I Didn't Say It ....

Ben Stein, on how to end poverty in America:

"My humble observation is that most long-term poverty is caused by self-sabotage by individuals. Drug use. Drunkenness. Having children without a family structure. Gambling. Poor work habits. Disastrously unfortunate appearance. Above all, and counted in the preceding list, psychological problems (very much including basic laziness) cause people to be unemployed, have poor or no work habits, and enter and stay in poverty. Is there any public policy that can help them? We just don’t know so far. But whipping up hate against the successful simply cannot do it. There is no connecting mechanism between envy and greater productivity. Quite the opposite. Envy legitimizes class hatred and idleness and produces nothing. What will make the genuinely poor stop sabotaging themselves? Maybe, just maybe, if we let God back into the public forum it would help. I have seen spiritual solutions work miracles." 

Seriously, Ben? You thinbk there are no drug-addled, alcohol-addicted, lazy ugly Christians?

You think if God could solve poverty just by eliminating the Separation of Church and State in this country she wouldn't have snapped ehr fingers and done it already.

Seriously, Ben, you're stupid.

Vance McAllister, the Republican Congressman from Louisiana, who campaigned on the defense of “natural marriage", after being busted on video making out with a female aide:

"There’s no doubt I’ve fallen short and I’m asking for forgiveness. I’m asking for forgiveness from God, my wife, my kids, my staff and my constituents who elected me to serve. Trust is something I know has to be earned whether you’re a husband, a father or a congressman. I promise to do everything I can to earn back the trust of everyone I’ve disappointed. From day one, I’ve always tried to be an honest man. I ran for Congress to make a difference and not just be another politician."

No thanks. You preached and campaigned about traditional marriage and how much better it is and how anything less than that hurts society and this country, all the while taking a sh*t on your own marriage.

Heath Peacock, the husband of the woman caught on video making out with Vance McAllister:

"I know his beliefs. When he ran one of his commercials, he said 'I need your prayers,' and I asked, 'When did you get religious?' He said, 'When I needed votes.' He broke out the religious card and he's about the most non-religious person I know. He's apologized to everyone in the world except me. I’m just freaking devastated by the whole deal, man. I loved my wife so much. I cannot believe this. I cannot freaking believe it. I feel like I’m going to wake up here in a minute and this is all going to be a bad nightmare. It was just a kiss, that was all it was, but it embarrassed me and my family."

A kiss is more than a kiss, and your wife is just as much to blame.

But Vance has proven himself to be your typical lying politician who will say anything and do anything to get elected, and then do anyone afterwards.

Kevin Spacey, on the persistent rumors about his sexuality:

"I don't live a lie. You have to understand that people who choose not to discuss their personal lives are not living a lie. That is a presumption that people jump to...I am different than some people would like me to be. I just don't buy into that the personal can be political. I just think that's horseshit. No one's personal life is in the public interest. It's gossip, bottom line. End of story. Now some people feed that. They'll go to the trendy restaurants where all the photographers are and then bitch about being famous. But if you don't want to feed that and you want your life to be based around what your work is then it ends there."

Methinks Kevin doth protest too much. A lie isn’t simply being untruthful; a lie is also in omitting the truth.

Is he gay? I couldn’t care less. But if he is, just by saying those two little words might help a lot of people deal with their own orientation and that wouldn’t be a bad thing at all, now would it Kevin?

Frank Bruni, on the Mozilla business and Brendan Eich:

"A leading supporter of gay marriage, [Andrew] Sullivan warned other supporters not to practice 'a fanaticism more like the religious right than anyone else.' I can’t get quite as worked up as he did. For one thing, prominent gay rights groups weren’t part of the Mozilla fray. For another, Mozilla isn’t the first company to make leadership decisions (or reconsiderations) with an eye toward the boss’s cultural mind-meld with the people below him or her. And if you believe that to deny a class of people the right to marry is to deem them less worthy, it’s indeed difficult to chalk up opposition to marriage equality as just another difference of opinion. But it’s vital to remember how very recently so many of equality’s promoters, like Obama and Clinton, have come around and how relatively new this conversation remains.  [snip] Sullivan is right to raise concerns about the public flogging of someone like Eich. Such vilification won’t accelerate the timetable of victory, which is certain. And it doesn’t reflect well on the victors."

Bruni hits it out of the park again.

Rob Lowe, on how hard it is being pretty:

“There’s this unbelievable bias and prejudice against quote-unquote good-looking people, that they can’t be in pain or they can’t have rough lives or be deep or interesting. They can’t be any of the things that you long to play as an actor. I’m getting to play those parts now and loving it. When I was a teen idol, I was so goddamn pretty I wouldn’t have taken myself seriously.”

It wasn’t the pretty, it was the shallow, Rob.

Paul Newman never had a problem, so maybe it's just you?

Hillary Clinton, on running for President:

"I am thinking about it. ... The hard questions aren't do you want to be president, or can you win. The hard question is why. Why would you want to do this and what would you offer that could make a difference."

Do it.

Alan Simpson, the former Republican Senator from Wyoming, in an ad from Freedom to Marry:

“I’m a Republican. The party’s basic core is, government out of your life and the right to be left alone. Whether you’re gay or lesbian or straight, if you love someone and you want to marry them, marry them. I've had a wonderful married life. Why shouldn't someone else have the joy of marriage? Live and let live."

Sad that he's a 'former' Repblican because the GOP needs more like him.

I Didn't Say It........

Martin O'Malley, Maryland's hottie pro-equality governor, on the passage of marriage equality:
"I'd like to thank Senate President Miller for his leadership and our legislators in the Senate for their hard work and their vote today for human dignity. All children deserve the opportunity to live in a loving, caring, committed, and stable home, protected equally under the law. The common thread running through our efforts together in Maryland is the thread of human dignity; the dignity of work, the dignity of faith, the dignity of family, the dignity of every individual. Thanks to our elected leaders, clergy and faith-based leaders, community leaders, civic organizations, civil rights groups, and citizens from across our state, Maryland will now be able to protect individual civil marriage rights and religious freedom equally."

Yay!
'Nuff said.

Dan Savage, on newly outed Sheriff Paul Babeu:
"In this political climate, with 'conservative' now synonymous with political homophobia, a man who claims to be a 'true conservative' doesn't just default straight. He defaults bigoted. Conservative voters will assume he holds anti-gay political beliefs and they will expect him to vote anti-gay should he be elected to office. So Sheriff Babeu stood to benefit politically—and may have actively sought to benefit politically—from the assumption that he was 1. straight and 2. anti-gay."

Nothing good come from being closeted.
And if you're willing to lie about yourself, you're willing to lie about anything.
It's that Get Elected At Whatever Cost mentality.

Newt "Chucky" Gingrich, on Mittsy dropping out of the race if he loses his home state of  Michigan--though the same doesn't apply to him if he loses Georgia:
"If he can't carry his home state, I think the rationale for why is there a Romney candidacy - he's not a candidate of ideas. He's not a candidate of ideologies....Given the chaos of this race, I wouldn't say anything, but it's - but I'm certainly willing to say I think it's extraordinarily important to carry your home state. And also has an underlying impact if you don't."

Oh Chucky. Long before Mittsy loses in November, you'll have dropped out of the race and found some new plaything to schtup.
And we'll all be saying, Told you so.

Ricky Martin, on marriage:
"I wish people understood that love manifests in different ways. Allow me to have my life and I won't mess with yours. That's when I struggle and get angry and punch the table. And then I talk. Martin Luther King Jr. said, 'Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.' Trust me, everybody is asking me when I'm going to get married. People that I don't know are pushing it. But it's not something that we're talking about."

I used to be annoyed with Ricky, when he was a closeted little gay man. i wanted him to come out because I thought, by doing so, he might help any number of young gay men feel good about themselves.
But Ricky keeps going one step further, using his voice and his influence for equality.
Thanks Ricky.

Newt "Chucky" Gingrich--again....he's trying to stay relevant--on religion and Obama:
"I think that it's very clear that this is an administration which believes that secular government--they believe that the President is superior to the Pope in the ability to define what the church is allowed to do. Obama's position, which is truly dishonest--this new compromise is, I mentioned Orwell's '1984.' This is Orwellian . We have been through a fifty year period, starting in the 1960s, in which the courts, and the bureaucracies, and now the politicians have waged war on religious freedom in America. And I think we need to understand this is just one more phase in an ongoing assault on Christianity and on Judaism and on organized religion by secularists who believe that they have the right to get between man and God."

Um, Newt, you serial fucker? In this country the President is superior to the Pope.
Or, if you won the office--which is so funny it makes my sides hurt--would you install the Pope--and all his Pedophile Priests--into government.
Separation of church and state, Chucky.
Say it with me.

Bill Maher, on the GOP:
"Unemployment is down, confidence is up, DOW 5,000 above Bush - or as Republicans put it, let's talk about gay people and abortion!"

Every four years the GOP runs for office not on the issues of the day--war, unemployment, the economy, the environment--but on fear.
It strikes me funny that the party that wants smaller government also wants that smaller government in every aspect of daily life.

Gary Cass, head of the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission, doing the Gays Are Nazi's goosestep:
"Contrary to what many people may think, the homosexual movement is not filled with some harmless little group of wispy effeminate gays sipping lattes who just want to be left alone. Rather, the leaders of the homosexual movement are in fact some of the most powerful, aggressive and influential individuals in America. They have taken seriously what the homosexual philosopher Nietzsche, Hitler’s inspiration, espoused, that 'the will to power' is what really makes a person great."

Wow, first he uses that age-old stereotype about gay folks, and then he calls us Nazis.
See, you need to be a'scurred of us because we're wispy little femmes drinking all the lattes, but then you also need to worry about us because we are the most powerful group in the world.
Which is it, Gary?
Are we heading to Starbucks or taking over the world?

Neil Abercrombie, governor of Hawaii, filed his answer to a lawsuit challenging Hawaii's ban on same-sex marriage: 
"Under current law, a heterosexual couple can choose to enter into a marriage or a civil union. A same-sex couple, however, may only elect a civil union. My obligation as Governor is to support equality under law. This is inequality, and I will not defend it."

Nice to see a governor of Hawaii stand up for what's right.
Inequality doesn't work. It's just separate but equal, and that didn't turn out very good, did it?

Alan Simpson, former senator from Wyoming, on Rick Santorum's homophobia:
"He said, 'I want a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage,' and they said, 'Well, what about the people who are already married?' And he said, 'Well, they would be nullified.' I mean what is, what's human, what's kind about that? We're all human beings, we all know or love somebody who's gay or lesbian so what the hell is that about? To me it's startling and borders on disgust."

Too true.
Rick Santorum portrays himself as a man of god, then in his next breath denigrates anyone who doesn't fall into line with his limited worldview.
He dangerous, because he's stupid. And sometimes stupid has a lot of followers.

Chris "Krispy Kreme" Christie, calling Obama a coward about marriage equality:
"The President is silent on this like he’s silent on every issue that’s difficult for him. [...] Let’s have the President of the United States show some courage, come on this program, look into the camera like I’m looking into the camera, and state his position. He won’t because he wants to have it both ways. I’m not looking to have it both ways, I vetoed the bill. That’s my position. What I’ve offered to the supporters of same-sex marriage is if one of your reasons for why I should have voted signed it was because you’re telling me the majority of the people of New Jersey want it, then prove it. Put it on the ballot and prove it. At least I’m standing up for what I believe in. The President has hidden on this issue, Jonathan, he’s hidden on it….This is the type of cowardice that we don’t want."

But, um, you blowhard? Do we want someone who will deny us equality, outright say we don't deserve it? Someone who would put the rights of one American up for a vote by the rest of America?
You're an asshat, Krispy.

I Didn't Say It......

With tomorrow being the Day Of Silence, I will choose to be quiet--is that a Hallelujah, I hear?--so I'm posting "I Didn't Say It...." a day early, along with some of my other rants and rages.
I'll have the usual gossipy snark on Saturday and some lovely Sunday Funnies, and will be back with fresh stuff  on Monday.
Have a great weekend.

Gay GOP Presidential candidate Fred Karger, on Mike Huckabee and The Gays: 

"One year ago, Mike Huckabee said terrible things about my community and me. He compared gay marriage to incest, polygamy and drug abuse. He said that gay couples should not be able to adopt: 'These are not puppies, raising children is not an experiment.' Who the hell is he to cast aspersions on others? I don't like self-righteous bullies. So, I will from time to time bring up the hypocrisy of those others who are considering running for president in 2012. I have written three previous columns asking Mike Huckabee to apologise to the victims of these horrific murders and to the millions of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer Americans whom he brands as unfit parents. He certainly owes us an apology, as well."

Oh, Huckleberry will never apologize. Doing so would separate him from his base of toothless illiterate Birthers and Teabaggers who vote hate, not law.
Huckleberry will the last man standing when this country finally treats all its citizens as equals, and he'll be holding a God Hates Fags sign.

Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's "ethics commission," on Nashville's decision not to do business with companies that discriminate against their LGBT employees:

"So a six-foot guy who shaves every day can come in wearing a dress, high heels, and earrings and tell his employer that he's really a woman and he wants to use the women's bathroom facilities, and there's nothing the employer can do to stop him if he wants to do business in Metro. Clearly the Metro Council members, a majority of them succumbed to the intense lobbying of a minority that wants special rights for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people."

Yes, Dick.
May I call you Dick, because that's what you are when you employ these kinds of divisive stereotypes that all gay men want to be women, and be in the women's bathrooms.
And then you mutter that old chestnut of a lie about "special rights". Since when is not getting fired, denied housing, denied employment, based on who you are a "special right"?
Crawl back under your rock.

Congresswoman, and Crazy Eyed, Michele Bachmann, on marriage equality:

"In 5,000 years of recorded human history... neither in the east or in the west... has any society ever defined marriage as anything other than between men and women. Not one in 5000 years of recorded human history. That's an astounding fact and it isn't until the last 12 years or so that we have seen for the first time in recorded human history marriage defined as anything other than between men and between women."

Hey Michele, you tool.
In 5,000 years marriage has gone from a tradition of women being treated like property, to marriage being used to gain power and control, to marriage being one man and as many wives as he wanted, to marriage being interfaith, to marriage being interracial.
So, stop this traditional marriage bull shiz.
There is no such thing, you gasbag.

Congresswoman, and Crazy Eyed, Michele Bachmann [again!], on how she felt when Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage:

"I heard the news on my local Christian radio station in Minneapolis/St. Paul, and I was devastated. And I went across the street and I took a walk and I went to prayer, and I said: 'Lord, what you have me do in the Minnesota State Senate?' And through prayer I knew that I was to introduce the marriage amendment in Minnesota."

Um, dingbat, er, Michele.
I kid. I meant dingbat.
So, God told you to introduce a marriage amendment in Minnesota, did he?
Did God happen to mention in your subsequent talks that Minnesota presently does not have a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage?
Or did you just conveniently forget the truth?
Again?

Former GOP Senator Alan Simpson, on GOP homophobia:

"We have homophobes in our party. That’s disgusting to me. We’re all human beings. We’re all God’s children. Now if they’re going to get off on that stuff—Santorum has said some cruel things—cruel, cruel things—about homosexuals. Ask him about it; see if he attributes the cruelness of his remarks years ago. Foul. Now if that’s the kind of guys that are going to be on my ticket, you know, it makes you sort out hard what Reagan said, you know, 'Stick with your folks.' But I’m not sticking with people who are homophobic, anti-women, moral values—while you’re diddling your secretary while you’re giving a speech on moral values? Come on, get off of it."

Get off it, indeed.
Hypocrisy and homophobia and moral outrage at any who doesn't share the GOP mantra.
Even while they don't follow it themselves. And nice to see a GOP'er stand up to his own party.

Boy George, on his friend Phillip Sallon, who was gay-bashed last week:

"In the early 80s there was this sense that things were changing, and becoming more open-minded. But we don’t have that sort of gorgeous youth culture any more, the glam rockers, the New Romantics. People aren’t so individual any more. There is this sense of why would you want to stand out and make a show of yourself? You can find that sort of attitude in the gay community too. That if you are an exhibitionist you are somehow spoiling the big assimilation. Most gay men go out of their way to look normal and fit in, but Philip is not of that breed."

Boy, Boy, you say some dumb things.
There are plenty of gay men who don't "fit in".
But they don't do it by outrageous clothing, or nonsensical statements.
They do it, we do it, I do it, by living our lives openly and honestly and letting people know that we don't all have to be Boy George to think we're fabulous.

Montenegrin Prime Minister Igor Lukšić, on supporting a gay Pride Parade:

“Whether we personally accept them or not, whether we personally have one opinion or the other, let that remain our personal thought, but we must face the fact that there are differences in the society, that those issues are a part of the human rights corpus. Let the people take a walk and we will show that we are civilized.”

I like the sentiment.
I like the idea of the leader of a country standing up and talking openly himself, not through press releases and flunkies.
I have a problem with the word them. To me, it is the most divisive word because it splits people into them and us.
He should have just said whether you personally accept gay people or not.....
Because people don't have to accept me, but they cannot legislate against me or treat me as any thing other than an equal.

Sarah Palin, flip-flopping [quelle surprise!] on the issue of Birthers:

"I believe he was born in Hawaii...[but]...,I appreciate that The Donald wants to spend his resources in getting to the bottom of something that so interests him and so many Americans. You know, more power to him! He's not just throwin' stones from the sidelines. He's diggin' in there! He's paying for researchers to find out why President Obama would have spent $2 million to not show his birth certificate."

Hmmm, so you believe he was born in Hawaii, but you believe he's hiding something on his birth certificate? And you like someone wasting time, when they could be talking about, oh, I dunno, issues?
Or, are you just stooping as low as you can, say, to Trump's level, to try and make yourself appear relevant?
It ain't working, Mama Grizzly Bore. It ain't working.

Donald Trump, on NYT writer, Gail Collins after she read him in an article:

"The term used by Ms. Collins-“birther”-is very derogatory and is meant in a derogatory way. Had this been George Bush or almost any other President or Presidential aspirant, they would never have been allowed to attain office, or would have been thrown out of office very quickly. For some reason, the press protects President Obama beyond anything or anyone I have ever seen. What they don't realize is that if he was not born in the United States, they would have uncovered the greatest "scam" in the history of our country. In other words, they would become the hottest writer since Watergate, or beyond. Open your eyes, Gail, there's at least a good chance that Barack Hussein Obama has made mincemeat out of our great and cherished Constitution!"

Looky there, Trump has reduced himself to throwing in the Hussein because he wants all his Birther Fools to think that Obama is a Muslim, and therefore a terrorist.
Does Donald Trump think for one instant that Hilary Clinton didn't investigate this bull shiz so she could become the Democratic nominee in '08?
And does he seriously think any board of elections that watches over the electoral process--the same group that would ask that his "reality" show be removed if he announced his candidacy--not do their due dilligence when Obama ran for any public office? You're barking up the wrong tree, Donny, and making the GOP look like a bunch of moronic losers while you're at it.
Keep it up, and you all can watch Barack Hussein Obama being sworn in again.

Republican asshat, and governor of Iowa wannabe, Bob Vander Plaats, on his belief that homosexuality is a public public health risk:

"When you take a look at it, this isn’t the Family Leader, but say the New York Health Department. They’ve put out an ad basically highlighting all the dangers of the homosexual lifestyle, that you’re this many times more to get this particular disease or this many times more to get this other type of disease. Now, they conclude with 'practice safe sex.' But they’re almost taking our talking points. Because anybody, the Journal of Medicine will back us up on this, that this is a risky lifestyle, health risk lifestyle. If we’re teaching the kids, 'don’t smoke, because that’s a risky health style,' the same can be true of the homosexual lifestyle. That’s why I think we need to speak the truth once in a while."

Gee, Bob, why don't we legislate against any and all public health risks.
Like smoking. Drinking. Guns.
Why aren't you out fighting to keep kids off drugs? That's got to be a public health risk. I mean, kids that use and share needles are at risk of HIV, and their drug addict "lifestyle" should be outlawed. Oh, I know drugs are illegal, but you aren't fighting that battle, Bob, you just want to denigrate The Gays.
Prostitutes having unprotected sex are at risk of HIV, so we ought to legislate their lifestyle. Oh, I know prostitution is illegal, but you aren't fighting that battle, Bob, you just want to denigrate The Gays.
But, a very real public health risk is being stupid and hateful, Bob.
So, maybe we need to get the New York Health Department to do an ad about you.

Robert Pattinson, on, well, Robert Pattinson:

"I guess I used to be weirder. When you’re confronted with yourself too much, you start to think, Jesus Christ, you’re so fucking boring. And the more you think you’re boring, the more you become boring. I talk about myself too much now."

And look?
You're doing it again. And again.
One day, Rob, Twilight will be over, and no one will want to hear you talk about yourself.
I await that day.

John Boehner, on how he has no idea what the House's legal defense of the DOMA might cost: 

“I do not have an estimate. But we were placed in a position where we were in effect allowing the administration to determine the constitutionality of a bill that passed the United States Congress because they were unwilling to defend it. I don’t think the House had any choice but to take the position that we were going to defend the work that the Congress — and only the courts are in the position of determining the constitutionality of any bill.”

Hmmm, um, Weepy?
I thought you were put in that position, I mean as Crybaby, er, Speaker, because you wanted to fix the country, you know. Get people back to work? Help them keep their homes? Make the US economy strong again?
But, no, you're just about symbolic repeals of laws you cannot repeal, keeping Car Talk off my radio dial, and defending DOMA, which is basically defending inequality and injustice.
I see you weeping again soon, Johnny, as you pass that gavel back to the Democrats.

American Family Association spokesdouche Bryan Fischer, believing that we must force all immigrants top convert to Christianity or send them home [sidenote: and he says the AFA isn't a Hate Group?]:

"It’s simple: don’t break the law (that is, come in through the front door instead of breaking in through a window), convert to Christianity, fully assimilate (become an authentic American, not a hyphenated American), and support yourself. If you commit to those things, you are welcome here. If you don’t or won’t, perhaps it’s best for you to stay home."

Wow.
Hate.
Pure and simple hate.
He wants people to become like him, or not enter this country at all. Imagine if that had been our policy all those years ago. No one of a different color than white, a different religion than Christianity, a different language than English.
No, he isn't a hater.
He's The Hater.

Jerry Cox, of the Arkansas Family Policy Council, on the state Supreme Court ruling outlawing a gay adoption ban:

"What this ruling does is it puts the rights of adults and their preferences ahead of what's best for children, and that's a sad thing and a bad day for the foster and adoptive children of Arkansas. The court simply ignored the will of the people, took matters into their own hands and looked at the people and said, 'What you think doesn't matter; we're going to have the final word in this.' And they took control of the issue and struck down a good law that's there for the welfare of children."

The best thing for children is to be loved and nurtured and cared for by a loving parent or parents.
And to ask people to legislate that LGBT people cannot love or nurture or care for a child is the height of hate.
Even in Mike Huckabee's Arkansas.