I Didn't Say It ....

Robin Roberts, on Good Morning America this week, sharing a picture of herself with girlfriend Amber and announcing to applause from her cohosts:

“I’m going to tell you all this, because you have had a front row seat for that tumultuous year. I have never been happier or healthier than I am right now. And my year-end post was just full of gratitude and just telling everyone all that I’m grateful for, including my girlfriend, Amber, who loved me through a very difficult year.”

Brave woman, open woman, happy woman.

It's a great thing.

Zeke Thomas, the gay son of NBA Hall of Famer Isaiah Thomas, on coming out:

“I came out in 2008, my sophomore year at college. My parents like to say they always knew I was gay. I came out to them, and they were very accepting. I always knew they would be accepting. Growing up, I had gay uncles, like every kid in America. I never was so scared that my parents were going to shun or disown me—the horror stories you hear. I was just nervous about, “Are my friends gonna accept me?” because I was a jock kid, so to speak, with an athlete father.”

It’s kind of surprising that Zeke wasn’t worried about his athlete father, who was so open and accepting, but he was worried about his friend’s reactions because he has an athlete father.

Good on Dad. And Mom.

Chris Kluwe, saying he was cut from the Minnesota Vikings because he was vocally pro-LGBT rights:

“However, it's clear to me that no matter how much I want to prove I can play, I will no longer punt in the NFL, especially now that I've written this account. Whether it's my age, my minimum veteran salary, my habit of speaking my mind, or (most likely) a combination of all three, my time as a football player is done. Punters are always replaceable, at least in the minds of those in charge, and I realize that in advocating noisily for social change I only made it easier for them to justify not having me around. So it goes. Some will ask if the NFL has a problem with institutionalized homophobia. I don't think it does. I think there are homophobic people in the NFL, in all positions, but that's true for society as well, and those people eventually get replaced. All we can do is try to expose their behavior when we see it and call them to account for their actions.”

He got cut, but Phil Robertson kept his job?

And there’s a War on Christianity?

Mike Priefer, Minnesota Vikings Assistant Coach, whom Kluwe called a bigot, on Kluwe’s claims:

 “I vehemently deny today’s allegations made by Chris Kluwe. I want to be clear that I do not tolerate discrimination of any type and am respectful of all individuals. I personally have gay family members who I love and support just as I do any family member. The comments today have not only attacked my character and insulted my professionalism, but they have also impacted my family.”

Oooh, he has gay friends and family members so he couldn’t possibly be a homophobe. And yet no Gays were trotted out when he made his remarks. Maybe they were hanging with Mama Grizzly Bore’s™ gay “friends”.

Brendon Ayanbadejo, standing with Chris Kluwe:

"Even though the NFL tries to keep you in a box in terms of your philanthropy he went out there and he did what he thought was right. Would he be in the league today if he had continued to go speak at schools about education or fitness, or if he continued to do hunger drives, or cancer awareness type of stuff? Yeah, he'd probably still be in the NFL but Chris did what was right for him."

I always had a suspicion that Kluwe was cut for speaking his mind, and I’m glad he, and Ayanbadejo, are speaking up about this. How can we ever expect a gay player to come out if gay-friendly players are getting cut for their activism?

Brian Boitano, former Olympic figure skater, on coming out:

"I’ve always been a private person. I’ve kept the private side of my life special for family and friends who really knew me. I’ve never been ashamed of who I was. I’ve always been open with them, so I really didn’t feel that there was a need. I’m just a private guy, and I realize that there’s a public side of my life and a private side. I’ve always chosen to keep my sexuality private."

Keeping your private life private is your right, but think of all the young gay men he might have helped by coming out earlier.

He could have come out — I’m gay — and then said he wouldn’t discuss his relationships or private life, and that would have been fine, But not saying anything, even though many suspected, gossiped, hoped, and prayed he was gay, makes it seem like being gay is shameful.

It’s not.

Henry Rollins, on Duck Dynasty:

“A&E would be well advised to get while the getting's good and quadruple down on the show's popularity with a vast array of merchandise, like a DD limited-edition shotgun, camo covers for Bibles, strap-on beards, and at least one spinoff. You could call it ... Duck Dynasty. A&E should do this before the show's fans die of respiratory/circulatory complications, substance abuse or lung cancer.

On the flip side of things, one of you supremely talented graphic artists should start a comic book series starring the Duck dudes as homosexual bears. Talk about crossover potential. The thing writes itself. At the next major gay pride event, there should be hard-bodied men in camo hot pants, ridiculous beards pasted to their chins, blowing through duck calls. Dick Dynasty is a gay porn series just waiting to happen.

Just remember: When you see the DD men all decked out in their camo gear, they look pretty bitchin' and rugged -- but keep in mind that they wear these garments to help them hide from ducks. It's a comedy show, right?

Duck Dynasty is a ridiculous show and long may it wave. America and democracy will endure. They've seen a lot worse.”

I think Rollins should find investors and buy A&E; he has some brilliant ideas.

Or, maybe do that whole gay porn thing.

Richard Mack, former Graham County, Arizona sheriff, speaking at the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association rally, about Utah and same-sex marriage:

“The people of Utah have rights, too, not just the homosexuals. The homosexuals are shoving their agenda down our throats...That’s a lie. That’s an absolute lie [that the federal government's ruling overrules Utah's laws]. We have a right to raise our kids without homosexuals being part of the Boy Scouts, the schools and teachers and doing everything. They can be all that, but don’t shove your agenda down my kid’s throat. We have a right to raise our kids how we want not how you want."

Um, Dick? May I call you Dick because you’re a dick? No one, no one, is taking away any rights from Utahans. In fact, all that is being done is making all Utahans equal.

Raise your kids to be bigots, that’s your right, but don’t use your bigotry and intolerance and backwards views to deny equality to anyone else.

Oh, and shut up.

Evander Holyfield, retired pro boxer, on The Gays and choice:

"If you were born and your leg were turned this way - what would you do? You go to the doctor and get it fixed back, right? All I'm trying to tell you, you know how handicap people are born? You can’t say because they [gay people] are born that way you can’t move that. Yes, it is a choice. C'mon, how can you not say you ain't gay unless you sleeping with the opposite sex?"

Perhaps Holyfield was hit one too many times in the head.

Or perhaps when Tyson bit his ear off he lost the ability to hear the crap that spews from his mouth.

I Didn't Say It ....

Ellen DeGeneres, blogging about her amicus brief to the Supreme Court:

"I’ve never filed a brief to the Supreme Court, so I thought I would post mine here. I’m sure someone will tweet it to them. Portia and I have been married for 4 years and they have been the happiest of my life. And in those 4 years, I don’t think we hurt anyone else’s marriage. I asked all of my neighbors and they say they’re fine.   But even though Portia and I got married in the short period of time when it was legal in California, there are 1,138 federal rights for married couples that we don’t have, including some that protect married people from losing their homes, or their savings or custody of their children .... The truth is, Portia and I aren’t as different from you as you might think. We’re just trying to find happiness in the bodies and minds we were given, like everyone else. In the words of Benjamin Franklin, 'We’re here, we’re queer, get over it.'  And there’s another famous quote that says 'A society is judged by how it treats its weakest members.' I couldn’t agree with that more. No one’s really sure who said it first, so if anyone asks, tell them I said it."

Well said, and with a bit of humor too.

Ann Romney, Queen Ann, on being married to a loser:

"In our church, we're used to serving and you know, you can be in a very high position, but you recognize you're serving. And then all of a sudden, you're released and you're nobody. And we're used to that. It was really quite a lot of energy and a lot of passion and a lot of -- a lot of people around us and all of a sudden, it was nothing."

Nothing, except mansions and millions.

My.Heart.Bleeds.

Mitt Romney, Average Joe, on being a loser:

"It's different. But it's like riding on a roller coaster. We were on a roller coaster. Exciting and thrilling, ups and downs, but the ride ends. And then you get off. And it's not like, 'oh, can't we be on a roller coaster the rest of our life?' It's like, 'no, that ride's over'."

Like we all knew it would be.

When at first you lie, about taxes and offshore bank accounts, and then pander to the left while pandering to the middle, you aren’t presidential material.

You’re a pandering liar.

Rachel Maddow, on her visit to the Supreme Court as the Court was considering the Voting Rights Act:

"I don't have a number line that is long enough, that goes high enough to understand how on the same day we are unveiling the statue of Rosa Parks at the US Capitol and one block away we are considering getting rid of the pillar of American civil rights law, and that happens at the same time in the same place and nobody's head explodes."

It’s because we have bigoted, homophobic, hateful justices like Scalia on the court.

Brendon Ayanbadejo, Baltimore Ravens linebacker, and Chris Kluwe, Minnesota Vikings punter, in their amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to strike down Proposition 8:

“When we advance the idea that some people should be treated differently because of who they are, demeaned in public as lesser beings, not worthy of the same rights and benefits as others despite their actions as good citizens and neighbors, then we deny them equal protection under the laws. America has walked this path before, and courageous people and the Court brought us to the right result. We urge the Court to repeat those actions here.”

I am still amazed that these two straight professional football players are stepping up as the most fierce LGBT allies, and don’t back down, and don’t keep silent.

If only the entire LGBT community and all its allies were so vocal.

Andrew Sullivan, on his feeling that Pope Quitter, er, Benny, is gay:

"The damage Benedict XVI has done to the Catholic Church and the papacy may be far from over. All I can say about yesterday’s developments is that they seem potentially disastrous and also indicative to me of something truly weird going on underneath all of this. Benedict’s handsome male companion will continue to live with him, while working for the other Pope during the day. Are we supposed to think that’s, well, a normal arrangement?  This man—clearly in some kind of love with Ratzinger (and vice-versa) will now be working for the new Pope as secretary in the day and spending the nights with the Pope Emeritus. This is not the Vatican. It’s Melrose Place."

The ex-Pope has got a boy-toy sharing his palace?

Maybe the Vatican isn’t so homophobic when it comes to Popes.

Scott Fujita, Cleveland Browns linebacker, believing most NFL players will have no problem with a gay teammate:

"I would argue that the overwhelming majority would be fine with having a teammate who was gay... Once a guy comes out, yeah, it'll be very newsworthy. It'll be a huge, huge breakthrough and then it'll be another one and another one and another one. Then it'll be just another guy in the locker room."

And as long as he plays well and the team keeps winning, does it really matter who he loves?

Lech Walesa, Nobel peace prize winner, who believes The Gays have no right to sit in Poland’s Parliament, unless they sit behind a wall:

"They have to know that they are a minority and must adjust to smaller things. And not rise to the greatest heights, the greatest hours, the greatest provocations, spoiling things for the others and taking (what they want) from the majority. I don't agree to this and I will never agree to it. A minority should not impose itself on the majority."

The minority imposes itself on the majority?

And yet the majority gets to vote on what rights, if any, the minority may have?

You’re an ass, and to quote Andy Towle, you’re more Blech Walesa.

I Didn't Say It ....

David Lammy, UK Labour MP, speaking before the House of Commons debate before they voted to approve marriage equality:
"Let me speak frankly.
Separate but equal” is a fraud. Separate but equal” is the language that tried to push Rosa Parks to the back of the bus. Separate but equal” is the motif that determined that black and white could not possibly drink from the same water fountain, eat at the same table or use the same toilets. “Separate but equal” are the words that justified sending black children to different schools from their white peers – schools that would fail them and condemn them to a life of poverty.
It is an excerpt from the phrasebook of the segregationists and the racists. It is the same statement, the same ideas and the same delusion that we borrowed in this country to say that women could vote – but not until they were 30. It is the same naivety that gave made my dad a citizen in 1956 but refused to condemn the landlords that proclaimed “no blacks, no Irish, no dogs”. It entrenched who we were, who our friends could be and what our lives could become.
This was not “Separate but equal” but “Separate AND discriminated”,
“Separate AND oppressed”.
“Separate AND browbeaten”.
“Separate AND subjugated”.
Separate is NOT equal, so let us be rid of it.
Because as long as there is one rule for us and another for them, we allow the barriers to acceptance to stand unchallenged. As long as our statute books suggest that the love between two men or two women is unworthy of being recognised through marriage, we allow the rot of homophobia to fester."

Not much else to say when someone puts it so succinctly, concisely, and eloquently.


President Obama, on whether or not the Boy Scouts of America should open their organization to gay members: 

"Yes. My attitude is that gays and lesbians should have access and opportunity the same way everybody else does, in every institution and walk of life. The Scouts are a great institution that are promoting young people and exposing them to opportunities and leadership that will serve people for the rest of their lives. And I think nobody should be barred from that."

Plain and simple: Yes.

Michael Musto, on former NYC mayor Ed Koch, who died last week:

"It's a shame the ex-NYC mayor never came out. It's tragic that he hid behind excuses like the fact that he was old and wasn't sexual at all anymore. Old people are still sexual--and if you're gay, you're still gay--and besides, he could have commented on his past. But Ed was so paranoid on the subject that when I interviewed him in the '90s, he propped up a tape recorder to tape me as I recorded him. It was a creepy double game of 'gotcha!' that led nowhere (though he was otherwise gruffly charming) .... The world is now an emptier place, but so is the celebrity closet."

Just another example of the closeted life some folks lead, and how, no matter how successful, how important, they still carry a sense of shame about being gay.

Gabby Giffords, at the Senate Judiciary Committee's hearing on gun violence:
"Thank you for inviting me here today. This is an important conversation for our children, for our communities, for Democrats and Republicans. Speaking is difficult, but I need to say something important. Violence is a big problem. Too many children are dying. Too many children. We must do something. It will be hard, but the time is now. You must act. Be bold, be courageous. Americans are counting on you. Thank you."

Out of the mouths of victims of gun violence ....

Hopefully we can fix this thing.

Chris Culliver, San Francisco 49er cornerback, on having gay players in the NFL:
"I don't do the gay guys man. I don't do that. No, we don't got no gay people on the team, they gotta get up out of here if they do....Can't be with that sweet stuff. Nah…can't be…in the locker room man. Nah."

Sounds to me like he obsesses a little too much about gay guys in the locker-room, but let me break it down for him like this:

He seems to think that a young gay kid will learn to play football, and become so good at it that he gets chosen to play for a good college. And then, at that college, where he excels in football, he is seen by NFL scouts and then picked to be part of a professional football team. And gay guys go through all of that so they can be in the locker-room with naked athletes?

Howsabout just joining a gym? Seems simpler.

Chris Culliver, apologizing, sort of:

"The derogatory comments I made yesterday were a reflection of thoughts in my head, but they are not how I feel. It has taken me seeing them in print to realize that they are hurtful and ugly. Those discriminating feelings are truly not in my heart. Further, I apologize to those who I have hurt and offended, and I pledge to learn and grow from this experience."

Um, the thoughts in your head? They aren't how you feel?

So, it was a voice in your head that made you stupid?

Hopefully, one day, you'll be able to separate the intelligent thoughts in your head from the asinine thoughts in your head.

Brendon Ayanbadejo, Baltimore Raven, on Culliver's anti-gay remarks:
"You know, I think that in San Francisco, and being from the Bay Area myself, that's something that we really try to preach--love and acceptance of everybody. And so I couldn't really even say anything negative to the young man. It's just one of those things where you have to live and you have to learn. And I said earlier on--in the words of Martin Luther King, you can't fight hate with hate. You have to fight hate with love. We've all made our mistakes, we've all been there and done certain things, and we've hurt people regardless if we meant to do it or not. But more than anything it's an opportunity to have a learning experience….I've preached since day one to my teammates that there's certain words you can't say. And when they're around me they know -- if B.A.'s around, you can't say 'gay' in a derogatory manner, you can't say the three-letter 'f' word. And I tell them, I go, you can't say those things. And if people hear you say those things, regardless if you mean them or not, they're going to fry you. And if it's in a public arena your whole reputation's going to be roasted for it. So we've kind of seen it happen this time. So we just have to all learn from what happened, from this mistake. He apologized and hopefully he'll learn. And he's in the Bay Area, and it's really important there, it's pertinent there. So I think he's going to learn and he's going to grow to be a better person for it."

Maybe he needs a good long sit down with Brendon.

Couldn't hurt.

Terrell Suggs, Baltimore Ravens outside linebacker, on the idea of a gay teammate: 
“On this team, with so many different personalities, we just accept people for who they are and we don’t really care too much about a player’s sexuality. To each their own. You know who you are, and we accept you for it.”

As it should be.

Beyoncé, on LipsyncGate:
"I am a perfectionist. I did not have time to rehearse with the orchestra for a live television show and a very very important emotional show for me one of my proudest moments. I did not feel comfortable taking a risk. It was about the president and the inauguration and I wanted to make him and our country proud so I decided to sing along with my prerecorded track. I'm very proud of my performance."

She's a perfectionist who doesn't have time to rehearse? It was a very important and emotional performance but she didn’t have time to rehearse?

It was about the president but all she talks about is what the moment meant to her.

Be proud, Beyoncé. Kelly's proud, too, and she sang  live.

Bill Donohoe, Catholic wingnut, on the story of the ‘gay’ dog in Tennessee:

"This week in Tennessee a dog was rescued from being euthanized (one news outlet said he was being spared 'the Gas Chamber') because the condition driving the dog’s death was his alleged homosexuality (the owner was ticked when he saw his Fido hunch another male dog). For reasons that appear entirely reasonable, the gal who rescued the dog named him Elton. The place where Elton was dropped encourages dog adoption, but it also promotes dog euthanasia. Not, however, in Elton’s case: the shelter has no stomach for putting dogs down on the basis of sexual orientation. It must be said, though, that the shelter is not exactly inclusive in its policies. To wit: Had poor Elton not been identified as a homosexual, his heterosexuality would not have been enough to save his hide. The moral of the story is: Being gay is not only a bonus for humans these days, it is a definite plus for dogs as well. As for straights, the lonely and the disabled, that’s another story altogether."

Someone needs a nap if he thinks the dog was saved because he was gay.

The dog was saved because there was no legitimate reason to put him down.

Iain Dale, British columnist, on the marriage equality battle, and hypocrisy of the naysayers, in Great Britain:

"I’ve been looking at the Coalition for Equal Marriage’s website, and their list of MPs who intend to vote against allowing gay people to marry on Tuesday. I note with interest the names of several MPs who most people in the Westminster Village know to be closet case gays. And I note also the names of two supposedly straight MPs who I know to be conducting gay affairs at the moment. I don’t believe in ‘outing’ anyone, but because of the rank hypocrisy there will be others who will take a different view. How is it possible to be married yourself, and yet at the same time vote to deny that privilege to someone whose pants you have just pulled down?"

Ouch.

If I were one of those closeted MPs, I might watch my step in the next few weeks or I might find myself on the front page of a London tabloid with my hand in some cookie's jar.

Rick Santorum, on plans this week by the Boy Scouts to drop its ban on The Gays: 

"Scouting prepares boys and teenagers to be virtuous men in a world that desperately needs men who are brave enough to stand up for those principles, to live by the moral code of the Scout Oath and Law and hold themselves to that standard – whether at the schoolyard or in the boardroom. Scouting may not survive this transformation of American society, but for the sake of the average boy in America, I hope the board of the Scouts doesn’t have its fingerprints on the murder weapon."

Virtuous men cannot be gay, I guess, in Frothy's world.

Good thing even his own party finds him unworthy of recognition so he resorts to conservative blogs to Froth up his bigotry.

Yunel Escobar Suspended For Homophobic Slur

Times do change, y'all, and it's been amazing to see so many professional athletes come out for marriage equality. Baltimore Ravens linebacker, Brendon Ayanbadejo, has long spoken out for LGBT rights and for marriage equality, and just last week Minnesota Vikings punter, Chris Kluwe, joined the fight.

Two big steps forward, and now, well, thanks to Toronto Blue Jays shortstop, Yunel Escobar, a slight step back.

The Blue Jays organization has suspended Escobar for three games for wearing eye-black displaying a homophobic slur written in Spanish during a game last weekend against Boston. Eye black is grease, or a sticker, worn under a player's eyes during a game to keep the glare down and improve their vision. Many players use it; Escobar used it for an altogether different purpose.

On his eye-black tape, Escobar had written "TU ERE MARICON," which can be translated as "You are a faggot." He later apologized to his team and "to all those who have been offended" for what he said was meant to be "just a joke."

Funny. Not so much.

It isn't a joke, and his apology was one of those half-assed, Oh, if I hurt you I'm sorry. Not exactly, Sorry I'm a douche and did a stupid thing.

"It was not something I intended to be offensive," Escobar said through a translator. "It was not anything intended to be directed at anyone in particular."

Just anyone looking at his face.

Escobar wrote the message on his eye-black right before the game, and has often written inspirational sayings on the tape. This time, however, inspiration was not his intent. And Escobar, non-apologizing, kept digging in further, buy adding, "I didn't see it as something bad at the time. For us, it doesn't have the significance to the way it's being interpreted now. It's a word without a meaning."

No, honey, it's not. There isn't a word on this plant that doesn't have a meaning, and this one is particularly hateful.

Escobar's suspension—issued after input from Commissioner Bud Selig, the players' union and team management—was to have started Tuesday night, though that game, between Toronto and New York, was rained out.

Escobar's lost salary during the ban—roughly $82,000—will be directed to toward the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation [GLAAD] and You Can Play, an organization dedicated to eliminating homophobia in sports, and Escobar will take part in an outreach initiative to promote tolerance to others based on their sexual orientation.

Hopefully Escobar has learned that words do have meaning, and can cause harm, and will go back to non-derogatory eye-black sentiments. Hopefully, he's learned to set an example, perhaps like Kluwe and Ayanbadejo.

source

I Didn't Say It ....

John Barrowman, on gay TV characters:

“America has the most gay men represented on television than any country in the world. The only thing I wish they would do more often is not stereotype those gay men and women. It’s always the same type they choose. Rather than seeing camp, flouncy, girly men and butch heavy women, it would be nice to see other types. There are “lipstick lesbians,” pretty girls. There are butch guys, guys who are into sports.”

I agree 100%.

We don’t all look like Kurt from Glee, or flounce like Kurt from Glee. In fact, a great many gay men look like Kurt’s dad.

Annise Parker, openly gay mayor of Houston, on gay Republicans:

"I do think it's important for GLBTs to stay engaged in both parties. But not at that at the price of your self-respect and dignity. And it is great to be a gay Republican and to say, 'My party has left me behind. I can't support it this time until they get on the right track. I support this, this and this issue as a Republican, but until they treat me personally, and my relationships, fairly, I can't support them.' Anything else is, frankly, self-hating."

I understand politics, and differing views, Republican and Democrat, but I have a hard time with people who choose a party which blatantly seeks to deny them equality.

It just doesn’t make sense.

I understand conservatism, but not self-loathing.

Nick Cassavetes, film writer and director of Yellow, about a woman's incestuous love affair with her own brother, compares incest to gay marriage:

“I have no experience with incest. We started thinking about that. We had heard a few stories where brothers and sisters were completely, absolutely in love with one another. You know what? This whole movie is about judgment, and lack of it, and doing what you want....Who gives a sh*t if people judge you? I’m not saying this is an absolute but in a way, if you’re not having kids--who gives a damn? Love who you want. Isn’t that what we say? Gay marriage--love who you want? If it’s your brother or sister it’s super-weird, but if you look at it, you’re not hurting anybody except every single person who freaks out because you’re in love with one another.”

I am so tired of people equating being gay to being a pedophile or a dog-f**ker, or like screwing your sister. Two loving people, unrelated, of legal age, who choose to be married, is nothing like a brother and sister involved in a sexual relationship.

Emmett Burns Jr., member of the Maryland House of Delegates, asking Baltimore Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti to stop Brendon Ayanbadejo from talking about marriage equality: 

"I find it inconceivable that one of your players, Mr. Brendon Ayanbadejo would publicly endorse Same-Sex marriage, specifically as a Raven Football player. Many of my constituents and your football supporters are appalled and aghast that a member of the Ravens Football Team would step into this controversial divide and try to sway public opinion one way or the other. Many of your fans are opposed to such a view and feel it has no place in a sport that is strictly for pride, entertainment and excitement. I believe Mr. Ayanbadejo should concentrate on football and steer clear of dividing the fan base. I am requesting that you take the necessary action, as a National Football League Owner, to inhibit such expressions from your employees and that he be ordered to cease and desist such injurious actions. I know of no other NFL player who has done what Mr. Ayanbadejo is doing."

Um, Emmett? Ever heard of Free Speech?

It’s kind of a “thing” in this country. Just like you being able to utter these idiocies, Ayanbadejo has the right to utter his opinion, football or whatever.

Brendon Ayanbadejo, on Emmett Burns, Jr., and his statement:

 "For somebody to try to take [Freedom of Speech] away from me I was pretty surprised, from a politician especially. People get fired for saying the things that the delegate said. People lose their jobs for discrimination...I think that whoever voted for him has their right to vote for who they believe represents their values. And if he represents their values, he's the best person for the job. If Obama represents the best values for the country, he deserves the job."

Um, Emmett? See that? Freedom of Speech. Learn it.

Chris Kluwe, of the Minnesota Vikings, on Emmett C. Burns Jr.:

"I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life. They won't come into your house and steal your children. They won't magically turn you into a lustful cockmonster. They won't even overthrow the government in an orgy of hedonistic debauchery because all of a sudden they have the same legal rights as the other 90 percent of our population—rights like Social Security benefits, child care tax credits, Family and Medical Leave to take care of loved ones, and COBRA healthcare for spouses and children. You know what having these rights will make gays? Full-fledged American citizens just like everyone else, with the freedom to pursue happiness and all that entails. Do the civil-rights struggles of the past 200 years mean absolutely nothing to you?"

While I chuckled at “lustful cockmonster” I applaud Kluwe and his thoughtful response. It’s nice to see another professional football player stand up, not just for marriage equality and LGBT rights, but for Free Speech.

Emmett Burns Jr., backing down from the asshattery:

"Upon reflection, he has his First Amendment rights. And I have my First Amendment rights. … Each of us has the right to speak our opinions. The football player and I have a right to speak our minds."

Duh.

You should’a thought about that before you exorcised your First Amendment Rights.

Anderson Cooper, on why he decided to come out:

"It just got to the point where—I’ve been torn for a long time between a desire as a reporter to just do my job and be known as a reporter—and at the same time I do think visibility is important. I do think that the tide of history only moves forward when everyone is fully visible....I didn’t want to send a message that there was anything I was ashamed about or unhappy about or not comfortable with. That was the main thing for me. I appreciate all the support I got and all the encouragement. I am the same person I always was, I do the job just the same way."

Nicely said. There are some who say he came out for publicity for his daytime talk show, or maybe some free publicity for his nighttime show.

I don’t care. I’m glad he’s out, I’m glad when anyone comes out because when we hide it makes it seem like even gay folks don’t like themselves, or think we deserve equal treatment, so how can we expect anyone else feel otherwise?

Ryan Jones, professional hockey player, on gay athletes:

"I don't think [one's sexual orientation] would change a thing in the locker room. We have guys from all over the world, of different races and sexuality [and it] would be no different. If a player can help the team and is a good person, who they choose as a partner is irrelevant. I participated in the You Can Play Project to honour a friend and member of 'the brotherhood', Brendan Burke, but most importantly because I believe in equality. You Can Play is doing ground breaking work in athletics. LGBT athletes are out there, and for a long time it was something that was pushed to the background. It's important for people to be able to live 'openly' no matter what their sexual orientation is and You Can Play is fighting for that."

Once again, while we struggle for equality, we need the help of our straight allies, and it’s nice when they step forward so eloquently.