I've made it to the initial round for favorite progressive blogger in the Air America Cruise Contest. I have to stay in the Top 5 before the second voting round begins, so your vote is appreciated! First voting round:
The Christian Civic League of Maine's Mike Hein calls Pam's House Blend: "a leading source of radical homosexual propaganda, anti-Christian bigotry, and radical transgender advocacy."
He is "praying that Pam Spaulding will "turn away from her wicked and sinful promotion of homosexual behavior."
(CCLM's web site, 10/15/07)
Ex-gay "Christian" activist James Hartline on Pam:
"I have been mocked over and over again by ungodly and unprincipled anti-christian lesbians."
(from "Six Years In Sodom: From The Journal Of James Hartline," 9/4/2006, written from the "homosexual stronghold" of Hillcrest in San Diego).
"Pam is a 'twisted lesbian sister' and an 'embittered lesbian' of the 'self-imposed gutteral experiences of the gay ghetto.'" -- 9/5/2008
Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth Against Homosexuality heartily endorses the Blend, calling Pam:
A "vicious anti-Christian lesbian activist." (Concerned Women for America's radio show [9:15], 1/25/07)
"A nutty lesbian blogger." (MassResistance radio show [16:25], 2/3/07)
Pam's House Blend always seems to find these sick f*cks. The area of the country she is in? The home state of her wife? I know, they are everywhere. Pam just does such a great job of bringing them out into the light.
--Impeach Bush
who monitors yours Bevis ?? Just thought I would drop you a line,so the rest of your life is not wasted.
As you can see with this sad story of the oppressed taking on the role of oppressor, it's not just about the word "marriage" for some people -- even domestic partnerships (certainly not mentioned in any bible I've heard of), are in the bulls-eye.
The Tallahassee City Commissioners recently received a terse anti-gay statement from the local chapter of the Southern Christial Leadership Conference, an organization founded by Dr. Martin Luther King. If the officers and board should be ashamed of themselves for a missive like this (click on image to see letter). A snippet:
We the members of the SCLC are very displeased of the recent actions of the commission to revise a policy to allow same-sex and domestic partners to receive benefits as married couples are receiveng. Mr. Mayor, what may be politically correct, may not be morally or eeithically feasible for the stability and growth of the Tallahasee community.
Mr. Mayor and Commissioners, your actions do not reflect the moral or cultural attitude of the majority of citizens you represent. Why should we as taxpayers be forced to compromise our integrity to pay benefits to a society of who the state have not determined or recognized as legal?? Your leadership on this police has sent a dark cloud over this city that expresses a moment of shame and degradation.
Wow. These people are degrading and debasing themselves with this morality gloom and doom that recalls NOMs ridiculous Gathering Storm video.
In response, since we've already seen Dr. King's daughter Bernice ascend to head SCLC national, Reverend Eric P. Lee, president of the Los Angeles chapter of the SCLC, who is an outspoken advocate of social justice targeted last year by the organization for his advocacy in favor of LGBT marriage equality during California's Proposition 8 controversy - has issued an open letter in response to the Tallahassee chapter's letter, that I have just received via email:
"Justice Must Be Universal"
Reverend Eric P. Lee - SCLC of Greater Los Angeles
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference was established for the purpose of promoting non-violent progressive social change to ensure justice, equality and freedom for all people by recognizing the inalienable dignity and worth of every human being. Our roots extend deeply into the African American religious experience with its biblical vision of liberation of all humankind.
One of the guiding principles of our founder, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is that "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." If injustice is allowed to exist in any form, the opportunity to rid our society of this spiritual wickedness will elude us. The spirit that promotes racism, sexism and ageism is the same spirit that promotes homophobia. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary that justice be universal.
The denial of rights and privileges to one group of people because of their sexual orientation is, unquestionably, an injustice. To deny rights and privileges to any group that all others enjoy is a violation of equal protection under the law. Furthermore, to deny one group of people rights and privileges based on certain religious prescriptions violates the principle of separation of church and state.
While many disagree with same-sex relationships based on their respective faith-beliefs, it is those same beliefs that once justified slavery, segregation, legal discrimination and miscegenation laws. Our faith should not be used to discriminate, oppress or marginalize any group of people. Our faith should be used to affirm the dignity of everyone's humanity. Our faith should be used as a vehicle to justice, equality and freedom for all of God's people.
As African-Americans, we have long relied on the biblical stories of Israel's deliverance from oppression and slavery as our own story of deliverance from Western European slavery, segregation and discrimination. As civil rights advocates, and as bearers of the mantel left by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference must continue to advocate for justice for all people, regardless of social status, religious belief, gender, sexual orientation, or ethnicity.
Under the leadership of Gov. Janet Napolitano, the Arizona state government in 2008 created a health insurance benefit for the domestic partners and children of state employees and retirees. This past September, the Arizona legislature stripped those benefits from state employees with now-Governor Jan Brewer's approval. Oh, but they made sure to retain spousal health benefits for heterosexual employees. Who do you think burdens the state budget more, the legions of heterosexual employees, or the handful of gay ones?
State Rep. Norm Johnson (R-14th) was one of the 93 (of 147) Washington state legislators who voted last Spring for the 2009 domestic partnership expansion law (SB 5688). SB 5688 made Washington state registered domestic partnerships parallel with civil marriage, and was ratified by over 53% of voters on November 3rd via Referendum 71.
Johnson's vote was a most basic expression of family values; he has two gay sons and has personal relationships with gay people in his district. "I feel I voted the right way, because to me it was pure and simple a vote of equality." Similarly, Senator Curtis King (R-14th) stated that his support for full domestic partnerships stems from his appreciation of gay couples in his district.
Johnson's vote for SB 5688 has drawn the ire of local business owner Michele Strobel. Addressing the crowd at the One Nation Under God Tea Party* in Yakima last month, Strobel said "I really believe that I am called. And I am seriously considering running for office...This isn't the country I knew when I was young. This isn't the country my grandparents fought for." Johnson is up for re-election in November, 2010.
Strobel's company website quotes her as saying, "Being the person, who likes to give and do things I thought, you know what? I have a huge opportunity to use the talents and gifts I have to help others."
Although over 53% of voters statewide approved R-71, Yakima County voted to reject it 65% to 35%. The vote result for Johnson's district has yet to be released, but it seems likely that Strobel is largely in sync with the district's majority on this issue. The question is, would voters support her candidacy based on her opinion on that issue alone? According to the actions of the state Republican party and the statements of local Republican office holders themselves, the answer is "unlikely".
Washington voters have accomplished a national first by ratifying a new law that makes state registered domestic partnerships fully parallel to civil marriage. The provisional election result for Referendum 71 is currently 52.6% to 47.4%. This story is huge and is already getting some well-deserved attention. And remember, we won by a comfortable margin in an off-year election when the likely voter pool is dominated by older, more conservative voters. We know support for domestic partnerships is much higher in the general electorate.
Much is being made of the geographic clustering of counties where the majority of voters have approved R-71 (right, in green). Vote results are dismissed by some folk with a "well of course Puget Sound counties...". It is true that election results do rather neatly support the stereotype of Washington's east-west divide. But putting the R-71 results in historical context reveals a deeper story: almost every Washington county shows an increase in pro-equality voting.
The last time Washington voters had the opportunity to ratify a pro-equality law at the polls was in 1997. Initiative to the People 677 proposed an employment non-discrimination law. The ballot title read Shall discrimination based on sexual orientation be prohibited in employment, employment agency, and union membership practices, without requiring employee partner benefits or preferential treatment?.
The measure was rejected 59.7% to 40.3%. Contrary to the current image of the Puget Sound area of Washington as progressive, not one single county - not even Seattle's home of King County - voted to approve I-677. Contrast that with the current election where the electorate as a whole approved R-71 and majorities in 10 of Washington's 39 counties have approved R-71. But the truly stunning statistic is that the rate of ballot measure approval increased between 1997 and 2009 in all but one county.
Another mark of progress is the fact that voters in 21 counties approved R-71 by over 40%. Forty percent was the average statewide approval rate for I-677 in 1997. Those 21 counties are: Clallam, Clark, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, Island, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, Kittitas, Klickitat, Mason, Pacific, Pierce, San Juan, Skagit, Skamania, Snohomish, Thurston, Wahkiakum, Whatcom, Whitman.
As you consider the graph, realize that in contrast to R-71, I-677 was rather narrow in scope. It dealt only with the employment discrimination of individuals. Voting yes on I-677 didn't ask voters to contemplate the meaning of family; didn't ask voters to recognize the existence of gay and lesbian parents; didn't ask voters to find the fiction in school-focused scare tactics. In other words, not only have Washington voters moved towards equality in virtually every county, they've shown by their R-71 vote that they're open to supporting equality much more comprehensively in the law. This is big.
KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio produced an excellent piece featuring the straight senior-citizen couple Steve Doty & Linda Dunbar. Steve & Linda tell us why they got a domestic partnership, and why it is so important to them that Washington votes "approved" on Referendum 71. Click here to stream the audio. The transcript is below. After you listen, you may be interested in downloading the flier Why do seniors need the protection of domestic partnerships?, provided by Washington Families Standing Together. Thoughts from our opponents on seniors and domestic partnerships, after the fold.
Referendum 71 Seniors
10/02/2009
Steve Doty and Linda Dunbar are a senior-citizen couple. They live in North Seattle and they've been together a long time. They've seen each other through her breast cancer and his Parkinson's Disease. But they're not married. Steve and Linda would be directly affected by Referendum 71. It's a measure that's going to be on the Washington state ballot November 3.
Dunbar: "Yeah, this is for better or worse, sickness and health."
Reporter: "Did you guys ever think about getting married?"
Dunbar: "I don't think so. One of the things that happened was that I was baptized in the Roman Catholic church. And I've been divorced. I could not receive sacrament if I married again. And I guess living in sin - quote, unquote - is different than that."
In the last legislative session, lawmakers passed a new set of expanded rights for domestic partners. It's nicknamed the "Everything but Marriage" law. And it's controversial because it extends rights to gay couples - as though they were married. But it also affects older heterosexual couples if one of them is over age 62.
Linda and Steve's dog, Schuster, runs back and forth between them as they sit in their modest apartment. They recently got rid of their couch to give Steve more room to maneuver with his walker. Linda jokes that her partner can be a handful.
Dunbar: "He's very difficult - no, I'm kidding. We've been together since 1991. We just thought that it would be a really good thing if we made a commitment to each other. And not just move in and have a fling. This is the real deal."
Steve and Linda have registered their domestic partnership with the state. They say getting married would hurt them financially. Older couples who marry can lose some of their social security benefits, or pensions.
Bill Dorn talks to couples like Steve and Linda all the time. He's with Senior Services of King County. The agency helps seniors understand their rights. He finds many are reluctant to talk about their unmarried status.
Dorn: "There are a lot of seniors who find themselves choosing to be a couple, and not marry because of those financial concerns. And they come from a generation, where that's not socially acceptable."
Anne Levinson chairs the Approve 71 campaign to uphold the state's domestic partner rights. She says many seniors don't realize hospitals could keep them from a loved-one's bedside. Or from claiming a body and making funeral arrangements if their partner dies.
Levinson: "I think with seniors, and with the rest of us ... it often takes a crisis for us to realize that without those legal protections, we are often left in not only a financially tenuous position but in terms of being able to make decisions for our loved ones, or have access to care. The tragedies we've seen over and over again when an emergency strikes and people do not have the protections of domestic partnership laws - it's sad."
Opponents to Referendum 71 didn't return numerous phone calls. The group Protect Marriage Washington is against Referendum 71. Its Website says expanding domestic partnership rights isn't necessary because seniors and others can obtain many of those same protections through wills and contracts.
Steve and Linda say they want their relationship respected as though they were married. Linda once wound up in the emergency room with a head injury. But doctors wouldn't tell Steve what was happening because they weren't married and weren't yet registered partners. They don't want to lose the rights they now have.
Dunbar: "I mean I have to be realistic about our age, and I think making those life decisions that mean so much. I don't want him left out, and I fear that could happen - that he wouldn't be able to see me, or that I would be at the mercy of a hospital somewhere where, where I can't make a decision for myself."
Voting* on Referendum 71 can be tricky. A "yes" vote would leave intact the expanded rights for domestic partners already approved by the Legislature.
A "no" vote would repeal those rights.
I'm Carol Smith, KUOW News.
And it's as simple as that. Referendum 71 is about protecting ALL Washington families fairly and equally under the law. And making it possible for loving partners to care for each other in times of crisis. Despite what "reject" advocate Larry Stickney says, it is impossible to get real protections with just wills and powers of attorney. But he's perfectly welcome to try that route himself, if he thinks it's all that.
*Technical note: the ballot language actually asks voters whether the domestic partnership law should be "approved" or "rejected".
Update: Mayoral candidate Mike McGinn and candidates for King Co. Exec. Dow Constantine and City Attorney Pete Holmes are offering reduced-price tickets to their fundraising/concert extravaganza "Battle for Seattle" to anyone showing an Approve 71 PayPal receipt. Thanks gents!Like the Seattle Times editorial said, "A broad coalition of community support has rallied behind voter approval of Referendum 71, to extend legal rights and responsibilities to all Washington families.". This includes both candidates for Mayor of Seattle, Mike McGinn and Joe Mallahan. Mallahan just released an excellent video describing why we need to mark 'approved' on those ballots and get them mailed in promptly. Following the Mallahan video is Mike McGinn's statement to Approve Referendum 71.
E-mail accompanying video: Yesterday, the Approve Referendum 71 campaign released polling information that shows a tough fight ahead to protect all Washington families under current domestic partnership laws. In Washington state, there are 12,000 people registered in domestic partnerships. Approving Referendum 71 will protect family/medical leave for sick loved ones, will protect health insurance coverage for a family and will provide protections for children if a parent dies. If we do not approve Ref. 71, these protections will be taken away.
Seattle's LGBT community has honored me with their highest ranking (5 straight A's) in the mayoral campaign and their support helped me win the primary. Now, I am here to urge Seattle voters to approve Referendum 71. Taking away family protections are not my values and I know they aren't your values either. That's why I am asking you to join me in approving Referendum 71.
Please watch my new video urging Seattleites to register to vote, to turn out the vote and to donate to the Approve 71 campaign. You can watch my "Approve Ref. 71" video here.
We need to spread the word that this will be a tough fight. We need to get out the Seattle vote to show that Washington is a place that treats all families fairly and equally.
Please join me Approving Referendum 71.
For more information or to donate directly, please go to: www.approve71.com. And feel free to forward my video, if it helps get the word out.
Sincerely,
Joe Mallahan
P.S. To remain compliant with election law, I am required to let you know that this was paid for by me personally and not my campaign: Paid for by Joe Mallahan, 3716 Densmore Ave N, Seattle WA 98103. Sponsored by Approve 71, PO Box 12216, Seattle, WA 98102.
Seattle Mayoral candidate Mike McGinn's statement as Referendum 71 was certified for the ballot:
Statement on Referendum 71
The threat posed by opponents to civil rights cannot be underestimated, and it will take a smart and dedicated campaign to pass R-71. I look forward to working closely with Senator Ed Murray and other leaders in our city to make sure we do everything possible to maximize the vote coming out of Seattle for this important measure.
R-71 expands the rights and responsibilities of domestic partners registered in our state. This legislation brings us closer to full equality and represents a step forward for our society.
In 2004 I read the decision of Judge William Downing of King County Superior Court, which ruled that it was unconstitutional to deny marriage to same sex couples. His ruling was clear, unequivocal, and signaled a new age. I was disappointed when the State Supreme Court overturned that decision in 2006 on grounds that do not stand up to scrutiny.
Our democracy is built on equality, and together we can protect the rights of all citizens.
At a September 16 debate on the merits of marriage equality in Iowa, an Iowa Family Policy Center spokesman questions why elderly, infertile, or childless couples want to marry.
"One might ask, why are you getting a marriage license anyway?"
Utterly heinous. Forget love and commitment, seniors. If you don't have reproductive potential, you're not wanted in the club. And in Washington state, if we don't approve Referendum 71 even your domestic partnership will be hobbled.
Like the anti-domestic partnership group Protect Marriage Washington, the Iowa Family Policy Center has ties to Focus on the Family, the National Organization for Marriage and the Alliance Defense Fund. Same crap, different state.
H/T Tod. Recall that the Nevada legislature made history on May 31, 2009, with the override of the Governor's veto of the domestic partnership bill (SB 283), thus promulgating legal recognition for same-sex couples in Nevada.
Now Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller has announced that his office will begin accepting registration forms on August 24th from couples wishing to pre-file for Domestic Partnerships in Nevada. The law doesn't go into effect until October 1st.
Couples wishing to register as domestic partners under Nevada's new law may pre-file their declaration between August 24 and September 24, 2009 to receive their state certificate on October 1st 2009, the day the law becomes effective.
Couples may also file their completed domestic partnership form in person on October 1st, but are not guaranteed to receive their certificate that day. Processing times for declarations that are filed in person or by mail after October 1st may vary depending on the volume of forms received.
This gesture is reminiscent of that magic midnight of May 17, 2004 (pictured right) when the Cambridge, MA City Hall stayed open to be able to start solumnizing marriages at 12:01 AM, the first moment it was legal. The memory still brings tears of love to my eyes.
The Secretary of State has posted a FAQ file here and other information on DPs here. In addition, in September The Gay & Lesbian Community Center of Southern Nevada will sponsor a town hall meeting to answer questions and provide information about domestic partnerships in Nevada. Details TBA.
Census data indicates that over 6,000 same-sex couples live in Nevada. A snapshot of the state of s-s relationship recognition around the United States is below the fold.
Saturday at the Washington State Capitol in Olympia, all eyes were on the profane efforts of some to strip others of civil equality. Yet a few paces away in the Capitol garden, a sacred event was occurring. Two women were sharing declarations of love for one another in a commitment ceremony. The love of two people for one another is the phoenix that will eternally rise. There is no stopping it. Purveyors of discrimination must realize that they can never satisfy themselves because they can never stop the ever-flowing wellspring of love. Our love is here to stay.
Our Love Is Here To Stay By George and Ira Gershwin
The more I read the papers
The less I comprehend
The world with all its capers
And how it all will end.
Nothing seems to be lasting.
But that isn't our affair;
We've got something permanent,
I mean in the way we care.
It's very clear
Our love is here to stay;
Not for a year
But ever and a day.
The radio and the telephone and the movies that we know
May just be passing fancies,
And in time may go.
But, oh my dear,
Our love is here to stay;
Together we're going a long, long way.
In time the Rockies may crumble, Gibraltar may tumble,
They're only made of clay,
But our love is here to stay.
I've opined many a time that the religious allies of the transgender, bisexual, lesbian and gay community are too silent, too reticent. Well, our faith community allies in Washington state are making me eat my words, and I can tell you that the taste is so very sweet.
The undersigned religious leaders, from across Washington State, have come together to speak with one voice for all Washington families.
Religious leaders before us have spoken to end slavery, and to ensure equal rights to all persons regardless of gender, nationality, religion, and race. Today, we feel compelled to speak out in support of Washington's domestic partnership law which provides essential protections to families throughout the state.
As people of faith, we oppose any effort to take away the rights and protections provided to families through our state's domestic partnership law.
As providers of pastoral care to families, we know that gay and lesbian couples form loving, lasting, committed relationships, raise children and grow old together. These couples and their children have the same needs and deserve the same rights as their heterosexual peers. We also know that the domestic partnership law provides important protections to non-gay couples where one partner is at least 62 years of age.
As faith leaders, we care about all Washington families. We have seen first-hand the burdens on a family facing death or illness without important legal and financial protections, from access to healthcare, to the right to visit a partner in the hospital, to the right to make medical decisions for one's own children. We have felt the worry that exists when a parent who is a firefighter or police officer goes off to work each morning knowing that if something happens to her, there won't be support for her family.
The domestic partnership law is about the relationship between the State and families. Clergy and faith communities will remain free, just as they always have been, and always will be, to determine for themselves their own religious matters.
We join as the signers of this statement, as a principled expression of our deeply held religious convictions. We stand in support of all of Washington's families.
(A partial list of religious leaders and congregations signing on the Washington Families Standing Together campaign to preserve Washington state's domestic partnership law - as of 7-24-09)
RELIGIOUS LEADERS
* Organization listed for identification purposes only.
Reverend Melissa Anthony
Pastor Maynard Atik
Reverend Paul Benz
Rabbi Will Berkovitz
Reverend George Anne Boyle
Reverend Sandy Brown
Reverend John Cahall
Pastor Jocelyn K Carson
Pastor James Carter
Reverend Debra Conklin
Reverend Monica Corsaro
Pastor Craig Darling
Reverend Michael Denton
Reverend Lisa Domke
Rabbi Allison Flash
Reverend Catherine Foote
Reverend John Garlington
Executive Director Jessica Gavre - United Methodist Church*
Reverend Debbie George
Reverend Terry B. Hall
Reverend Bruce Harrington
Reverend Vicent Hart
Reverend Robert Henre
Reverend Gordon Hutchins
Reverend Dr. Beryl Ingram
Reverend Carol Jensen
Rabbi Bruce Kadden
Reverend Marilyn Kallshian
Reverend Elizabeth "Kit" Ketcham
Reverend Tamalyn Kralman
Reverend Vincent Lachina
Reverend Rich Lang
Rabbi Anson Laytner
Reverend Robert J. Lewis
Reverend John-Otto Liljenstolpe
Reverend John Lindsay
Reverend Silversity Madrazo
Rabbi Jessica Marshall
Pastor Joseph Miller
Rabbi Jim Mirel
Reverend Sharon Moe
Reverend Tad Monroe
Minister Peg Morgan
Reverend Weldon Nisly
Pastor Christopher A. Nolte
Program Coordinator Timothy O'Brien - Northwest Dharma Association*
Reverend Scott Opsahl
Reverend Tim Phillips
Pastor Darrell Reeck
Reverend John Reitan
Reverend Cheryl Rohret Unity
Reverend Laurie Rudel
Reverend Dr. Lon Rycraft
Rabbi Daniel Septimus
Cantor David Serkin-Poole
Reverend Gary Shoemaker
Reverend David Shull
Pastor James Simpson
Rabbi Beth Singer
Rabbi Jonathan Singer
Reverend Monty Smith
Reverend David Strong
Pastor Sharon Swanson
Reverend Arthur Vaeni
Reverend Douglas Wadkins
Father James Walley
Reverend James Watson
Reverend Steve Willis
Pastor Alice Woldt
Reverend Melvin Woodworth
ORGANIZATIONS Bethany United Church of Christ
Hillel University Washington/J-Connect Seattle
Micah Project of First United Methodist Church of Tacoma
Northwest Dharma Association
Olympia Unitarian Universalist Congregation
Ravenna United Methodist Church
Saint Benedict Episcopal Church
Seattle First Baptist Church
Temple Beth Am
Temple B'nai Torah
Trinity United Methodist
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Whidbey Island
Wallingford United Methodist Church
Westside Unitarian Universalist Congregation
Powerful. These people and communities of faith are joining the more than 40,000 individuals and over 120 organizations of all types who have joined Washington Families Standing Together (WAFST) to oppose any attempt to repeal Washington state's Domestic Partnership law.
Of course we won't know until 2 PM tomorrow (Saturday) at the earliest whether Referendum 71 backers have gathered enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. Right now it doesn't look likely. But come what may one thing is for sure: Gary Randall and Larry Stickney have helped galvanize a solid, unified coalition for civil equality in Washington state. And we seem to just keep getting stronger and stronger.
UPDATE: A few minutes before my diary was set to go live, Boehme sent notice of a newer blog post. Not only does it use the same Demonize Your Opponent in Three Easy Steps formula as described below, it answers the question I had below: Will he have the fortitude to publicly call the defenders of LGBT civil rights "followers of Lucifer"? Details at the end of the post.
So followers of Lucifer (either consciously or unconsciously) are for abortion and against capital punishment because he is.
Referendum 71 endorser Ron Boehme has a new blog post up called "Why Pro-Abortionists are Anti-Capital Punishment and Vice Versa". A better title would be Demonizing Your Opponent in Three Easy Steps, by Ron Boehme.
Step One. Remove Complicating Realities from the Equation:
Why are those who are for abortion (killing babies in the womb) usually against capital punishment (the killing of murderers)? Why are they for killing the innocent but not the guilty?
The opposite is also true: Why are those who are against abortion (the taking of innocent human lives) usually for capital punishment? Again, this seems to be a contradiction. If they are in favor of saving young lives, why are they not in favor of saving criminals?
Boehme slickly sidesteps the complicating realities that being pro-choice is not the same as being pro-abortion, and that being found guilty of murder isn't necessarily related to being guilty of murder.
Referendum? What Referendum? Oh, that. Don't be a silly! Like referendum "endorser" Joseph Backholm, Cindy has a much more important date with fluffy white towels, strand cafes and sea stacks. And she wants everyone to know it! Cindy is tweeting her fabulous vacation travelogue so that Larry Stickney, who was left behind to do the donkey work, can see all the fun he is missing.
Destination - the Westin in Portland. Yes! ---12:08 AM Jun 20th
Great dinner at Macaroni Grill...and Westin is right around the corner. I sense fluffy white towels ahead!! Westin rocks! ---about 18 hours ago
Gary Randall lives near Portland. Wonder if they hooked up? Anyway, beautiful pictures and happy chatter from the AWOL Protect Marriage Washington board member/Washington Eagle Forum Director, after the fold.
Ever laugh 'till you snort, then laugh more and so hard that no sound comes out but tears roll on like Columbia roll on? Oh my, I wish you could read the latest email I just got from Larry Stickney. Alas, he hasn't posted it to his website yet. Despite Twittering on June 17th "Updating our websites!", the most recent news is still from mid-May. You'll just have to make do with my cut & paste. But it'll be worth it, trust me.
UPDATE: Gary Randall continues to actively divert Referendum donations into his non-referendum PAC. To borrow a lyric, "Sheeple get ready, there's a shearing coming..."
Ron Boehme is the guy who said that repealing an incremental domestic partnership bill is more important than preventing a holocaust. And now he's inviting carpetbaggers to Washington to help him lie to voters. After enduring years of that tax cheat and voter manipulator, the Oregonian Gary Randall, I'm not sure how much more carpetbaggery Washington can take.
I want to ask all of you, whether you live in the state of Washington or not, to get involved to help save marriage in in Washington State through Referendum 71. This is the recently launched petition drive that will allow the citizens of Washington to vote in November to preserve the institution of marriage.
What is it with these "Christians" who can't stop with the lies? As we all know, Referendum 71 is about repealing an incremental domestic partnership law, not a marriage law. Ron is using the same bait and switch as the rest of the anti-family crew: lie to people that the referendum is about marriage because they know that a super-majority of Washingtonians favor domestic partnerships or better for same-sex couples who want to protect their children and make their families as legally secure as possible.
Will Governor Charlie Crist have any comment about this development?
The City of Miami Commission voted unanimously, 5 - 0, to adopt a Domestic Partnership Ordinance this morning, becoming the third municipality in Miami-Dade County to do so. Commissioners Sanchez, Sarnoff, Regalado, Gonzalez, and Spence-Jones voted in favor of the Ordinance.
The new Ordinance will allow the City of Miami to offer health benefits to the declared domestic partners and their children of city employees in the same manner as the city offers such benefits to spouses of married heterosexual employees. The Ordinance was similarly adopted by the City of Miami Beach and the City of North Miami. Miami-Dade County also offers similar benefits to county employees as the result of work done by SAVE Dade and its partners for an ordinance passed in May of last year.
Commissioner Marc Sarnoff said, "Providing employment benefits, including healthcare, to the domestic partners of our City of Miami employees is a common sense idea that has been far too long in coming. This is nothing more than treating people equally. I am proud to say our City is doing the right thing."
Asked about the ordinance, Chairman Commissioner Joe Sanchez replied, "This allows us to recruit and retain the best and brightest workers for the City of Miami by offering benefits to domestic partners. This reaffirms our strong belief that all people are equal in Miami, the City of diversity."
One such employee is Melissa Llera, a City of Miami Firefighter and SAVE Dade volunteer, who has been in a committed relationship with her partner Christie for over 12 years. They have a child together and now both her partner and child will be eligible for health coverage as a result of this Ordinance.
"We thank the Miami's city commission's leadership in recognizing that the families of all city employees deserve fair and equitable treatment," said SAVE Dade's Executive Director, C.J. Ortuno.
Reaction from Rea Carey, Executive Director, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force:
"The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force applauds Miami commissioners' unanimous passage today of a domestic partnership ordinance giving employees with same-sex or opposite-sex domestic partners the same rights and benefits as married couples. Passage of this measure marks a step toward fairness and equality in Miami, and will help ensure families of city employees are not deprived of fundamental protections and benefits. We thank the commissioners for their action today, and offer a special thanks to SAVE Dade for its efforts leading to this victory, as well as to the LGBT Advocacy Project of the ACLU of Florida and Equality Florida for providing support and assistance."
Protect Marriage Washington is the misnamed organization out to repeal Washington State's new domestic partnership law via Referendum 71. Cindy Honcoop is on the Protect Marriage Washington Board of Directors, but while others work, Cindy has been known to vacate and Twitter. And now, as her colleagues feverishly burn rubber crossing the state to deliver the long-overdue referendum petitions, Cindy picks up her fiddle.
# Another cool thot from a twitterer - "The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed." ~Old Chinese Proverb
about 13 hours ago from web
Why tempting 'thots' of quitting? Maybe it has something to do with the dismal donation rates. The Public Disclosure Commission says that Protect Marriage Washington has only raised $2,072. And carpetbagger Gary Randall's Faith and Freedom PAC ("exclusively committed" to Ref 71, except it's not) has only received a piddly $1,994.51 in contributions. Ouch. Printing and distributing 60,000 petitions with 100+ page long bill attachments will drain those funds pretty quickly. No wonder Gary was diverting donations to his non-PAC accounts - must protect the paycheck! Wouldn't want to spend that dough on a referendum nobody wants. And I mean nobody.
Incidentally, although Cindy is a dedicated tweeter, she still hasn't bothered to sign up to follow PMW's Twitters. I wonder if Cindy was really ever wholeheartedly on board with this referendum thing.
Oh now this is a true delight. Protect Marriage Washington is the group trying to destroy vital legal protections for loving Washington families by repealing the Domestic Partnership Expansion Law of 2009. They're attempting to do this via Referendum 71. They have a fairly moribund website, but on that website they've managed to post "R-71 Talking Points". A much better term would be "BWAKing Points".
Before WhoSigned.org came on the scene, the public conversation around Referendum 71 was one of positive consideration of our families. WhoSigned.org has disastrously changed the focus to a negative one about fringe tactics. Since the debut of WhoSigned.org last week, I have identified over 45 news stories, editorials, letters to the editor and blog diaries about Ref 71. Not one of them focused on our families and the importance of protecting the Domestic Partnership Expansion Law of 2009, as they had done previously. Only one focused on the dubious activities of the Ref 71 proponents, which we know to be legion. WhoSigned.org has taken all attention from our two greatest assets: our loving families and a morally bankrupt Radical-Right fringe trying to strip us of equality under the law.
Same-sex divorce...is 8 times higher among homosexual men, and 300 times higher among homosexual women.
Pidgeon said these numbers were from a study looking at France, but there can be no study on the divorce rate of same-sex couples in France because same-sex marriage is not legal in France. Similar wild and unsubstantiated numbers have been fabricated by many anti-family activists. Larry Stickney has posted a video of Pidgeon speaking this lie on the Protect Marriage Washington website (they're the Referendum 71 people).
I decided to check the actual, meaningful numbers here in Washington. Not same-sex divorce rate, because as in France, same-sex couples can't get married in Washington. But domestic partnership dissolution rates. After reviewing the numbers, I can see why Pidgeon resorted to make-believe; reality just doesn't jive with his apparent need to vilify gay families.
Protect Marriage Washington is the official ballot committee set up to receive pro-Referendum 71 funds and to be the "voice" of the anti-domestic partnership referendum effort. Larry Stickney is its campaign manager and Gary Randall is on its board. Its web site was presumably to be the hub of referendum activity, and its donation page allows you to donate directly to the Protect Marriage Washington PAC.
But today Gary Randall unveiled his own Referendum 71 web page under the banner of the Faith and Freedom Political Action Committee. It's donation button doesn't take you to the official Protect Marriage Washington fund, but to Gary's Faith & Freedom PAC, which we already know is not dedicated to the referendum. Nowhere on this page is there a link to anything related to Protect Marriage Washington. Gary's been quietly playing the fundraising shell game all along, but to set up a whole separate Ref 71 website now, when the petitions are at the printer, seems like a blatant slap in the face to campaign "manager" Larry Stickney and the umbrella organization they're both supposed to be dedicated to.
So what's going on here? Are Gary Randall and Larry Stickney dividing the spoils, or is this a mutual greedy grab by brats who can't share? One thing is clear, Gary Randall and Larry Stickney are not cooperating on the referendum effort. And as Abraham Lincoln so sagely said, a house divided against itself cannot stand.
State Rep. 
Johnson's vote for SB 5688 has 
Much is being made of the geographic clustering of counties where the majority of voters have approved R-71 (right, in green). Vote results are dismissed by some folk with a "well of course Puget Sound counties...". It is true that election results do rather neatly support the stereotype of Washington's east-west divide. But putting the R-71 results in historical context reveals a deeper story: almost every Washington county shows an increase in pro-equality voting.
Now Nevada Secretary of State 
This gesture is reminiscent of that 
Ever laugh 'till you snort, then laugh more and so hard that no sound comes out but tears roll on like Columbia roll on? Oh my, I wish you could read the latest email I just got from Larry Stickney. Alas, he hasn't posted it to his website yet. Despite Twittering on June 17th "Updating our websites!", the most recent news is still from mid-May. You'll just have to make do with my cut & paste. But it'll be worth it, trust me.
Oh now 
Remember 
But today Gary Randall unveiled his own 
