannual state campaign filing deadline passed this week, and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom isn’t being shy about his future ambitions. The onetime gubernatorial candidate raised nearly $300,000 in the first six months of this year, far outpacing the state’s other major officeholders as they begin to look toward their next moves in 2014. Both Newsom and Attorney General Kamala Harris have been mentioned as gubernatorial candidates-in-waiting if Gov. Jerry Brown decides against another run in 2014. For her part, Harris raised about $112,000 for her 2014 campaign committee so far this year.

Fighter Jets Intercept 75-Year-Old Woman’s Plane During Obama Chicago Visit SOUTH BARRINGTON, Ill. — Two F-16 fighter jets intercepted a plane flown by a 75-year-old woman when it entered restricted airspace during President Barack Obama’s Chicago visit. Police say the South Barrington woman was flying the plane by herself and wasn’t aware she was in restricted airspace. They say she didn’t seem shaken, but was surprised. South Barrington is a northwestern Chicago suburb with about 4,500 residents. Obama was in Chicago for a birthday fundraiser.

Polygamist Leader Convicted Of Child Sex Abuse A Texas jury has convicted polygamist leader Warren Jeffs on child sexual assault charges in a case stemming from two young followers he took as brides in what his church calls “spiritual marriages.” The 55-year-old head of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints stood stone-faced as the verdict was read.The charges came after a massive 2008 raid of the church’s remote West Texas ranch. Jeffs faces up to life in prison. A forensic analyst testified that Jeffs was an almost certain DNA match to the child of a 15-year-old mother. Jeffs also was accused of assaulting a 12-year-old girl. Jeffs acted as his own attorney and claimed he was a victim of religious persecution.

Handpicked Headlines: Syphilis on the Rise, Homophobic Statements From Boehner, Santorum Lashes Out At Dan Savage…

Study: Syphilis on the Rise Among Minority Gay Men Syphilis rates among young, minority gay and bisexual men are rising disproportionately, according to a new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Reuters reports on the increase in syphilis cases. “Using data from 27 states, CDC researchers found that between 2005 and 2008, the syphilis rate among black gay and bisexual men rose at an 8-times faster clip compared with their white counterparts. 

 Scandal Drives Gay Candidate Out of Race to Become Irish President Today marked the end of a campaign by the gay man who had led public opinion polls to become Ireland’s president. Sen. David Norris was discovered this weekend to have long ago sent a letter to Israeli authorities asking for clemency for his former partner, Ezra Nawi, who was accused of statutory rape involving a 15-year-old boy. Norris failed to disclose that his ongoing relationship with Nawi, who was later convicted.

 

Top Five Homophobic Statements From Boehner’s DOMA Briefs This week we get a first look at how House Speaker JohnBoehner (R-OH) intends to defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court.  If the briefs filed by attorney Paul Clement yesterday are any indication, the House Republicans will be pushing every anti-gay message possible to ensure the federal government continues to discriminate against same-sex couples. And of course, taxpayers are covering the bill for all these legal fees.                                                                                                                                                                    Santorum Lashes Out At Dan Savage: ‘He’s Below The Dignity Of Anybody’

ThinkProgress filed this report from the Western Conservative Summit in Denver, Colorado.Former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) did little to alleviate his “Google problem” this weekend, lashing out at Dan Savage — who spearheaded the campaign to redefine Santorum’s last name — and calling the gay activist “below the dignity of anybody.” 

*Miley Cyrus, Adorable Equal Marriage Rights Hero

*Rep. West Angry Over Being Dropped From Speaking Gig, Calls Planned LGBT Boycott ‘Intolerable’

NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR MARRIAGE GOES AFTER ANTI-BULLYING POLICY | Equality Matters’ Carlos Maza notices that for all its claims of loving gay people and merely opposing the “redefinition” of marriage, the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) can’t help but blog about how anti-bullying policies have given “homosexual activists a foothold in order to further subvert already weak Catholic sexual teaching in the schools.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Handpicked News: No Longer Required To Teach Cursive, ‘Heartbeat Bill’ , 3 Antigay Amendments, Monogamish

A Parody about the Great Recession:Wantmore, Tweakmore, Totalscum, and the Tragedy of Boneheadia In the country of Boneheadia there was a man, Wantmore, who earned his income as a home mortgage loan originator. Wantmore operated conservatively. All his home loans bore interest rates of 6 percent or less, and he demanded of all borrowers large down payments, documented proof of adequate income, and an immaculate credit-using history. Wantmore sold all his loans to life insurance companies that, before closing purchases, checked loan quality with rigor—then held all loans to maturity.

Monogamish Anti-equality right-wingers have long insisted that allowing gays to marry will destroy the sanctity of “traditional marriage,” and, of course, thelogical, liberal party-line response has long been “No, it won’t.” But what if—for once—the sanctimonious crazies are right? Could the gay male tradition of open relationships actually alter marriage as we know it? And would that be such a bad thing? With divorce rates at an all-time high and news reports full of famous marriages crumbling at the hand of flagrant infidelities (see: Schwarzenegger, Arnold), perhaps now is the perfect time for the gays to conduct a little marriage makeover.

Mark Foley Has Prostate Cancer Former Rep. Mark Foley says that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and will soon undergo surgery to treat it in the coming weeks. 

Pro-Gay Measure Leads to Heated Exchange Metro Nashville Council member Jamie Hollin (pictured) went on a profanity-laced rant Tuesday night against other councilmen after his proposal to praise students who protested Tennessee’s “don’t say gay” bill was killed. 

3 Antigay Amendments Proposed in Defense Spending Bill Rep. Foxx of North Carolina’s amendment would restate the Defense of
Marriage Act, which has barred the federal government from recognizing marriages or unions of same-sex couples since 1996. Ty Cobb, a legislative counselor for the Human Rights Campaign wrote that there was no denying that DOMA is clearly still the law of the land, adding he found it “troubling that Rep. Foxx would question whether our military leaders understand this point.”

Ohio ‘Heartbeat Bill’ Divides Pro-Life Community A controversial new bill in Ohio that would ban abortions after the fetal heartbeat can be detected is driving a wedge into the state’s pro-life community, with some concerned that a court battle over the bill could end up reaffirming Roe v. Wade.

Buffett: GOP Threatening To ‘Blow Your Brains Out’ Over Debt Ceiling  Republicans are playing a dangerous game by refusing to raise the debt ceiling, according to Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett. “We raised the debt ceiling seven times during the Bush Administration,” Buffett told CNBC on Thursday. Now, the Republican-controlled Congress is “trying to use the incentive now that we’re going to blow your brains out, America, in terms of your debt worthiness over time.”

Indiana Schools No Longer Required To Teach Cursive [POLL]Is the keyboard completely replacing the pen?Indiana school officials have announced that students will no longer be required to learn cursive writing, effective this fall. In a memo to schools in April, state officials said schools can still teach cursive as independent school protocol, but students will be expected to be proficient in using the keyboard, The Tribune-Starreports.

Gay Sailors Will Be Able to Wed on Base

Really? It seems as if our Country has a syncing problem. Part of the US is moving gaywardly forward, while the rest is stuck in the mud. Married gay sailors = HOT! Married gay sailors = a positive role model for the US as a whole. ~AB

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By Michelle Garcia at Advocate Daily

Following the impending repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” Navy chaplains have been given the go-ahead to perform weddings for same-sex couples in states where marriage equality has been legalized.

An April 13 document from the Office of the Chief of Navy Chaplains was recovered recently, showing that inquiries were made into whether chaplains will be allowed to perform such ceremonies. After legal review “legal counsel has concluded that base use is sexual orientation-neutral. If the base is located in a state where same-sex marriage is legal, then base facilities may normally be used to celebrate the marriage,” the document says.

Chaplains are allowed to officiate same-sex civil marriages if the church they belong to recognizes the union.

Related articles

• -Navy to Allow Chaplains to Perform Same-Sex ‘Marriages’ in Naval Chapels? (answersforthefaith.com)
• US Navy Gives OK for On Base Same-Sex Marriages (lezgetreal.com)

Your Abs Aren’t Going to Get My Vote Schock

I say do what it takes. It will take you showing me more than your waxed and airbrushed abs to get me to vote for you. The world of politics is a different creature than it once was. One day our presidential debates with have a swim suit portion and a America Next Top Model pose off. AB

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Shirtless Schock in Men’s Health

By Advocate.com Editors

Antigay conservative Rep. Aaron Schock, who once burned a belt blogs said made him look gay, appears shirtless on the cover of the new issue of Men’s Health, with the magazine dubbing him “America’s Fittest Congressman.”

Schock, 29, a freshman congressman from Peoria, Ill., is teaming up with the magazine for the Fit for Life summer challenge. In fact, Schock is better known for his abs than for his policy. A photo of him in a swimsuit poolside first went viral in 2009 when TMZ posted it on the popular gossip site.

But Schock has also made known his feelings on gay issues. In Febuary, he spoke out strongly favoring the Defense of Marriage Act and bashing the Obama administration’s refusal to defend DOMA.

Last year, when a photo of Schock wearing an aquamarine belt many bloggers said made him look gay went viral, he tweeted that he’s “burned the belt” and that he “never thought a pic of me w/ my shirt on would go viral.”

Related articles

• Chris Lee and More Shirtless Politicians (thedailybeast.com)
• Photo: Rep. Aaron Schock (R-IL) Shows Off His Abs on Men’s Health (towleroad.com)