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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-2660.html
First Slovenian gay partnership branded 'awful'
6-October-2006
James Phillips
A gay couple this Friday became the first to enter into a civil partnership within the Balkan country of Slovenia.
Unfortunately for Mitja Blazic and Niki Kern the partnership hasn't got off to a great start after the couple branded the ceremony "humiliating" and ''awful''.
The accusation is in response to the Slovenian clause in the civil partnership law which prohibits couples from having friends and family present. Only the couple and the registrant can be present.
In July Slovenia's Parliament passed legislation allowing same-sex ceremonies.
The law allows gay and lesbian couples to register their unions and give partners access to each others' pensions and property.
Mr Blazic and Mr Kern signed their vows at a municipal registration office in a state building, yet emerged to tell waiting reporters that the ceremony was cold and without feeling.
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http://www.advocate.com/exclusive_detail_ektid37172.asp
Rep. Barney Frank talks about the Foley scandal
One of the few out politicians on Capitol Hill, Democratic congressman Barney Frank of Massachusetts (who survived his own scandal involving a male prostitute in 1989) gives us his take on Foley and on being a gay politician in Washington.
By Matthew Link
An Advocate.com exclusive posted October 4, 2006
Even though at least two other members of Congress have dallied with pages in the past (Democratic representative Gerry Studds of Massachusetts, with a male page in 1973, and Republican representative Dan Crane of Illinois, with a female page circa 1983), Mark Foley's current scandal and admission of being gay seem to have set the D.C. closet on fire.
One of the few out politicians on Capitol Hill, Massachusetts congressman Barney Frank (who survived his own scandal involving a male prostitute in 1989) gives us his take on Foley and on being a gay politician in Washington.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.startribune.com/562/story/724347.html
Star Tribune - Minneapolis
Ann Lowry: Don't let Mark Foley be a poster boy for gays
He does not represent gay people any more than a heterosexual child predator represents straight Americans.
Ann Lowry
It's one of those things you dread, like bad news from the doctor.
On Tuesday, former Florida Rep. Mark Foley's attorney announced that he is more than just a suspected child predator. He is also a gay American. Since he is a Republican and I am a Democrat, I want very much to demonize him. Since he sent really awful e-mails and instant messages to underage boys, I want the FBI to figure out which laws he broke and have him sent to prison for years.
But most of all, as a gay American, I want to say "No, we really don't want you. Go back in the closet where you belong. We have enough image problems without you tarnishing our image even more."
In spite of those thoughts, I must admit that I feel sorry for him. He is a victim of a culture where homophobia is rampant -- so rampant that coming out becomes an act of desperation, in a moment of extreme shame.Owning one's true self should not have to happen under these circumstances.
The unfortunate thing about owning one's identity is that sometimes it becomes all that you are. When some people find out I am a lesbian, I become the "lesbian friend" or the "lesbian teacher" or the "lesbian mom." It is true that when I first came out, being gay was at the forefront of my identity. Now I really don't think about it that much.
I act like a lot of straight women my age. I act like many of my straight colleagues and neighbors and people I know. In fact, some of my best friends are straight people! My partner and I act like a lot of straight couples we know who have been together for as long as we have been together.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006610060317
Words to live by: Live and let live
Zamna Avila (ZAVILA@RGJ.COM)
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
October 6, 2006
The debate of nature vs. nurture may never be solved, but one thing I knew even as a toddler is that I had an innate passion for reading, writing and current events.
My mother placed a pencil and a pad in my hands when I was only 2 years old. Since then, I've witnessed five presidents take the oath of office, major economic fluctuations in the nation, the threats and demise of the Cold War, a growth in health awareness in the United States and other parts of the world, a few wars, and several advances in technology.
So I am amazed at how much and how little we've evolved in our thinking and the freedoms afforded in our declaration of independence: ""»that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
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http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/sfl-ajudge07oct07,0,5396084.story
Gay ceremony may block judge's rise
By Sam Hananel and Ken Thomas
The Associated Press
October 7, 2006
WASHINGTON · A judge's elevation to the federal bench could be derailedbecause she helped preside over a commitment ceremony for a lesbian couplefour years ago.
Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., has placed a hold on the nomination of MichiganCourt of Appeals Judge Janet T. Neff, saying her presence at the 2002Massachusetts ceremony raises questions about her views.
"It seems to speak about her view of judicial activism," Brownback saidFriday. "It's something I want to inquire of her further."
Brownback, a vehement opponent of gay marriage, said he wants to knowwhether Neff might have presided over "an illegal marriage ceremony" thatskirted Massachusetts law. He has asked the Justice Department for a formallegal opinion on Neff's conduct.
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http://tinyurl.com/lax9n
6th October 2006
Youth and diversity sets new government apart
Published: 6th October 2006 16:46 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/article.php?ID=5138
The youngest Swedish prime minister for more than 80 years, Sweden'sfirst gay minister, first black minister, and the first male minister tosport a pony tail - Sweden's new government contains plenty of novelties.
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http://www.sun-sentinel.com/features/lifestyle/sfl-slaveryoct07,0,6701209.story
Slavery undermined the Bible, historian says
By Richard N. Ostling
The Associated Press
October 7, 2006
Human slavery, America's original sin, developed into a moral crisis,culminating in a Civil War that cost 518,333 lives. That exceeds the deathsin every other U.S. war, from the Revolution through Iraq.
Slavery also damaged the nation's religious underpinnings and the Bible'sauthority, says Mark A. Noll in The Civil War as a Theological Crisis(University of North Carolina Press). Noll is a leading evangelicalProtestant historian.
Noll's theme: America was built upon the Bible as the sole moral authority.But slavery caused "an unbridgeable chasm of opinion" about what the Biblemeant. Devout Bible believers reached starkly different conclusions, whichundermined assurance that the Bible gives clear guidance readily availableto all.
That's a pertinent point in 2006 as the religious left and religious rightdispute what the Bible says about abortion and gay rights, among other issues.
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http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/editorial/sfl-editnbfoleyoct07,0,2125237.story
Mark Foley
South Florida Sun-Sentinel Editorial Board
October 7, 2006
ISSUE: Foley's excuses are unacceptable.
For years, when it would have helped the gay community to be embraced by a powerful Republican, Mark Foley furiously refused to acknowledge hissexuality, calling reports that outed him "revolting."
So it is curious timing that Foley chose a press conference, held by hislawyer while he is in treatment, to admit what most already know -- that heis gay. Hardly a courageous statement at this late date, or one that topsthe list of answers the public needs.
What the world really wants to hear now, after Foley quit Congress indisgrace amid publication of lurid emails he sent to teenage boys, is thathe gets the depth of his depravity and will get help. It also would havehelped, as long as he was acknowledging his homosexuality, to put it intosome context by pointing out that one had nothing to do with the other.
Instead, in by-the-way fashion, with no point of relevance, his lawyer saysthat Foley "is a gay man." The lack of essential context only feeds the myththat homosexuality somehow leads to pedophilia.
That was only part of the collateral damage caused in a sorry pressconference that suggests Foley, a master of spin, is as consumed byrehabilitating his public image as he is his personal problems. Take thisbombshell, dropped by attorney David Roth: Foley was molested as a teen by a clergyman.
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/06/AR2006100601787_pf.html
Speculation Centers on a Republican Former Page
By Elizabeth Williamson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, October 7, 2006; A07
Likable and popular with female pages, a committed Republican who even as a teenager knew how to parlay chance meetings into political friendships,Jordan Edmund has emerged as a key figure in the Foley page scandal.
The former House page has been targeted by conservative blogs as the youngman on the receiving end of former representative Mark Foley's sexuallyexplicit online instant messages, which have engulfed the GOP in a scandalthat could affect the outcome of the Nov. 7 congressional elections.
Edmund has hired a lawyer, Stephen Jones, who will not acknowledge whetherhis client was the one who corresponded extensively with Foley for nearly ayear. Jones said he is going public with his client's name to help Edmundfend off conservative attacks and a barrage of media inquiries. He said hewill represent Edmund when he is interviewed early next week by the FBI.
"I did not discuss the messages with him," Jones said. "I'm not saying they're his. At this time I don't know."
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http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/07/us/07priest.html?ei=5094&en=9892430dec223716&hp=&ex=1160280000&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
October 7, 2006
Film on Pedophile Priest Revives Focus on Cardinal
By JENNIFER STEINHAUER
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 6 - A documentary film featuring an extraordinarily candid interview with a former priest convicted of molesting children hasheightened interest among law enforcement officials here in considering acriminal case against Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, says a prosecutor who has been investigating sexual abuse cases involving priests.
In the documentary, "Deliver Us From Evil," the former priest, Oliver O'Grady, describes how he abused young boys and girls across central California over20 years, including a period in the 1980's when Cardinal Mahony was hissuperior as the bishop in Stockton.
The former priest, who lives in Ireland, said he was able to continueabusing children in part because of actions by Cardinal Mahony, who nowheads the country's largest Roman Catholic archdiocese, here in Los Angeles,and is among the church's most influential American leaders. Mr. O'Gradysays in the film that as bishop in Stockton, the cardinal moved him fromparish to parish in the face of abuse accusations.
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http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/07/nyregion/07gays.html?ei=5094&en=3a183d9c83908c7d&hp=&ex=1160280000&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
October 7, 2006
Gay Unions Get Strong Support From Spitzer
By DANNY HAKIM
By saying on Thursday night that he will push to legalize gay marriage,Attorney General Eliot Spitzer put himself at the vanguard of the effort torecognize such unions, staking out a position that most prominent Democrats,including Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, have shied away from.
Mr. Spitzer, who is running for governor and holds a commanding lead in thepolls, made his strongest declaration yet in support of gay marriage in hisremarks to the Empire State Pride Agenda, the state's leading gay lobbyinggroup. He told the audience, "We will make it law in New York."
If elected, Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, would be the most prominent stateofficial in the nation to call for the legalization of gay marriage, thoughDemocratic candidates for governor in California and Massachusetts have alsoexpressed support. Many prominent Democrats, including Senator Clinton, havesupported gays on other issues but not on this one, which has led tofriction in their relations with gay leaders.
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Forwarded from Ken's List <Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu>
To: kenslist@groups.queernet.org
Counterpunch - Oct 5, 2006
http://www.counterpunch.org/norris10052006.html
A Psychotherapist on the Hysteria Over Foley
The Radical Right, the Myth of the Gay Child Abuser and You
By CAROL NORRIS
As soon as the Foley story broke, I knew it was just a matter of time. Sure enough, The People for the American Way reported that Tony Perkins, of the Family Research Council, said the real concern about Foley's sexual predatory behavior toward an underage congressional page is "the link between homosexuality and child sexual abuse." Not just Perkins, manyother right wing mouthpieces are disgorging similar rhetoric.
The radical right, at the helm of its mighty cutter boat, the U.S.S. Wedge Issue, is chipping and tacking its way through the towns and psyches ofour country yet again. I'd yawn at such a hackneyed conflation -homosexualityequals child sexual abuse - but those guys'll take advantage of anyopening they can get and I feel sure they'd ram the bow of their boat rightthrough my mouth on its way to the voting booths in November. Besides, Iknow thatcutter can do some serious damage.
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Forwarded from Ken's List <Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu>
To: kenslist@groups.queernet.org
Showdown looms as same-sex marriage heads to California justices
DAVID KRAVETS Associated Press
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanluisobispo/news/15698597.htm
October 6, 2006
SAN FRANCISCO - The California Supreme Court has a mixed record on gayrights and a tendency to give deference to existing law, which makes it anopen question how the justices will rule now that the same-sex marriageissue is heading its way.
Reversing a San Francisco trial judge, a divided appeals court on Thursdayupheld the state's existing marriage laws, saying they did not discriminateagainst gays and lesbians because they get all the rights of marriage thestate confers by registering as domestic partners.
Lawyers for 20 same-sex couples and the city of San Francisco are appealing,putting the case on course to get to the Supreme Court three years afterMayor Gavin Newsom put the marriage debate in the national spotlight byallowing same-sex couples to get married at City Hall.
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Irish Independent, Saturday 7 October 2006
No difference if children raised by lesbian parents, court hears
STUDIES have shown that the welfare of children is not adversely affectedwhen raised by lesbian parents, the High Court was told yesterday.
The quality of the parenting, not the sexual identity of the parent, is theessential ingredient of effective parenting and in the best interests of thechild, a US psychiatrist said.
Professor Richard Green rejected suggestions by State counsel that it was"premature" to draw any long-term conclusions from existing studies as tothe long-term development of children raised by lesbians, or that themethodology used in such studies was flawed.
He was giving evidence - by video link from the UK where he is researchdirector at the Gender Identity Clinic at Charing Cross Hospital, London -in the action by a lesbian couple, Dr Katherine Zappone, a public policyconsultant, and Dr Ann Louise Gilligan, an academic, aimed at having theirCanadian marriage recognised here.
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Spanish restaurant refuses gay wedding
A restaurant in Madrid may face charges for refusing services to ahomosexual couple wanting to schedule their wedding feast.
Friday, October 06, 2006
by Martin Barillas
Spero News
http://www.speroforum.com/site/article.asp?idCategory=33&idsub=124&id=5904&t
=Spanish+restaurant+refuses+gay+wedding
A restaurant in Spain refused to take a reservation from a pair of malehomosexuals in order to hold their wedding and a banquet to follow.According to the management of "La Favorita" of Madrid, this was accordingto "company rules". Located in a fashionable neighborhood of Madrid, thepair had hope to use the location whose owners then refused.
A spokesman for the owners insisted that there was no illegal discriminationin this case, but insisted that the opinions of the entire public must berespected. The management gave assurances that it did not intend to disturbanyone and that it does respect the opinion of the homosexual pair inquestion.
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http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid37216.asp
October 06, 2006
Investigating "the congressional closet"
In September 1996 The Advocate ran a story by J. Jennings Moss titled "Onthe record," which has been repeatedly cited as the deliberate outing ofcongressmen Jim Kolbe (pictured) and Mark Foley. Decide for yourself. Here'sthe original text of that now infamous investigation.
By J. Jennings Moss
On the record
Heated debate over House approval of the antigay Defense of Marriage Actshines a wary spotlight on the congressional closet.
They spoke to their colleagues-and the nation-from experience. They arguedthat by passing a bill that defines marriage strictly as a union between aman and a woman, the House was trampling on the civil rights of gays andlesbians. They were talking about their own rights as gay men. And everybodyknew it.
Steve Gunderson, Barney Frank, and Gerry Studds made their status as gay men relevant to the debate that took place in July.Arguably, the marital status and sexual orientation of every member ofCongress was at issue when the House voted 342-67 to approve the Defense ofMarriage Act (DOMA), a bill that would allow states to avoid recognizingsame-sex marriages granted in other states. (Hawaii could be the first tolegalize such unions.)
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http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid37168.asp
Foley's pathetic blame game
Hey, Mark Foley! Stop using sexuality to explain away why you're so screwedup. You're screwed up because you were a mess to start with, not because youdrink too much (allegedly). You're a creep. Live with it.
By Karel
Our president lies about WMDs in Iraq and launches an unjust and unnecessarywar. We are in debt beyond belief. Home prices are plummeting. Governmentspending is out of control. A woman's right to choose is under attack. Gaysare bashed regularly by members of Congress and the President. Americans aredying as we speak. We've lost the war in Afghanistan, Osama bin Laden hasnot been captured, the Chinese basically own us, and goodwill towardAmericans is at an all-time low. There can be no doubt there's lot to talkabout and a lot of upsetting events.
But what's got the media on their heads?
Ex-Representative Mark Foley: a pervert. a congressman, a Republican fromFlorida who likes to hear about how 16-year-old boys masturbate, a leaderwho used his own power to seduce young pages and ex-pages. A man whose party
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