It's A Panic

A gay panic. It's all the, well, for lack of a better word, rage these days. Men kill other men because of a pat on the ass. But what about the panic that arises in a man when he finds out his wife has left him for another woman? What does he do with his rage?

A London man has been sentenced to nine years in prison, after which he will be deported, after an "enraged" and "frenzied" attack on his ex-wife, after she told him she thought she was a lesbian.

Adel Hdili, originally from Tunisia, left his estranged wife, Gail Hdili, blind in one eye and scarred after attacking her repeatedly with a knife at a bus stop last January. Mrs Hdili had recently left her husband after confessing that she thought she was a lesbian and had moved in with a woman she had befriended online.

The attack took place at a bus stop outside the woman's home after Hdili traced his estranged wife there using the address she had listed on her eBay account. He waited for her outside the house and followed her to the bus stop before attacking her, even though their five-year-old son was present. The boy screamed at his father to stop the attack, and Hdili was eventually restrained by witnesses.

Hdili pleaded guilty to wounding with intent after originally being charged with attempted murder. His lesser plea was accepted by the court.

Wounding with intent? His rage suggests something far more sinister.

Liars Forgers And Baptists, Oh My!

Y'all remember Asshat Sally Kern's "Proclamation for Morality" that I talked about HERE? Well, it seems like Sally and her Hellhounds are not quite as moral as they'd like you to believe.

There's a newspaper that supports Sally; it's a Baptist newspaper, naturally, The Baptist Messenger. And this "newsaper" was collecting signatures of people who supported Sally Kern's assertion that anything and everything that is wrong with America and the world, can be traced back to those darn homosexuals. Yes, folks, if it's bad, it's our fault. War. Pestilence. Death. Sally Kern. If it's awful, blame the gays.

But here's the thing about that oh-so-holy newspaper The Baptist Messenger, they forged the name of the governor, THE GOVERNOR, onto Sally's “Proclamation for Morality.” And then oh, this is rich, to try and make the stolen signature look even more legit, they placed the text of proclamation onto Executive Department letterhead and then also forged the signature of Secretary of State M. Susan Savage next to the state seal of Oklahoma.

Of course, since they've been, well, outed as liars and hypocrites and forgers, these Baptists, I wonder how long it will be before they blame homosexuality for their lapse in legality, or their lapse in morality, or their lapse in the following to the letter their one-sided, nutjob word of the bible?

How long?

Abusers

Joe Jackson, once again denying he ever beat his son: "I never beat my son. The media keep hollerin' saying that I beat my son. That's not true. You know where this beating started? The beating started in the slavery days when they used to beat the slaves, and then used to torture them. That's where this 'beating' started. These slave masters. And that's where that come from. But hey, there's a lot of people in America, Larry. A lot of people in America spank their kids. If they say they don't, they're lying. Now Michael was never beaten by me, never beaten at all."

First off, Joe, blaming the beating of your children on slavery? You need to try a new approach, because, unless you were the slave master and Michael was the slave, you, as usual make no sense. Your own children have said you beat them, so they must be the liars. Your own son made certain that his children would be raised by his mother and not you.

That speaks volumes, Joe, and it makes sense. You do not.

Chris Brown apologizing for beating Rihanna: "Since February my attorney has advised me not to speak up even though ever since the incident I wanted to publicly express my deepest regret and accept full responsibility....I felt it was time you heard directly from me that I'm sorry."

Well, Chris. A real man does not beat women. And a real man takes responsibility for his actions from the moment they happen. He doesn't hide behind the advice of attorneys. he doesn't say nothing for months and then offer a written apology. I cannot help but think that if you'd been allowed to speak further you would have gone on to publicize an upcoming tour or that you have a new album dropping. It's too little, Chris, and it's too late.

Show the world that you're sorry through your actions, not some prerecorded videotaped apology.

Erma The Asshat

Asshat alert!

In Little Rock Arkansas, City Director Erma Hendrix gave a speech outlining her opposition to having a day center for the homeless in an unused building in her ward. It seems the neighbors don't like the idea of homeless people being near their, um, homes, so, in her speech against the homeless center she uttered the line, "A lot of them are homosexuals. They're criminals."

Homeless + Criminal + Homosexual.

Now, of course, as asshats are prone to do, when the homophobia hit the fan, Hendrix released a statement saying she never said any such thing. She does indeed oppose the homeless shelter in her ward but says, "As long as I've been out here I've never ridiculed or talked about anyone's sexual life."

The Democrat-Gazette, which reported the story, stands by their reporter, and others in attendance have come forward to say they heard Hendrix equate homosexuality and homelessness to criminal behavior.

But Erma Hendrix said she compared the likely people being served with those proposed to be served by a probation program set up near an elementary school, but which was beaten back on account of the records of those who'd attend. "We knew who those people were....They had names and numbers. But with people coming from out of town, we don't know....They are ex-offenders. They are sex offenders. You just have to consider that."

Hendrix believes the reporter confused her remark about sex offenders with homosexuals. She says, however, that she has complained to the reporter and her supervisor and the reporter insists she quoted her accurately.

Oh, she didn't say homosexual she said sex offender, and the two are apparently on in the same in Hendrix narrow brain so that explains the confusion.

Yeah, whenever I hear sex offender I instantly think homosexual.

Asshat.

Quote Of The Day

"The ban on same-sex marriages written into the California Constitution by a 52% vote in favor of Proposition 8 is the residue of centuries of figurative and literal gay-bashing. California allows same-sex domestic partnerships that, as interpreted by the California Supreme Court, provide virtually all of the economic rights of marriage. So the ban on permitting gay and lesbian couples to actually marry is simply an attempt by the state to stigmatize a segment of its population that commits no offense other than falling in love with a disapproved partner, and asks no more of the state than to be treated equally with all other citizens.

In 2003 the United States Supreme Court in Lawrence v. Texas held that states could not constitutionally outlaw consensual homosexual activity. As Justice Anthony Kennedy elegantly wrote rejecting the notion that a history of discrimination might trump constitutional rights, 'Times can blind us to certain truths and later generations can see that laws once thought necessary and proper in fact serve only to oppress. As the Constitution endures, persons in every generation can invoke its principles in their own search for greater freedom.'

"There are those who sincerely believe that homosexuality is inconsistent with their religion -- and the First Amendment guarantees their freedom of belief. However, the same First Amendment, as well as the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses, preclude the enshrinement of their religious-based disapproval in state law.

"Gays and lesbians are our brothers and sisters, our teachers and doctors, our friends and neighbors, our parents and children. It is time, indeed past time, that we accord them the basic human right to marry the person they love."

--Attorney David Boies, on why he and Ted Olson are taking on Prop H8 in federal court

Jimmy Carter Has Left The Building

Jimmy Carter is moving on.

After more than 60 years together, Jimmy Carter has announced that he is at odds with the Southern Baptist Church, and he's decided it's time they go their separate ways. He says his decision is "unavoidable" after church leaders prohibited women from being ordained and insisted women be "subservient to their husbands."

Jimmy Carter:

At its most repugnant, the belief that women must be subjugated to the wishes of men excuses slavery, violence, forced prostitution, genital mutilation and national laws that omit rape as a crime. But it also costs many millions of girls and women control over their own bodies and lives, and continues to deny them fair access to education, health, employment and influence within their own communities. The truth is that male religious leaders have had -- and still have -- an option to interpret holy teachings either to exalt or subjugate women. They have, for their own selfish ends, overwhelmingly chosen the latter. Their continuing choice provides the foundation or justification for much of the pervasive persecution and abuse of women throughout the world.

After watching everyone from philandering politicians--Mark Sanford, John Ensign, John Edwards, Chip Pickering....I'd name more but I have other things to do today--suddenly proclaiming their belief in a higher power as their lies rain down on them, it's nice to see Carter calling out the role of religion in the mistreatment of women.

You see, when you are a follower, if you will, of a certain group, be it religious or social or political, and you notice that they are moving away from your core beliefs, or are refusing to change with the times, do you stay and try to change from within or, after a while, do you head for the door?

Carter gave thew Southern Baptists a chance. he's been vocally critical of their anti-feminine stance for years. But he's been inching away from the church leadership and now, well, he's left the building.

How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?

In this day of sex tapes popping up--no pun intended--all over the place, of Twitter and Facebook and MySpace, you'd think people would learn not to take nude photographs.

Apparently, they don't.

See, there's this thirty-one-year-old woman in Italy who is suing her ex-boyfriend because he put naked pictures of her on his Facebook page; the photos were taken when the two were vacationing several years ago. But times have changed and the two are no longer a couple. The woman has found a new boyfriend.

God.

Yes, this woman is suing because the posting of her nekkid ass for all the world to see has made her the butt--the unclothed butt--of jokes all over Italy.

Just when you thought it couldn't get more absurd.

Naked Nuns On Facebook!

Forty Years Ago Today

Honey? My Wienermobile Is Stuck

Not everyone is in love with the Oscar Mayer Wiener.

Mobile that is.

The famed hot dog's Wienermobile crashed into the deck and garage of a home in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin.

Police say the driver was trying to turn the Wienermobile around in the driveway and thought she was moving in reverse. But she instead went forward and hit the home. It sat in the driveway as if it were stuck in the garage Friday afternoon.

No one was home and no one was injured. No citations were immediately issued. Both the home and vehicle suffered moderate damage, which Oscar Mayer spokeswoman Sydney Lindner says insurance will cover.

So many times I've had trouble getting my Wienermobile turned around.

Just sayin'.

This Is Justice?

It seems a lot more hate crimes are happening out and about these days. Some say, as more and more people, and states, are becoming more accepting, or more anti-discriminatory, there will be a rise in hate crimes against the LGBT community. So, we need the Matthew Shepard Act and we need it fast.

Case in point: A Washington D.C. grand jury has indicted a man who allegedly killed a gay man last year on a charge of misdemeanor assault.

Assault? A man is dead.

His lawyers entered a plea of not guilty.

Here are the facts: On September 7, 2008, Tony Randolph Hunter, a gay man from Maryland, was attacked near the bar then known as BeBar.

Police found Hunter lying unconscious on the street minutes after noticing an altercation a few blocks from where they were on patrol. Hunter remained unconscious for 10 days at Howard University Hospital before he died September 17.

On October 15, Robert Lee Hannah was arrested for voluntary manslaughter in connection with Hunter's death. Hannah told police he punched Hunter only after Hunter grabbed his buttocks and crotch.

Now, I know that if I was a straight man, and, admittedly, that's a stretch, I wouldn't be comfortable with having a gay man grab at my crotch and ass, but, and this is where Hannah and I differ, I wouldn't hit the guy.

A simple No thanks would have sufficed.

But now, to have a man who is accused of killing another human being, because his butt was grabbed, being charged with a misdemeanor is unfathomable. Hannah could face up to 180 days behind bars and a $1,000 fine.

For killing someone.

The question I ask is this: if it had been a woman who came on to Hanna, grabbing his ass and crotch, and he had punched her in the face and she subsequently died, would it be considered a misdemeanor.

I think not.

Hell Hath No Fury

Some people just make me shake my head in wonder. 

Take the case of one Leisha Pickering, the estranged wife of former Repugnant Congressman Chip Pickering of Mississippi; good ol' boy Chip served twelve years in Congress before retiring in January. His reason for retiring, given last summer, was that he wanted more time with his, um, family.

But that part isn't what makes me wonder. Repugnants and they family values platforms are the norm.....until they falter. No, the part that causes me wonder, is that the soon-to-be ex-Missus Pickering is suing one Elizabeth Creekmore Byrd, claiming her adulterous relationship with Chipper ruined the Pickerings’ marriage and his political career. Which also put poor Leisha out of the public eye, and out of the glory of being the political wife of a once rising star.

Leisha Pickering says in her lawsuit that Creekmore Byrd originally “met and had a romantic relationship with [Chip] Pickering which ended prior to their college graduation." Then Chip met and married the lovely Leisha, but kept meeting, or, as the kids are apt to say, hooking up with, “Creekmore Byrd for a number of years....”

The Once-and-Now-Soon-To-Be-Former Missus Pickering alleges that Creekmore Byrd’s ”extramarital relationship” with Chip Pickering began again while he was "a United States congressman prior to and while living in the well-known C Street Complex in Washington, D.C.”

Sidenote: The C Street Complex, which is also called a Christian Fellowship House, has come to the forefront of the news lately because it seems that many of our elected officials who like to get a little sump'n, sump'n on the side have resided there. people like, Senator John Ensign, admitted adulterer from Nevada, and even our own Argentinean trail hiking adulterous governor, Mark Sanford. Seems like C Street is a hotbed, excuse the pun, of marital infidelity for the Repugnants.

Meanwhile, back to Leisha.

She also claims that Creekmore Byrd secretly rented a lodge near the Pickering family while they were on a ski vacation in Colorado. Is that a surprise, knowing how much the Repugs like to, ahem, hike? And I've heard there's some good, er, hiking to be found in Colorado.

But the greatest kicker to Leisha's claim is that Chipper turned down a lucrative post as a replacement to Trent Lott because his little Chippie asked him to do it. Leisha says that Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour offered good ol' Chipper Trent's seat in 2007, but that Creekmore Byrd “insisted that if Pickering accepted the position in the Senate that their relationship would not be able to continue.” Barbour eventually named Roger Wicker to Lott’s seat and his spokesman denied that Chipper was ever offered Lott’s Senate seat. Uh huh, yeah. Okay.

It seems like that may have been the straw that broke Leisha's back. She left Chip in 2008 and he subsequently filed for divorce from her. In her lawsuit against Creekmore Byrd--how much do I love saying that?--Leisha is seeking unspecified damages.

In response to his estranged wife's lawsuit, Chip Pickering said he did not want to engage in a public fight with her over his relationship with Creekmore Byrd. "I still believe it is in the best interest of our five boys if our differences are resolved privately and before the appropriate court and not in the media," Pickering said in a statement. But, interestingly enough, good ol' Cheatin' C Street Chipper is now a lobbyist for Cellular South, a telecom company owned by Creekmore Byrd’s family.

I guess what all this boils down to is, give it up Leisha. Creekmore Byrd didn't alienate your husband's affections. She was apparently banging him in college and then you got in the way. I think it best it you just simmer and settle before Creekmore Byrd sues you for alienation of affection.

God love the Repugs. There's always a stack of dirty laundry left out.

Powerful

from Towleroad.
New York State Senator Tom Duane, who is gay and HIV-positive, delivered a mesmerizing, emotional 21-minute speech on the Senate floor at the end of a marathon session in favor of a bill preventing people living with HIV or AIDS and receiving public assistance from having to pay more than 30 percent of their monthly income on rent.
Powerful stuff.

The Right Verdict

Unlike a lot of other hate crime trials lately that have somehow miraculously ended favorably for the accused, one such trial ended in a guilty verdict, albeit for manslaughter and not first-degree murder.

Last Friday, Dwight DeLee was found guilty of first-degree manslaughter for the fatal shooting of 22-year-old Lateisha Green outside a Syracuse house party in November because of anti-gay bias. He becomes just the second person in the U.S. convicted of a hate crime that involved the death of a transgender victim.

The jury deliberated for about six hours over two days. DeLee faces additional prison time because he was convicted of a hate crime.

While DeLee was charged with second-degree murder as a hate crime, Judge William Walsh told the jury that it could also consider convicting DeLee of manslaughter as a hate crime, as well as murder or manslaughter without the hate crime element.

No hate. Just shooting a transgendered person for....what was the reason?

During three days of testimony, DeLee's attorney, Clarence Johnson, denied the prosecutor's claims that his client hated homosexuals. Johnson contended that no evidence showed DeLee had a history of anti-gay bias before the shooting. But several witnesses said they heard DeLee refer to Green as a "faggot" just before Green was shot with a .22-caliber rifle while sitting in a parked car outside the party.

Faggot. Shots. Car.

No, no hate there.It's nice to see that a jury saw through to the real story and awarded some small sense of justice for Lateisha Green.

And for all transgendered people.

Welcome to........................

.....AvaBea of AvaBea and the Infinite Gladness.

"Ava M Bea. the Queen of peace signs. in love with love, in lust with poetry. music is my weakness. ambitious. looking forward to seeing the world. i write about sabrina and elementary school, hunting for arrowheads and our ancestors, 3-leafed clovers, and karate kicking ghosts on the basketball court with no hoops. chicago and the trail of love and broken hearts i left on the way there. this is my womanifesto and my testimony to inevitable sadness. "

Sunday Funnies

Welcome

New people poppin' up before my eyes! So I'll give a big Smallville Hi There to:

Doug from Running2Nowhere who wrote a brazilliant post about DADT...and y'all know how I feel about DADT!

LarryOhio from Patently Queer. He's new to the blogging scene so let's make him feel welcome. Hi Larry!

And then we have Allen from Allen McAlister. Allen writes on all sorts of topics but the one that intrigued me most was the Betty Crocker Reese's Dessert Bar Mix. P'nut Butter Cups are my downfall!

Welcome fellas!

Don't They Know You Don't Double Dress Divas?

Dolce and Gabbana! How could you? You, of all people should know better.

Dining with the designers, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, in Italy, Madonna was quite pleased to be wearing an exclusive D&G original. After all, the Material Girl expects the best because, well, she's a raging diva.

So, I wonder how the dinner chat would have gone if, say, well, maybe a little birdie whispered in Madonna's ear that, on that very same night, just a few miles away, Whitney Houston was......

Wait for it.......

.....wearing the exact same dress; also gifted to her by D&G?

Whitney was also given the figure-hugging gown when she made her grand return to the spotlight. She was launching her new studio album I Look To You in London's for what she hopes will be the beginning of a triumphant comeback.

So, who wore it best?

And who do you think threw the bigger diva-tantrum when they found out that they weren't exactly in a one-of-a-kind, exclusive D&G?

Keep in mind that Madonna is scrappy, but don't forget Whitney's a crack-is-wack diva.

Goodnight Walter

Walter Cronkite

July 17, 2009

And that's the way it is.......

There Really Isn't A Better Use For Their Money?

Okay, so we've had this chat before. You know that I don't understand religion one iota. I don't understand how you can preach the word of God....big G....and then work to discriminate people. How you can sermonize and demonize from a pulpit and then protect child molesters in your midst. I just don't get it.

I don't know that God, but I don't think she'd like that.

You see, while I don't cater much to organized religion, I do have a spiritual belief that, well, for lack of a better word, I'll call god....little g.

I believe that god is love, and that's all. I don't think god is about hate and discrimination. It's just those three words: god is love.

So, I get all hot'n'bothered, and not in a good way, when I read about the Mormon Church and all the money they spent promoting hatred and bigotry and discrimination in California. Is that what your God wants? Couldn't those dollars have gone to something productive like, say, helping the homeless, or feeding the poor? Maybe giving children a good shot at a future? No, the Mormons chose to spend money on hate, and I don't think God, or god, would like that.

And now we have the Catholic Church, one of the dirtiest, money grubbing groups of heathens I've ever heard tale of, sending their dollars to Maine to fight marriage equality there. Don't they have any child molestation cases they need to settle? Aren't there any impoverished Catholics that could use the money better?

All this money being spent on hate when it could be spent on love.

My god doesn't believe in that.

My god is love.

One More Reason We Need Hate Crimes Legislation

Up there in Queens, New York, two men face felony hate crime charges after they allegedly assaulted a transgender female.

Carmella Etienne told police the two assailants chased her down the street while throwing rocks, screaming homophobic slurs and threatening to kill her. This latest incident comes a month after Leslie Mora, another transgender female, was beaten by men while she walked home in Jackson Heights, and as as the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund prosecutes a case for Lateisha Green, a transgender woman murdered in Syracuse.

Etienne told police her two alleged attackers, Nathanial Mims and Rasheed Thomas yelled “don’t ever walk that block anymore or we will slash your throat.” When she told her attackers that she would call the police, the defendants said “the police don’t care about you, they won't do anything to us,” according to Queens DA Richard Brown.

Mims and Thomas, police said, then continued the harassment and threw empty beer bottles at Etienne, one of which struck her leg causing a three-inch laceration.

“I didn’t know you could get locked up for calling somebody names,” Rasheed Thomas said during questioning, according to police. “I called her a bunch of names. I called her a faggot, but she didn’t see me throw anything.”

Walking down a street can get you killed, and we're still waiting for hate crimes legislation?