Random Musings

Overheard at Home: 
Bob: "Maya Angelou died today."
Carlos: "Oh. I'm sorry to hear that."
Bob: "Yeah, she had a pretty incredible life."
Carlos: "Now, which aunt is that — ?"
Bob: "What?"
Carlos: "Is that your aunt from Virginia?"
Goddess love him, eh?

I like a good beer, but I especially like one that tastes like equality.

Out in Idaho Crooked Fence Brewing has released a new brew taking aim at their anti-marriage equality governor, C.L. 'Butch' Otter. Their new India brown ale is being called "Little Bitch Otter."

Crooked Fence Brewing co-owner and marketing director Kelly Knopp:

"Anyone that is going to try to take away freedoms or not let someone be equal, Crooked Fence is against."

Knopp also says a portion of opening day sales will go directly to Add the Words Idaho, and the Pride Foundation.

Good brew!

I didn't watch Lifetime's Flowers in the Attic or the sequel Petals on the Wind because they sounded kinda stupid and kinda soft-core lady porn.

But then I saw actor Wyatt Nash, who co-stars in Petals, and, while I still won't watch it, i may be on the lookout for him.

Well, well, well, count me in.

The U.S. Census Bureau will start categorizing gay married couples as families. Gay married couples are families? Who knew?

The 2013 American Community Survey results, which will be reported in September, will, for the first time, integrate the estimated 180,000 same-sex married couples into the nation’s 56 million families.

We count! We really count!

Okay, so y’all know I’ve taken shots at Justin Bieber in this here bloggy thing because he’s kind of a spoiled little douche, a Sizzurp-slurping, weed-smoking, drag-racing, law-breaking, egg-tossing, fan-hating, misogynist, but, you know, every once in a while even a puissant like The Biebs does something right.

At a recent event for amfAR [American Foundation for AIDS Research] Bieber was listening as one man stepped up with a donation of $545,000 to the charity and he decided, quietly, to match the offer with his own 545K.

His act of generosity apparently stunned the crowd, and also stunned organizers who asked him if he was serious; he was.

I’ll give him props for that.

After cutting Jessica Urbina’s picture from the yearbook because she was wearing a tuxedo, the Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep school in San Francisco has apologized for their asshatted move.

School president John Scudder Jr. and Principal Gary Cannon applauded the students who stood up for, and stood by, Jessica:

“Given the nature of this specific case, we believe that decision, while conforming with our policy, was wrong.”

School officials now say the dress code will be updated to no longer require female students to wear dresses in an effort to be more sensitive every student’s gender identity.

Too bad, though, that Jessica won’t appear in this year’s yearbook.

I was surfing this here Interwebz and I came across this headline over at Towleroad:

‘CLUELESS' ACTRESS STACEY DASH JOINS FOX NEWS

Clueless, indeed. Sometimes these things just write themselves!

Florida … of course … Republican … naturally … Representative  Charles Van Zant has said that the American Institute for Research, a testing company administering new statewide tests for students, has a pro-homosexual agenda because it has done research on LGBT issues. 

Speaking at an education conference, Van Zant said the testing program would "attract every one of your children to become as homosexual as they possibly can."

Yeah, that old indoctrination lie. But it’s a Republican from Florida so did anyone really expect common sense, or even the truth?

Some of you may have noticed that I haven’t posted about 22-year-old Elliot Rodger’s murder spree in Santa Barbara last week.

Well, it’s because I’m tired. I’m tired of everyone getting all riled up about these things when they happen and demanding that gun laws change and then doing nothing about it. I am tired of our elected officials using these murders as a chance to speak about gun control and then go back to their cushy jobs and do nothing about it.

We don’t want gun control, as a nation, because if we did we would demand it, and we would vote out of office every single Republican, Democrat, Independent, and Teabagger who is in the pocket of the NRA. But we don’t, so we don’t care about gun control.

Until it hits close to home, as happened to Richard Martinez, whose son Christopher was murdered by Elliot Rodger. Martinez wants members of Congress and others to stop calling him to offer condolences for his son's death, and he wants them to do something:

"I don’t care about your sympathy. I don’t give a s— that you feel sorry for me. Get to work and do something. I’ll tell the president the same thing if he calls me. Getting a call from a politician doesn’t impress me. … They talk about gun rights. What about Chris' right to live?! When will this insanity stop? When will enough people say, 'Stop this madness?' We don't have to live like this! Too many have died. We should say to ourselves, 'Not. One. More.' … I’m angry with the leadership of the NRA who always want to characterize this as if it’s a lone madman. That it’s an act of nature we have to tolerate. I am angered by how they have worked to normalize this. … I will go anywhere and do anything to support political candidates who are running for office who are in favor of reasonable gun control. … You don’t need three handguns with 400 rounds (of ammunition). That’s crazy. It’s a matter of proportion.”

Hopefully Martinez, who is meeting with Elliot Rodger’s father to create a plan to have stricter gun laws enacted, will be the one to do something.

So we won’t have to hear about these stories again.

Now, onto some better news …

St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia, has shut down its dedicated AIDS ward, saying they no longer have enough patients — and the end of AIDS is in sight.

Ward 10C opened in February 1997 during the peak of the HIV and AIDS epidemic in Vancouver, when approximately one person was dying of AIDS every day. Earlier diagnosis of HIV, along with advances in treatment and care, has resulted in a significant decrease of AIDS. Patients living with HIV will continue to receive world-leading treatment and care. The focus of the ward will include treatment related to addictions such as various bacterial and viral infections like chronic hepatitis.

British Columbia's number of AIDS cases has dropped by 90% since 1995.

Perhaps an end is in sight?

And more good news …

Orange is the New Black actress and trans activist Laverne Cox will be the cover-girl on the June 9th issue of TIME Magazine and took to Facebook to spread the word:

“What a wonderful bday present! Yes today is my birthday and I am on the cover of @TIME magazine. I realize this is way bigger than me and about a tipping point in our nation's history where it is no longer acceptable for trans lives to be stigmatized, ridiculed, criminalized and disregarded. This is for my trans siblings out there and for anyone who has ever been told that who you know yourself to be at your core is not legitimate. You are who you know yourselves to be. #girlslikeus #whereislavernecox #lavernehive”

The times continue to change, eh?