gdp's Comments

The New Civil Rights Movement : On Our Radar - Bowe Bergdahl - Our Imperfect American Son

Sun, 8 Jun 2014 18:58:30 +0000

“I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent.” Mahatma Gandhi

The New Civil Rights Movement : On Our Radar - Sandy Springs, Georgia - Stopping Illicit Orgasms One Sex Toy At A Time

Sun, 25 May 2014 20:13:26 +0000

That's a common misconception.. rethugs don't want less government. They want smaller government- so they're easily bullied or run over by corporations and are just large enough to fit into a vagina.

The New Civil Rights Movement : Watch: Cliven Bundy Talks About 'The Negro'

Thu, 24 Apr 2014 18:19:55 +0000

An edit to their FB page would seem to be in order: " He wants what he thinks is best for everyone."

The New Civil Rights Movement : Catholic School Under Fire For Teaching Masturbation, Poor Parenting Lead To Being Gay

Fri, 28 Mar 2014 19:48:18 +0000

So at least 99.8% of males above the age of 12 masturbate and reasonable estimates are that 3-10% of males above the age of 12 are gay - does not compute. Also, not sure what percentage of males watch porn with other males, but I am pretty sure it is also much greater than the number of gay men. Of course, logic, research, analysis and deep thought are the antithesis of anecdotal stories and personal prejudice.

The New Civil Rights Movement : 'White Homos Are Going To Take The Black Woman’s Man' Warns 'Stone The Gays' Pastor

Thu, 27 Mar 2014 20:44:56 +0000

I believe the phrase you are looking for is "baffle them with bullsh!t" ;-)

The New Civil Rights Movement : 'White Homos Are Going To Take The Black Woman’s Man' Warns 'Stone The Gays' Pastor

Wed, 26 Mar 2014 20:05:55 +0000

So he thinks African-Americans don't deserve Starbucks.... or perhaps they are too good for it?

The New Civil Rights Movement : On Our Radar - Winning Gay

Sun, 23 Mar 2014 17:54:45 +0000

This weekend my local NPR station ran an episode of On Being that featured an interview with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. His comments about South Africa's Truth & Reconciliation Commission are on point. While he speaks from a specific religious point of view, forgiveness, self-awareness and being the best person we can are all non-religious values. I don't know how long it will be available, but for now the audio is available at http://www.onbeing.org/

The New Civil Rights Movement : Bill Maher: God Is A 'Psychotic Mass Murderer' (Video)

Sun, 16 Mar 2014 12:05:17 +0000

Alvin Boyd Kuhn wrote “the original formulators of the divine myths never dreamed there would come a time so degenerate in reflective capacity that the products of their allegorical genius would be mistake for the body of reality itself.” Kuhn also quotes Egyptologist Gerald Massey: “most of our popular beliefs are fossilized symbolism.“

The New Civil Rights Movement : Breaking: Kentucky Ban On Out-Of-State Same-Sex Marriages Ruled Unconstitutional

Thu, 13 Feb 2014 00:41:58 +0000

It's a good day when the Judiciary stands against the tyranny of the majority.

The New Civil Rights Movement : Watch: Orphan Black's 'Felix' Responds To 'I'd Be Offended By You If I Were Gay.'

Fri, 24 Jan 2014 22:28:05 +0000

Exactly- we have to be secure enough to recognize and celebrate real diversity. Sure there are people who will latch on to representations of queer folk that support their personal prejudices. And there are queer people who will latch on to representations of (insert your least-favourite category here) folk and deride them.

The New Civil Rights Movement : Overstock.com CEO Faces PR Battle After Board Member's Anti-Gay Stance

Tue, 21 Jan 2014 15:25:04 +0000

Of course you should shop there, if they have what you're looking for at the right price. Clearly the company is LGBT friendly; and that is what your money supports. Boycotting the company because one individual (no matter how far up or down the corporate ladder) is a homophobe would lead to never shopping anywhere, unless you were able to first survey every individual employee's personal opinions. To boycott the company is wrong, wrong wrong on so many levels. The company is supportive, the CEO is supportive, and Mr Johnson has the right to be wrong in his personal beliefs and behaviours during non-company time. Aside from the moral case, consider the ammunition given the rabid right-wing by attempting to hurt the company or have this man terminated for his off-duty behaviour. It would support their claims of intolerance by progressives, as well as provide precedent for their demanding gay or gay-supportive people be fired from unfriendly companies for off-duty behaviour. As much as I disagree with Mr Johnson, I agree with Mr Byrne's supporting that man's right to be wrong on his own time.

The New Civil Rights Movement : Guess Who's Furious Over Macy's Thanksgiving Parade's 'Kinky Boots' Performance?

Sat, 30 Nov 2013 22:02:08 +0000

"Queer" is a term more often used by younger members of our community to represent, as you suggest, the wide diversity of non-heteronormative lives. It is also sometimes chosen specifically as a rejection of the mainstreaming of "gay" (and to a somewhat lesser degree "lesbian") to refer to the whitewashed wasp-ish image that is less threatening and somwhat assimilationist . Sadly many others of my generation (I'm 55) can see it only as a negative term- and of course there was a time when it was used as often as the "f" word.

The New Civil Rights Movement : Guess Who's Furious Over Macy's Thanksgiving Parade's 'Kinky Boots' Performance?

Sat, 30 Nov 2013 11:59:54 +0000

As you can see from some other replies, there is no "official" designation of those two letters. At one point it seemed as if the designation was getting just a little too long so partially in jest I use the acronym LGBTITQQ2S in my blog. Although the second T is a deprecated term it is still valid - also I left it in so that I have TIT in the middle: Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transexual Intersexed Transvestite Queer Questioning 2 Spirits (from First Nations traditions)

The New Civil Rights Movement : Guess Who's Furious Over Macy's Thanksgiving Parade's 'Kinky Boots' Performance?

Fri, 29 Nov 2013 14:56:41 +0000

I figured it was the typical politician today- moving their opinions and policies in time with the latest poll results.

The New Civil Rights Movement : Guess Who's Furious Over Macy's Thanksgiving Parade's 'Kinky Boots' Performance?

Fri, 29 Nov 2013 14:55:45 +0000

I really think very few kids will ask their parents what a drag queen is- most kids are very familiar with "playing dress up". And while that is hardly the most accurate description it is enough for most pre-teens. Shame that it is not enough for so many adults.

The New Civil Rights Movement : Today: The World Remembers Harvey Milk, Assassinated 35 Years Ago

Thu, 28 Nov 2013 01:01:49 +0000

While certainly not as terrible as the assassination, the rampant homophobia surrounding the trial of the assassin is its own stain on the history of justice in the US. Many people have heard reference to "the Twinkie® defense" - perhaps some think it had something to do with the recent bankruptcy of the original maker of the "cream-filled cake". Actually, the assassin's lawyer used it to argue his client wasn't legally of sound mind at the time. Romanovsky &Phillips refer to this in the lyrics to Homophobia (on Trouble In Paradise): There was a man who shot our first gay supervisor dead; The Twinkies made him do it, that's what his attorney said; He could have gotten life, but he got seven years instead; Sounds suspiciously like homophobia to me, (from 'Homophobia' - © copyright 1982 Romanovsky & Phillips)

The New Civil Rights Movement : Pope Francis Issues Major Policy Slamming 'Trickle-Down' Capitalism As 'Tyranny'

Wed, 27 Nov 2013 13:11:02 +0000

I have summed up my reaction to "trickle down" on a t-shirt: http://www.cafepress.com/digitalgryphon/10108630

The New Civil Rights Movement : Pope Francis Issues Major Policy Slamming 'Trickle-Down' Capitalism As 'Tyranny'

Tue, 26 Nov 2013 18:48:25 +0000

So many thoughts in reaction to this- yes, he is correct. Conspicuous Consumption is an old term- when only the uber-wealthy (now known as "the one percent") could afford to waste their days shopping. It referred not only to their unbridled spending- it also included their buying flashy items; having a dozen cars for a small family, a large house with more bathrooms than residents & staff combined, etc. Sadly the progress that included building up a thriving middle class led them (we) down the garden path of Rampant Consumerism - and so now it's a wall-mounted big screen with Surround Sound™ speakers and new clothes for every month. Speaking out against that is one modern tradition of the Catholic Corporation I would admire if it wasn't itself sitting on billions of dollars worth of art, historical artifacts and precious gems. Enough to feed all the poor for some time. Or, perhaps, to educate them all to "catch fish" and build sustainable economies around the world. As an aside, it is rumoured the Vatican archives contain historic items that would provide a great deal of information and knowledge. Of course it is also rumoured that the release of such things would destroy the Church (and perhaps all others on the same foundation). Oh- of course, by "carrying the burdens of the weakest and poorest" was a spiritual reference. But then there's the wonderful line that the pope finds the “current financial crisis…originated in a profound human crisis: the denial of the primacy of the human person!” While I agree that placing Corporations (and not just commercial ones) ahead of actual living humans is wrong- dangerously, criminally, morally wrong, the line is quite something coming from the head of an organization founded on labeling the human animal a broken creation for denying the primacy of its (claimed) Creator.

The New Civil Rights Movement : Breaking: Federal District Court Declares A Religious Income Tax Exemption Unconstitutional

Fri, 22 Nov 2013 22:15:55 +0000

Hard to say; I think there are plenty of good, rational, constitutionally-sound reasons for the federal government not to appeal. And at first glance it would seem the only reason to appeal would be political; to not appear to be "anti-religious" while hoping the appeal is quashed. Somehow I don't think the rational arguments (constitutional as well as budgetary) will be well-received by the right-wing. Of course if this makes it to The Supremes who can say for sure how that will go? They have managed to avoid removing religious trappings from the Pledge and our currency; and even those who agree with it may well be loathe to touch it.

The New Civil Rights Movement : NOM Tax Returns Released -- Reports Show Org With $1 Million Deficit

Tue, 19 Nov 2013 16:24:08 +0000

As a 501(c)4 organization they are not required to disclose that information in their federal tax filings. As noted in the article they have been ordered to disclose names of donors by courts in multiple state-level lawsuits. As much as they whine about some non-public information from one year's IRS filing having been published - against the law- they seem to be in no rush to comply with the state-level court orders.