Let's not get distracted by the pawns

As fun as it is to expose and malign Peter LaBarbarbera and Americans for Truth (in name only) for their supposed "hard-hitting" exposes on leather conventions, let's not lose perspective.

While it is important to focus on LaBarbera's nonsense, we shouldn't take out attention away from the larger issue.

Which is the constant attempts by the anti-gay industry as a whole to define our lives based on not who we actually are, but what they think we are.

Peter makes himself an easy and fun target, but while attention is focused on him:

President Bush is attempting to push through a candidate for Surgeon General, John Holsinger, who seems to have an anti-gay bias. Let's not allow the anti-gay industry to define the debate as one of religious persecution.

Mr. Holsinger can believe whatever he wants but as Surgeon General he is supposed to representate all of us fairly. If his religious beliefs preclude him from doing this then he has no business even being considered for the position.

LGBTs are taxpayers also, thank you very much. We don't need acceptance but we will not take disrespect.

Also:

The city of Kalamazoo became the first public employer in the state to strip health benefits from the domestic partners of its gay and lesbian employees.

City Manager Kenneth Collard cited a decision last month by the Michigan supreme Court.
The high court agreed to hear an appeal of a lower court ruling that said the state's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage blocks the state, local governments and public institutions from providing benefits to the same-sex partners of employees.

So much for these amendments being created to solely "protect marriage."

Just remember not to laugh at the clown so much that you don't notice when his cohorts try to rob you blind.

One more thing: I see that the Advocate magazine is seeking responses for its annual sex survey.

This means, of course, that we can expect to see our friend Peter and others in the anti-gay industry skewer the responses to fit their fictional worldview of the "perverted homosexual."

In the past, the anti-gay industry have used magazine sex surveys to malign our community. I cover this fact in my book.

This is just a heads up to look out for how they will distort this year's survey.