Random Musings

GOProud, that Gay conservative group which has never officially backed marriage equality, did so last week.

GOProud.

Always late to the party.

Vicco, a small Appalachian town in Kentucky, has just become the smallest municipality in the entire country to approve an LGBT nondiscrimination law.

Vicco city attorney Eric Ashley: "Vicco is a community that believes all folks should be treated fairly. We believe everyone deserves the opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Fairness is a Kentucky value, a Vicco value, and one of our most American values."

All of Vicco's 334 residents will be protected under the fairness ordinance, which prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Vicco becomes Kentucky's fourth municipality to pass such an ordinance, following Lexington, Louisville, and Covington, but, again, it's the smallest municipality in the United States of America to do so.

Small town, big pride.

So, we'd made plans to go see Lincoln on Monday, but then that whole inauguration thing came along and I was glued to the set watching history repeat itself.

And listening to Carlos' take on pop culture, about which he knows nothing.

For example: As Kelly Clarkson was introduced--she sang a gorgeous rendition of 'My Country Tis Of Thee'--Carlos looked at her and asked, "Lindsay Lohan?"

"Yes," I said, "Lindsay Lohan, drug addict, drunk, and jewel thief awaiting trials on both coasts has been asked to sing at the inauguration."

::::sigh::::

Out New Mexico way, state representative Brian Egolf has introduced a bill to put in place a constitutional amendment to legalize same-sex marriage on an upcoming public ballot. 

Brian Egolf:

“It’s time to recognize all the families in New Mexico who are headed by same-sex couples.”

To be fair, and honest, his proposal probably won’t have an easy time in the Legislature. Lawmakers in New Mexico can't even agree on passage of legislation calling for state-recognized domestic partnership agreements. 

Still, Egolf’s resolution, which says: “The issuance of a marriage license shall not be denied on the basis that the sex of both applicants is the same. No church or religious institution shall be required to perform a marriage ceremony or recognize a marriage for religious purposes that conflicts with the church’s or religious institution’s beliefs,” will first be heard in the House Consumer and Public Affairs Committee.

Baby steps. It's worked elsewhere and it may well work in New Mexico.
Given time.

So, Beyoncé may have lip-synched the National Anthem at the inauguration on Monday.

Am I surprised? Not one bit, I think Beyoncé's Goal #1 is to make Beyoncé look as good as possible and sound as good as possible.
Kelly sang live; James Taylor, too. But Beyoncé wanted it to be perfect, in the perfect gown, with the perfect hair and just the right amount of wind in the hair.
So, again, I don't care if she lip-synched, but I am sickened by her Diana Ross-esque arm flailing at the end.
That was too much.

On the other side of equality, Terry Lee, owner of Terry Lee Forensics, a Cedar City, Utah digital forensics company, has fired two employees because they supported President Barack Obama.

Oh, but he did, and he's quite happy about it.

Terry Lee: “They were Obama supporters. We just knew they were."

Lee first mentioned the firings in the comments section of another story in the Tribune about a Vernal, Utah, smoothie shop owner charging "liberals" a higher price than "conservatives" for drinks. That shop owner said "liberal programs" are costing his business more, so it’s only fair that left-leaning customers should pay more.

Lee showed his support for the tactic by writing: "Love it. We had to let two employees go to cover new Obongocare [sic] costs and increased taxes. Found two Obongo supporters and gave them the news yesterday. They wanted the idiot in the Whitehouse [sic], they reap the benefits.”

The comment was later deleted by the author possibly because Terry Lee doesn't know how to spell 'White House.'

Way back in the gay Dark Ages, in 1972 to be exact, Mary Ellen Cunha and Peggy Forster opened the Twin Peaks Tavern in San Francisco, at the corner of Castro and Market Streets. And, in addition to opening the doors, the two women also uncovered the windows at the bar so that the people inside could see out, and, more importantly, people outside could see in.

Twin Peaks Tavern is believed to be the first gay bar in the nation to feature full-length, open plate glass windows that let its patrons look out and the public look in. The lesbian friends, known to most regulars as "the girls," opened the bar to the world at a time when many gays still feared losing their jobs or being socially ostracized if their sexual orientation was revealed.

It has survived for 40 years as one of the Castro district's most memorable and welcoming establishments and, just last week, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to give it landmark status. Twin Peaks becomes the second bar in San Francisco to have that designation; Sam Jordan's bar, named for its founder--the first African American man to run for city mayor--was the first.

This is Good News mixed in with Bad News.

The Association of Bragg Officers' Spouses—which has been in the news for denying membership to the lesbian wife of an Army officer stationed at Fort Bragg—has decided to offer that spouse, Ashley Broadway, a "guest membership" in the group.

Not a member, mind you, like she was married to a man or something, but she can be considered a guest, even though she's the legal spouse of a military member.

Less than. Back of the bus.

In a letter from the Fort Bragg spouses group's president, Mary Ring, to Broadway, Ring wrote that the guest membership was being extended "[w]hile our bylaws are being reviewed."

Uh huh.

How about just changing the by-laws and making this spouse feel just like any other spouse, and not a guest?

So, I've already poked fun at Carlos for his complete ignorance about pop culture, so let's have another go at him, shall we?

One day last week I was watching a Food Network show, with Giada De Laurentiis and Carlos came in to watch, too. But, he was less interested in what she was making and more interested in commenting on how her cleavage seemed to be the star of her show.

Yes. Carlos couldn't stop looking at her cleavage.

Later on that same day, I found him watching some TV show about girls in bikinis and a water slide.

Hmmmmm.

Then, in the car the other day Patti Labelle's 'Lady Marmalade' came on the radio and I cranked the volume and began "Mocca chocolata ya ya-ing" all over the place. I asked Carlos to sing along and he said...he said......he said.....

"I've never heard this song before."

I.Know.

Then I began thinking....never a good sign....you know all those women who marry men and then find out their husbands are gay? Maybe.....maybe.....my Carlos is.......straight?

Tweet Of The Week:

Drag Is Out At Most Holy Redeemer

For the past few years, the Castro Country Club, a San Francisco gay recovery group, has been holding its annual fall fund raiser in the social hall of the Castro's Most Holy Redeemer Catholic Church. Entertainment was provided by local drag queens. This year, however, that will not be happening because the church has a new, No Drag Queens policy.

The Castro Country Club directors released a statement: "[We] had planned to hold our third annual Harvest Feast on October 20, 2012, at Most Holy Redeemer Church, where we have held this and other events in the past....In previous years, we have had Ivy Drip and Heklina, both well-known entertainers and community fundraisers, serve as emcees of the event, and we felt we could not in good conscience abide by the church's new policy. It is our organization's policy to be inclusive and welcoming to all. Drag queens are no exception. We are currently seeking an alternative venue for the Harvest Feast, which provides an important source of revenue for our annual budget."

Most Holy Redeemer's new pastor, the Reverend Brian Costello, confirmed that drag queen performers and emcees are no longer permitted to participate in events at the church. He says he told the CCC, "That is not going to work under the present circumstances....I said work with me. You can still have the dinner. You can have a regular emcee, but not drag queens on church property."

And this new rule, while enforced by the new pastor at Most Holy Redeemer, actually comes straight from the archdiocese. The new policy was greeted with charges of discrimination, homophobia, and calls for compromise, even reconciliation.

"It's really ridiculous and discriminatory. I mean it's like, who's next?" says Zachary Davenport, for whom the ban is personal. In his drag persona as Laybelline, he has served as emcee for many sobriety-related events held at the church. "What constitutes drag? If we want to get funny, let's talk about the priests. Hello."

Dignity San Francisco offered its take on the new policy at Most Holy Redeemer, and, as Ernest Camisa, treasurer for the Dignity/SF chapter, says, "It looks like the Archdiocese of San Francisco wants to protect its image by not condoning cross-dressers. By doing so they show that they care more for their image than they do for gay people trying to overcome alcohol addiction. Here the church looks like it values its own image more than it does human life. This is not Christian, but callous."

But, callous is what the Catholic Church does best, even in The Castro.

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