Uganda hates gays while Peter tells us what exactly is a 'power bottom'

Scary stuff coming out of Uganda courtesy of Box Turtle Bulletin -

Anti-Gay Conference Kicks Off In Kampala

Uganda Anti-Gay Conference: Day Two - The Uganda anti-gay conference continues for a second day, with no further explanation on conference leaders’ endorsement of a parliamentarian proposal to upgrade Uganda’s anti-homosexuality law to include forced “therapy” on those who are convicted. Ugandan law already provides for a life sentence on conviction . . .

Uganda Anti-Gay Conference: Day Three -- Gays Blamed For Rwandan Genocide; More Exodus Ties To Holocaust Revisionism

Meanwhile . . .

One of our favorite anti-gay spokesman is devoting serious time to identifying the definition of a "true power bottom."

I wonder which story will One News Now cover.

'Christian' organization doesn't know the difference between a pro-family group and a hate group

Yesterday, I mentioned that the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission (CADC) was miffed at the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) due to the designation of several organizations as "hate groups."

The CADC is also circulating a petition asking that the SPLC stop labeling so-called "pro-family" organizations as hate groups:

Apparently the SPLC has no tolerance for Christians who speak and act in accordance with their faith. This is the typical, liberal kind of tolerance that is a one way street for those who oppose traditional Christian morality.

This brand of Christian bashing needs to be stopped. Sign our petition urging the SPLC to stop slandering Christians for their biblical point of view. SPLC’s attempt to label pro-family organizations "hate groups" must to be renounced.

Interestingly enough, the CADC doesn't give the names of these groups it claims is being unfairly labeled as hate groups.

Here are just two:

The Family Research Institute - that is the organization run by discredited researcher Paul Cameron.

You remember him, don't you?

He is the guy who has been called out or censured by individuals and groups from diverse backgrounds including the American Psychological Association, The American Sociological Association, conservative leader Williams Bennett, and anti-gay group Exodus International.

He is the guy who makes up stories about gay men castrating children in bathrooms.

He is the guy who publishes phony studies claiming, amongst other things, that gay men eat feces.

He is the guy who said the following:

“If you isolate sexuality as something solely for one’s own personal amusement, and all you want is the most satisfying orgasm you can get—and that is what homosexuality seems to be—then homosexuality seems too powerful to resist. The evidence is that men do a better job on men, and women on women if all you are looking for is an orgasm.”

Then there is Abiding Truth Ministries - that is the group founded by Scott Lively. He is the guy who wrote that fradulent book The Pink Swastika which connects the gay community to the Nazi party. That's the book that has been repeatedly discredited. Presently, Mr. Lively is at a conference in Uganda, lending support to that country's very very strict anti-gay laws (those "convicted of homosexual acts" are given a life sentence).

In naming these organizations as hate groups, the SPLC said:

Anti-gay groups are organizations that go beyond mere disagreement with homosexuality by subjecting gays and lesbians to campaigns of personal vilification.

In addition, Mark Potok, director of the Intelligence Project at the SPLC said:

“we don’t ordinarily list groups that say homosexuality is wrong or see it as a sin; we list very few anti-gay groups. They have to be very extreme in their views. We see Lively the same way we see Paul Cameron; the two of them in our view consciously promote easily provable false defamations. They don’t seem to care at all what the truth is.”

Seems to me that anger shouldn't directed at SPLC for labeling these organizations as hate groups, but to CADC for calling them "pro-family."

That is if one cares about the integrity of such terms as "pro-family" and "Christian."

More on HRC's End the Lies project

Yesterday, the Human Rights Campaign launched a new site that will expose the lies told about the lgbt community.

Now you can help this site by nominating your favorite (and I use the term very loosely) spreader of anti-gay lies and distortions for the Wall of Shame.

I've already nominated a few deserving individuals.

By all means, nominate a few of your own. Lord knows that there are so many out there.

Thursday news briefs

I know everyone is chomping at the bit regarding the Proposition 8 court hearing today, but I thought I would provide a little bit of other news . . .

Where Did You Get Them? - First comes love, then comes marriage (despite the religious right), then comes somebody in a baby carriage.

Christian Pro-Family Organizations Labeled "Hate Groups" - The Christian Anti-Defamation Commission (it's always amusing to me how the folks on the other side give themselves these "titles") are urging folks to sign a petition against the Southern Poverty Law Center for naming various anti-gay groups as official hate groups. Interestingly enough, while the C.A.D.C. are outraged about these groups being labeled, they never get around to giving out their names. And I don't think that was a typo. If you want to see the groups, go here.

If the C.A.D.C. considers Paul Cameron's group (the Family Research Institute) and Mass Resistance as "pro-family" organizations then they have a very screwed-up concept of the word "pro-family."

Hat tip to Rightwing Watch .

Rush Limbaugh’s Top Anti-Gay Quotes - Everyone is beating up on Rush and I wanna get my shots in. Seriously this is from a new addition to my links and blogroll - The New Civil Rights Movement.

IL school hosts homosexual dance - Apparently according to phony gay expert Laurie Higgins, holding a school dance for gay youth and their allies is a political act. I wonder how she feels about humming a Judy Garland song? This article is interesting in that in the comment section, a lot of responders give Higgins hell. I couldn't believe it when I saw it.

Hat tip to Openly Gay.

And now for something completely different . . .

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: And the Desert Shall Blossom - This is a long link so watch it at your leisure. When I told a friend about this, he said that maybe I see a gay connection in things that do not have them.

But bear with me when I explain the premise - two old prospectors who live out in the middle of nowhere are in danger of being forced into a retirement home by the town council unless they can prove that they are self-sufficient. Now you may disagree but I still say that despite the fact that this episode took place in the 1950s, one can infer that the two men are in a relationship.

Look at the episode and see for yourself.

Don't worry - it has a happy ending.

HRC gets in the game of exposing the religious right

For years, myself and other bloggers have been doing what we can to expose the lies of the religious right.

Now the Human Rights Campaign is going full tilt in the game:

On the day the California Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the NCLR/ACLU lawsuits to overturn Prop 8, HRC will launch EndTheLies.org, a new website to call out the lies spread by right wingers to stop the LGBT movement’s push for equality.

As we gear up to fight for passage of our legislative agenda in Congress, EndTheLies.org will feature an “interactive wall” of anti-LGBT crusaders (i.e. the AFA, Sally Kern, and George W. Bush) and will provide ways for visitors to take action against their efforts. Users will also be able to nominate their own candidates for the wall.

Here’s two examples of how EndTheLies.org will combat some of the favorite fibs by the right wing:

Lie: If hate crimes laws are passed, pastors will be prosecuted for preaching what the Bible says about homosexuality.

Truth: Pastors will not be held liable for hate crimes based on preaching anti-gay sermons. The First Amendment protects a preacher from being charged as an accessory to a hate crime simply because of their speech. The Matthew Shepard Act only punishes violent crimes, not a person’s speech, beliefs or thoughts. In fact, the legislation contains language specifically protecting free speech.

Lie: Legislation that will provide employment protection based on sexual orientation or gender identity will force churches to hire homosexuals.

Truth: Federal employment non-discrimination legislation is sensitive to religious organizations and their fundamental beliefs and tenets, and includes a broad exemption for these groups, including churches, religious schools and other faith entities.

For too long, anti-LGBT right wingers have won battles against our community by telling lies about our lives and families – and then excite fear and hysteria all the way to victory. It’s past time for us to aggressively go head-to-head with their tactics – and to call them out for their hypocrisy.

It's good that HRC is taking a role in breaking down the intentional inaccuracies that are geared to poison the minds of people of faith and Americans in general against the lgbt community.

While some may ask what took so long, I say that it's about time. I also say that before we get all judgmental, the lgbt community should give the site time to grow and focus.

And above all, we should give HRC's effort all of our utmost support.

Proposition 8 plea to my lgbt brothers and sisters - show a little forethought and restraint

Today, California courts will be hearing a challenge to Proposition 8 - the law the banned gay marriage in California.

Since that monstrosity passed in November, the lgbt communty has tossed and struggled with why it passed, what it means for our community, and how do we go on.

So today will be interesting.

But I have a plea to my lgbt brothers and sisters.

If the courts give us what we want, please show some forethought. The other side will be galvanized in huge number, like they were when the sodomy laws were stricken. While there may be a need to celebrate, we should remember that a victory is not the end of the entire thing, but another avenue that could take us down a bad road if we don't have the presence of mind to control the argument.

But what if the courts don't give us what we want. That concerns me more.

Last year when Proposition 8 passed, some of us got so angry that we forgot ourselves. We allowed our private prejudices and inner demons to come out and control our actions.

And we allowed ourselves to be played.

One thing I hated last year was how the gay community was unfairly cast as overly violent racist aggressors who wrote nasty threatening things on blogs, sent threatening letters to Mormons and beat up old women.

But we helped further that image by playing into the hands of the opposition. We gave them plenty of ammunition as they scoured blogs looking for negative reactions to the vote and looked at video protests seeking to twist the smallest thing into evidence of a gay insurrection.

Yes I know that we get angry over the lies of the religious right, but there is no excuse for being so angry that you allow yourself to become a pawn in your own dehumanization.

So let me advise this - despite what happens today (regardless of what the prognosticators say the court will rule before its 90 day window), remember that this is not over. And the actions that you may choose to take will always have either positive or negative repercussions.

If you feel yourself getting angry over the lies and such, channel that anger into something more productive than writing an ugly note on a blog. Volunteer for a local political or service group. Organize your friends together.

And above all, get educated. That's the one thing we don't do enough as a community.

The struggle for self-determination isn't supposed to be easy, but there is no excuse for making it more difficult.

Congratulations Mass Resistance - you hateful folks deserve your honor

For the second consecutive year, the Southern Povery Law Center has designated Massachusetts anti-gay group Mass Resistance as a hate group.

It couldn't have happened to a better bunch.

From the Southern Poverty Law Center:

Anti-gay groups are organizations that go beyond mere disagreement with homosexuality by subjecting gays and lesbians to campaigns of personal vilification.

Mass Resistance is in good company. Apparently Paul Cameron's group, the Family Research Institute, is included in SPLC's listing of anti-gay hate groups.

Now if you think that Mass Resistance gave a speech about their designation thanking the usual - God, their parents, and their supporters - think again.

In a way true to the form that led them to receive such designation, Mass Resistance claims that SPLC's honor is part of "the plan" put forth by the gay community in the book After the Ball:

It's a common theme of the left, going back to the Saul Alinsky tactics in the 1930s, to demonize your enemies if they become effective. This was adopted by the homosexual movement. In their classic manifesto After the Ball, Marshall Kirk & Hunter Masden advised activists to compare people with traditional values to the Ku Klux Klan (which lynched blacks).

That annoying and inaccurate claim has been popping up steadily this year.

In truth, Mass Resistance has done more than enough to deserve the designation given to them by SPLC, including the following:

At a recent MassResistance Banquet, the guest speaker was Scott Lively, the author of the book The Pink Swastika which alleges that gay men were not particularly persecuted under the German Nazi regime, and that homosexual men were especially prevalent in the ranks of German Nazism, and were in large part, the motivators of the Jewish Holocaust.

In an interview with the Daily Show, Camenker said that if he was given enough time he could "connect the dots" to same sex marriage in Massachusetts for the rise in homelessness and crime rates and the poor air quality.

MassResistance protested a Macys store in Boston because they believed Macys was dressing transgendered mannequins in their windows. MassResistance went so far as to roam the Macys and photograph what they considered "normal" mannequins and then compared the photos on their website.

On the MassResistance blog, the group stated that children learn about sex from hearing noises outside of their parents locked door: "And sometimes the bedroom door is locked and he hears noises. This is a child's normal introduction to sex. It is simply put before him in the context of normal, healthy family activities."

Even former Governor Romney, who is not an ally of the Marriage Equality movement issued a press release exposing Brian Camenker and this group MassResistance.

And let's not forget its lead role in the David Parker debacle.

Hat tip to Mass Resistance Watch for providing this list.

Dumb comment courtesy of One News Now

I try to talk about only religious right organizations and how they deceive people of faith with their lies.

But sometimes I see something that makes me think that some of these folks want to walk down the primrose path of deception.

A comment arising from a One News Now article, Christians in medical field face 'conscience' challenge, is a perfect example of this.

The article is a slanted view of President Obama's decision to rescind a sloppy overreaching regulation regarding physicians' personal beliefs when treating their patients. Supporters of the regulation claim that it's to prevent doctors from being forced to perform abortions if they are personally opposed to abortions.

The regulation is sloppy because it is too broad, dealing with more than abortion and dealing with more than physicians. It even covers people cleaning medical equipment.

Naturally One News Now provides slanted coverage and naturally many of its commentators are angry at President Obama's decision.

But one comment in particular caught my eye. The person was responding to another comment asking what would be done if your doctor was a Jehovah's Witness and refused to give a blood tranfusion. This is the response:

If I needed a blood transfusion and went to a doctor who was a Jehovah's Witness, I wouldn't ask him to change his beliefs...I would simply choose a different doctor. That's the beauty of living in a free society. You have the right to choose, AND you have freedom from tyranny. Forcing someone to do something against their will is the epitome of tyranny.

My question is if you are in the position to need a blood tranfusion, how can you "choose" a different doctor?

Come on, Peter. You know you miss Paul Cameron

Yesterday, I showed a comment that our friend Peter LaBarbera made about focusing on the supposed unhealthy aspect of being gay:

"I think they (young conservatives) feel that they have to do something for these gay unions. We have to bring it back to the behavior, the unhealthiness of the behavior, but also the entire gay agenda . . . " - Young conservatives misled on homosexual issue

Today in a humorously bad piece, MSM=Disease, he follows the same vein.

What makes the piece so bad is how he dances around the issue. He waxes about bathhouses and "queer ideology," and makes a veiled comment about the "extraordinary health risks of homosexual behavior" (without saying what these extraordinary health risks are. And here I was hoping he would dare to cite 'gay bowel syndrome.')

He also unleashes this howler:

This colossal public health disaster is the direct result of GLBT organizing and political clout which, ironically, helps perpetuate the suffering of homosexual men. If the public health powers that be could somehow manage to cut through the politically correct cow manure, they might ask themselves why this link between homo-sexual behavior (or, as Prof. Rob Gagnon calls it, homosex) and disease is being downplayed or ignored while other similarly obvious connections (e.g., smoking and lung disease) are dealt with forthrightly, resulting in no-nonsense prevention methods that discourage or ban unhealthy conduct (e.g., public media campaigns against smoking and laws banning smoking).

Sorry, but there is nothing backing up LaBarbera's inferrence that being gay directly leads to disease (as in the case of smoking and lung disease) Nor is his claim that organizing and growing political clout leads to disease in the gay community correct.

What LaBarbera will not tell you is that there are many studies which say homophobia leads to negative behaviors in gays, particularly our youth. And these negative behaviors can lead to diseases.

If anything, political organizing has led the way in stopping homophobia and negative behavior in gays, particularly our youth, thereby putting a damper on diseases.

But it's just like Peter to try and turn the truth on its head.

I bet he really misses the ability to cite Paul Cameron now.

The Mormon Church is at it again

this is from Box Turtle Bulletin

EXCLUSIVE: Mormon Machine Cranking Up Against Illinois Civil Unions Bill

The Illinois House will begin considering another Civil Unions bill this week. Introduced by Rep. Greg Harris on February 20, HB 2234 has been assigned to the Youth and Family Committee, which will hold a hearing on Thursday. We’ve received word that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has engaged its private communications network to bombard state legislators with phone calls in opposition to the bill.

The Mormon Church maintains a private internet social-networking service in lieu of individual churches having their own Internet web sites. This allows the church to oversee the information that is made available to members and nonmembers. It also allows the church to maintain private information that is only made available to church members.

Among the many capabilities the web site has for members who are authorized to log in is the ability to send private email to other church members in the same ward. It also allows a ward bishop to send a blanket email to all members of his ward, and it allows a stake president to send a blanket email to all members of his stake.

But this is key: no individual member can send a blanket email to all members of his ward without it first going through his or her bishop. The same is true at the stake level, where the stake president would have to first authorize the message. So when a church member receives a broadcast message, he or she can be assured that it has the blessing, so to speak, of the bishop or stake president.

In a private email sent out to LDS members of at least one ward in Illinois, church members are being encouraged to call their representative to voice their opposition to the bill, which would provide same-sex couples with recognition and limited protections under Illinois law. But the official LDS-sanctioned email to members is loaded with much of the same misinformation that was present in the campaign against California’s Proposition 8.

More at Box Turtle Bulletin

Gays are not persecuting Christians - The moral panic exposed

Did you hear the one about the church that was forced to allow lesbians to hold a commitment ceremony on its property?

How about the father who was dragged away from his son's school in handcuffs because he wouldn't let teachers "indoctrinate" his child in the alleged gay agenda?

Well how about the secret plan of gays to take over America via a six-point plan put out by a 1980's book?

I can't believe you haven't heard of these things? Haven't you been keeping up with the news? There is a HUGE conspiracy by gays to silence Christians.

I kid you not and I know for certain that this is true because the American Family Association and other religious right groups created a "documentary" proving it.

Okay, realistically, this claim about gays trying to silence Christians is an unadulterated fraud not unlike the equally phony "War on Christmas" moral panic perpetrated by religious right groups every December.

And like the "War on Christmas," this lie about gays plotting to silence Christians is built on deceit, intentionally misrepresented anecdotes, and the inherent laziness of the media and public in general for not seeking out the truth behind said anecdotes.

Creating a moral panic about the gay community is nothing new to the American Family Association (AFA) or any other religious right group for that matter. In the 80s and early 90s (and even now), these groups pushed shockingly inaccurate studies that masqueraded as scientific facts. The purpose of these studies was to give the false impression of gays as diseased hordes obsessed with gerbils, carrots, public sex, blood, and children.

And the idea of presenting anti-gay innuendoes in a "documentary" (thereby giving them a fake air of truth) isn't a new concept either. Religious right groups (AFA included) took those pre-mentioned studies and packaged them into propaganda films such as The Gay Agenda and Gay Rights/Special Rights.

So what's happening now is just a new version of the same tired game. In the past, the religious right tried to make the issue of gay rights into that of a public health menace. Apparently the gay community have gotten savvy to this game so they are now trying to slink their lies into another inaccurate talking point - gay rights will increase religious persecution.

Now all that is left is for a public religious right figure (i.e. Mike Huckabee) to push these lies with an unassuming frame of mind and say things like "you gays can't seem to understand that we Christians don't hate you" while his friends in the background (AFA and company) accuse gays of everything BUT attempting to bring back the Spanish Inquisition.

It's a nifty way to poison the case for gay rights in the eyes of the public while at the same time leave gays sputtering in anger over the wanton evasiveness of such tactics.

The end result being gays will look pushy and threatening while Huckabee and company will come across looking like St. Peter and smelling like a Rose of Sharon.

And let's not forget the anecodotes because they play a crucial part in this game. No matter how farfetched or deceptive they are, random stories about gays allegedly persecuting Christians are effective. No matter how many times they are discredited, there is always a crowd ready to believe them - especially when these anecdotes take centerstage in "documentaries" that will repeat them ad naseum.

But for the sake of bringing things back to the beginning, let me return to the anecdotes I mentioned at the beginning of this piece:

The incident involving the church had to do with the church receiving tax breaks for a pavilion it owned. But a requirement of the tax breaks was that the pavilion had to be open to all, gays included.

And that father allegedly dragged away in handcuffs? Well he objected to his son bringing home a book on different families on the grounds that one family in the book was of a same sex nature. The school accommodated his anger via private meetings, but he used the occasion to orchestrate his arrest - even to the point of having people waiting outside to take pictures when the police led him away in handcuffs.

Lastly, that book about gays taking over America? The majority of gays have never heard of it.

And that's the true story behind just three of the stories regarding gays allegedly persecuting Christians. But you won't find this truth featured in any religious right "documentary."

And that's a shame because it's proof that to some people who claim to fight for moral values, truth is an expendable casualty.

The most telling thing Peter LaBarbera will ever say

"I think they (young conservatives) feel that they have to do something for these gay unions. We have to bring it back to the behavior, the unhealthiness of the behavior, but also the entire gay agenda . . . " - Young conservatives misled on homosexual issue

How long will it be before we see this sort of thing again (Hat tip to Goodasyou.org):

Tennessee bill going after the 'adopting gays'

Here we go again:

Tennessee bill would ban adoptions by unwed couples

They don't have Karl Rove. They no longer have James Dobson. But the religious right are bound and determined to create another campaign issue like the push against marriage equality.

Of course the bill doesn't mention anything about gays, just unmarried couples. But as the article and comments under it demonstrate, this bill is all about keeping gay couples from adopting children.

We know what may happen next. The bill passes, the court strikes it down, and we get to hear the standard blather about "activist judges trying to redefine the notion of family," thereby bringing a shitload of voters to the polls which the media (in all of its overdramatic glory) will give some stupid name to (i.e. values voters).

The need to engage in subterfuge over what this bill truly does should be enough to tell its supporters that it's not necessarily the Christian thing to do. That, and the fact that if the bill passes, it will put Tennessee in a financial bind and deny more children good homes.

But you know these folks. They have that special Bible - the one that says that God permits lying and dishonest if it is done in His name.

Monday news briefs

Michelle Malkin: I hope Obama fails.

Santorum At CPAC: ‘Absolutely We Hope That’ Obama Fails, ‘I Believe His Policies Will Fail’

Tom DeLay Channels Limbaugh: I Want Obama To Fail

Limbaugh Responds To Sanford: The ‘Hell We Don’t’ Want Obama To Fail! Just Need ‘The Guts’ To Say So

What a difference a new president makes. I can remember the hell the Dixie Chicks went through for daring to make a comment about President Bush. Hypocrisy is definitely an emotion devoid of shame.

Christian school showing film about homosexual agenda - Last week, I highlighted a vile 1986 comic book that demonized the lgbt community. The post got a lot of attention and probably a lot of laughter. But be aware that the same tactics are still being used even though there seems to be a shift. The religious right is slowly creeping away from the "homosexuality is a dangerous lifestyle" lie to the "gays want to silence Christians" lie. And while the lies are different, the way they are pushed (via ignorant crowds of people in church settings) remain the same.

This film is filled with same lies and inaccurate anecdotes religious right organizations have been telling repeatedly to make it seem that gays are trying to harm Christians.

And what galls me about it the most? Those who are showing the film are trying to beat back an anti-discrimination ordinance:

The Kalamazoo City Commission in December adopted an anti-discrimination ordinance, extending protections to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals in the areas of employment, housing and public accommodation.

The commission later rescinded the ordinance after opponents filed petitions that could have forced an election over the issue. The commission is aiming to craft a compromise ordinance. A three-member commission subcommitee plans to host a public meeting on the issue at 7 p.m. March 9 at the Kalamazoo Public Library, 315 S. Rose St.

Kalamazoo County Treasurer Mary Balkema, who submitted the petitions opposing the ordinance, said such a law would have ``unintended negative consequences.''

``It is very important that the public be informed about the issue itself and about the possible ramifications of adopting the proposal,'' Balkema said.

Scaring people about an alleged gay agenda in order to beat back an anti-discrimination ordinance? Some things never change.

The only thing Buttars did wrong was open his trap about the homos, say lawmakers - If lawmakers agree with Chris Buttars's comments, then why are they stripping him of his posts. I despise homophobia but I can't stand homophobic cowardice.

A little bit of truth brought to you by Gary Glenn of the American Family Association

Calling for a ballot measure to ban homosexual adoptions in Michigan, Glenn believes the ruling goes against the grain in Michigan. "I think the simplest response to this kind of court ruling, which is a concern, is simply to give Michigan voters an opportunity to prohibit homosexual adoption as Florida does, as Arkansas voters voted to do just this past November, as Mississippi and Utah have on their statute books," he concludes. - Michigan courts hear lesbian custody trial

Actually, Arkansas voters pushed a law through that disallowed adoption by unmarried couples, whether they be gay or straight. The law was passed after the Arkansas courts ruled that the state couldn't ban gay adoption.

Now those behind this law will tell you that keeping gays from adopting had nothing to do with the law's passage.

But we all know that isn't true, right Mr. Glenn?

Dobson resigns, Obama pushes out bad regulations - who says Fridays aren't good days?

Dobson resigns as chairman of Focus on the Family - two words - good riddance

Obama Set to Undo ‘Conscience’ Rule for Health Workers - The rule was a BAD IDEA. Double good riddance

Just in case you get too happy, folks - please check out my last post (that is if you haven't already). Mindsets like that of the man who created the monstrosity I spoke of still exists.

And you just know that now, these folks are doubly pissed.

Something guaranteed to piss you off

I ran into something a while back that I have been itching to show on this site.

This 1986 comic was created by a man named Dick Hafer and it is a vile representation of some of the most evil anti-gay lies out there.

This is for the many young folks who don't remember what it was like in the 1980s when the AIDS crisis was in full bloom, ignorance was all around and Paul Cameron was a credible name.

It is a representation of how far we have come and how far we have to go. You will recognize how some of the same arguments are still being used, although not as explicitly. Check out the comic's list of supporters shown on the last graphic.

You can click on the pictures to get a better view of the pages - more are at the bottom (even though I don't think it's work safe). And if you want to see the entire comic (God help you) go here.

Editor's note - The webpage featuring this comic is not anti-gay. It's a site that looks at "problem-based comics" from the past.

CPAC conference churning and so is my stomach

Right now as I speak, The Conservative Political Action Conference is underway.

This conference is where conservatives get together, plan, and generally complain about those "Godless liberals."

The following is basically the conference:

Blah blah blah, Jesus was a conservative, blah, blah, blah, liberals like to squeeze the Charmin and snatch tags off of matresses, blah, blah, blah, a gay man felt my ass while I was coming here.

Okay maybe I'm exaggerating a bit:

CPAC is expected to draw nearly 9,000 activists and college students from across the country, up from the record 7,000 who attended last year, when the main attractions were personal appearances by President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and the four remaining Republican presidential nomination hopefuls - former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

To get a good view of what these folks are going to talk about, I will present links from People for The American Way's Religious Right Watch.

Religious Right Watch deserves much kudos for having the high tolerance level to stand the nonsense going on at the CPAC conference (even though it has yet to add my blog to its list of links - hint, hint, hint).

Proceed at your own risk with barf bag in hand:

CPAC: Marriage Equality Will Create a Generation of Violent Criminals

CPAC: Obama's a Communist and a Foreigner, Bush was a "Pseduo-Socialist President"

CPAC: Carlson Attempts to Defend the New York Times, Gets Booed

CPAC: Bay Buchanan Calls DC Conservatives a Bunch of Sell-Outs

And from John Aravosis at Americablog:

Bush UN ambassador jokes about nuking Chicago since Obama is from there

Ah yes. Nothing like a good traditional family values gathering - that is if your family is the Sawney Beane clan or the Bloody Benders.

Concerned Women for America exploits scholarship program for the sake of fear and hyperbole

Some members of the religious right are especially unhappy with the Democratic party. They are claiming that a spending bill passed by the House will strip disadvantaged children of educational opportunities:

Disadvantaged children in the District of Columbia will be losing an educational lifeline if a new spending bill is passed on Capitol Hill. At the same time, abortionists and homosexual activists stand to gain from the Omnibus bill.

Dan Lips, a senior policy analyst with The Heritage Foundation, warns that the new Omnibus bill -- passed by the House on Wednesday essentially along party lines -- will terminate the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program.

The article continues to brag on the attributes of the scholarship program and tells of attempts to stop its possible elimination.

Now the next part of the article is confusing:

Joining the ranks of groups opposed to the Omnibus spending bill is the Washington, DC-based group Concerned Women for America. The pro-life/pro-family organization notes that the bill includes a $7-million raise for Planned Parenthood, the non-profit, federally-funded abortion organization that makes a sizeable annual profit. In addition, says CWFA president Wendy Wright, it pumps $50 million into the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), an agency she says is "intimately involved in the forced abortion, forced sterilization program in China."

The United Nations agency will receive the money regardless if it engages in coercive abortion activities. The pro-life activist cites several other objections to the legislation.

"This Omnibus bill would eliminate funding for school-choice programs that have helped to rescue children from dangerous and failing inner-city schools," says Wright. "[In addition] it has language that will reintroduce the Fairness Doctrine, and it has funding for controversial 'school bullying' programs which in the past have promoted homosexual programs to children."

So does that mean CWA wants to save the scholarship program or is the organization using its possible demise for another attack on so-called Godless liberals, "homosexual activists," and "abortionists?":

In short, says Wright, the Omnibus bill is loaded with spending for "liberals bent on destroying American values."

You tell me.

Janet Porter's pathetic attempt to connect hate crimes legislation and ENDA

From Pam's House Blend and Tips Q comes news that one of my favorite religious right spokespeople, Janet Folger-Porter, has gone on a tear about the Employee Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA):

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act, or “ENDA” is “hate crimes” – or more accurately, “thought crimes” – for the workplace. It means the “ENDA” freedom of speech, the “ENDA” freedom of religion, the “ENDA” freedom of association and the “ENDA” freedom of conscience.

And like pretty much all religious right spokespeople, Porter provides "examples" of cases in which people's freedoms have been "trampled" by us "evil homosexuals."

All of her examples are vague rehashing of actual events - so vague that we don't know the truth behind the cases. And a lot of them are from foreign countries - you know, countries that don't have our Constitution, laws or legal system.

One of Porter's examples that come from the United States has to do with the Ocean Grove Pavilion controversy:

. . . the Christian Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association in New Jersey, which was found “guilty of discrimination” for standing by their beliefs instead of renting their facilities to a homosexual couple who wanted to use the Christian camp for their same-sex union in March 2007.

Of course Porter is being highly deceptive about this situation. I will let Tips-Q tell you why:

Janet sort of forgets that the gay couple wanted to rent an oceanfront pavilion that is owned by the Christian organization but is open to the public. Indeed, as part of their zoning law variance, the organization entered into a written agreement to comply with New Jersey’s anti-discrimination laws.

Another example caught my eye:

The 16-year-olds who were charged with felonies in Chicago for handing out flyers that criticized homosexuality . . .

Just like in the case of Ocean Grove, Porter leaves out crucial details:

Two female 16-year-old Crystal Lake South High School students face hate-crime charges after allegedly plastering their high school's halls and distributing anti-gay fliers directed towards a fellow student in the school's parking lot.

. . . McHenry County State's Attorney Lou Bianchi told Windy City Times that despite arguments being made by many locals about the right to free speech, what the two girls did is clearly a hate crime.'They had the intent to alarm and disturb another, and they were successful in that,' Bianchi said. 'In alarming and disturbing, they also committed a hate crime. Their words ... were directed against a specific individual of a certain sexual orientation.'

Bianchi would not comment on the exact wording of the flier because it is evidence. However, other sources quote those who have viewed the flier as containing a picture of the male student kissing another male, with the wording 'God hates fags.'

The hate crimes charges were dropped because the two girls pleaded to lesser charges. For Porter to attempt to make them poster children for "gay oppression" is beyond the pale.

I'm more concerned about the target of their vendetta.

If Porter was any type of Christian, she would have been too instead of attempting to distort the case to suit her agenda.