Video: Why Do Gay Men Love The Golden Girls?

On Tuesday, I turn 51 (shut up) so in honor of this, I'm going to post something entertaining and edifying with the help of my friend Matt Baume. He does so many wonderful videos on gay culture, but I think this one probably ranks as one of his best. There is no need for a description because the title says it all. 

Hypocrisy alert - Evangelicals embrace the Bible to be homophobic, then abandon the Bible to embrace Trump's 'stolen election' lies

Evangelical leaders Gary Bauer (top), Mike Huckabee (middle), and Tony Perkins (bottom) are always quick to smear LGBTQ people because of their 'Christian beliefs' that homosexuality is a sin. They have also amplified Donald Trump's 'stolen election' lie even though the same Christian beliefs say that telling a lie is also a sin.

One of the reasons why the anti-LGBTQ industry (commonly known as the religious right) have the power they do is because it's rare that the mainstream media calls them out on their hypocrisies.

For over 15 years, I have pointed out how the religious right claims to oppose LGBTQ equality because of  religious beliefs while simultaneously undermining these same beliefs due to their reliance on lies, junk science and cherry-picked science which they freely use against LGBTQ people. And when groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center publicly and rather loudly make the same argument (with the receipts, just like me), certain pundits and publications attacked them while defending these groups. 

Therefore, I don't expect to see any mainstream attention about the latest hypocritical contradiction of the religious right. 

According to Right Wing Watch:

Right-wing leaders who have promoted former President Donald Trump’s stolen-election lies and supported new voting restrictions based on those lies are predictably unhappy about President Joe Biden’s renewed push for passage of federal voting rights protections​. 

One day after Biden called for senators to change filibuster rules to overcome the ​Senate Republicans’ blockade against voting rights legislation, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee appealed ​to religious-right activists ​via email to make a monthly commitment to My Faith Votes, a Christian-right turnout operation for which he serves as honorary chairman.  . . After the 2020 presidential election, Huckabee promoted Trump’s false claims about election fraud. On Nov. 5, 2020, he published a blog post under the headline “The Art of the Steal” in which he promoted multiple election conspiracies being circulated by Trump supporters. 

 . . . The Family Research Council’s Tony Perkins—who promoted Trump’s false claim to have won the 2020 election—similarly denounced the effort by Biden and Senate leaders as a “federal takeover of elections” that would put Democrats “one step close to a one-party system that controls the states and every lever of government.” A month after the 2020 election, Perkins had urged state legislators in battleground states won by Biden to simply assert their power to name pro-Trump electors.

 Former Reagan administration official and longtime religious-right activist Gary Bauer​,​ who​, like Perkins, claimed a month after the 2020 election that Trump was the “lawful winner,” claimed in his daily email newsletter Wednesday that the “idea that minority Americans are disenfranchised is a hoax on the same level as the Russian collusion hoax!”

Huckabee, Perkins, and Bauer said and done awful things to LGBTQ people all in the name of religious beliefs:

Bauer was  pointed out by the late C. Everett Koop, the surgeon general under Ronald Reagan, for undermining his attempt to educate Reagan about the AIDS crisis because he felt that AIDS was "God's punishment for them."

Huckabee has made many homophobic comments while claiming that his beliefs comes from "being on the side of the Bible."

Perkins is a literally a running faucet of homophobic bigotry, all geared to implying - when not outright saying - that LGBTQ people want to destroy America because we hate its supposed 'Judeo-Christian' heritage.

Demonizing LGBTQ people by labeling us as unhealthy, religion-hating sinners trying to undermine Christians and God's supposed plan for America is their brand. It's their mantra. Meanwhile, they support the continuously  proven lies of a wannabe despot who isn't man enough to admit that he lost an election.  

And here I thought lying and bearing false witness is also a sin.

Meanwhile, our mainstream media yawns or ignores the entire situation taking place, that is until they call on these folks for interviews i.e. implying that they speak for all Christians. Maybe it's just me, but I always thought that a lie is a lie. And a hypocrisy is something which should be called out instead of embraced or amplified.

'The Biggest Moments in LGBTQ+ U.S. Politics of 2021' & other Thur midday news briefs

The Biggest Moments in LGBTQ+ U.S. Politics of 2021 - How many do you remember? An old article, but one which bears another read. 

Early access to gender-affirming hormones linked to better mental health, study finds​ - Yet ANOTHER study reaching the same conclusion. If we have to pound this fact into people's heads, then so be it.

Sidney Poitier Paved a Path for LGBTQ+ Acceptance on Film - Yes he did.

Hungary sets a date for referendum on controversial LGBTQ law - Hoo boy.

Right-wing media attempting to pass far-right conservative author as expert on trans athletes

 

Cynthia Millen is the latest far-right activist attempting to make a name for herself by attacking transgender athletes

As I have noted on many occasions, when the right-wing media talks about trans issues, they rarely include trans people or medical professionals who have experience with trans health issues. Instead, they spotlight fake experts from right-wing groups and amplify their carefully prepared talking points. 

Not to mention conservative activists looking to make a name for themselves. 

According to Media Matters:

Fox News billed guest Cynthia Millen -- a right-wing writer with a history of hardline beliefs -- as simply a “former USA swimming official” in multiple segments in which she attacked trans athletes, including in an appearance where she decried best practice health care and promoted conversion therapy. 

 Millen is a writer for the website Catholic Stand, where she has documented extreme views on reproductive health care, same-sex couples, and critical race theory. She gained more prominence in right-wing media after releasing a letter to The Washington Times notifying USA Swimming that she was abruptly resigning from her duties because she could “no longer participate in a sport which allows biological men to compete against women. Everything fair about swimming is being destroyed.” Since then, she’s been billed simply as a “former USA Swimming official” in multiple media reports, including her January 11 appearance on Fox News.

Media Matters points out that Millen has appeared on numerous right-wing media shows where she is passed along as merely a former USA Swimming official and thus giving her attacks on trans athletes an undeserved bit of credibility. These shows conveniently omit the following:

At Catholic Stand, Millen has documented her extreme views on reproductive health care, same-sex couples, and critical race theory. Catholic Stand is owned by Tito Edwards of Little Vatican Media, who runs a list of other far-right websites including The American Catholic, which has accused gay people of “recruitment” of children with the goal of “legalizing pederasty” and has spread dangerous COVID-19 misinformation from Project Veritas. 

In one article for Catholic Stand, Millen stated that the the transgender movement is “reverting to old stereotypes of what a girl should and should not be” and referred readers to a video whose title included the deadname of celebrity and former Republican gubernatorial candidate for California Caitlyn Jenner. (Deadnaming is a form of harassment that targets trans people by referring to them by their former name against their wishes.) 

Millen has also attacked same-sex couples, writing that same-sex adoptions are “not good for children; it’s not fair to children” and arguing that LGBTQ affirmation “only serves to promote the notion that people with same-sex attraction are different from the rest of us, or that ‘unrepressed’ sexual activity is healthy for them. It is not. The Church should re-emphasize the teaching and benefits of chastity for all.

Millen the only example of the right-wing passing along their activists as concerned ordinary people speaking out on issues. Media Matters has an extensive list of GOP operatives claiming to be "concerned parents" speaking out with regards to another conservative cause celebre - Critical Race Theory:

Nearly a dozen of the Fox News guests the network has presented as concerned parents or educators who oppose the teaching of so-called “critical race theory” in schools also have day jobs as Republican strategists, conservative think-tankers, or right-wing media personalities, according to a Media Matters review.

 Critical race theory is an academic legal framework which examines the systemic impact of racism in the United States. But “critical race theory,” like “cancel culture” and “political correctness” before it, also functions as an umbrella term the right-wing movement uses to turn its mostly white adherents’ racial anxiety into political energy.

 In this case, a sophisticated, nationwide network of conservative think tanks, advocacy groups, media outlets, and GOP officials have seized on the term and, in the words of Christopher Rufo -- a senior fellow at the conservative Manhattan Institute and a key player in the effort -- sought to render it “toxic” and apply to it “the entire range of cultural constructions that are unpopular with Americans.” Republicans have proposed or passed a slew of legislation restricting “critical race theory” and hope to use it as a core part of their political strategy in upcoming local, state, and federal elections.

 

It only goes to show conservatives aren't interested in having a true discussion when it comes to seemingly controversial issues. If they were, they wouldn't be attempting to rig the narrative.

Hat tip to Ari Drennen, Media Matters’ new LGBTQ Program Director  

'He wanted to burn LGBTQ-related books. Now he is school board president' & other Wed midday news briefs

He wants to burn books about LGBTQ topics. He just got elected school board president.​ - Good Lord! This does NOT send a positive message. We simply have to do better. 

As high court signals Roe v. Wade reversal, states eye same-sex marriage protections - Some states think that SCOTUS will reverse Roe v. Wade so they think marriage equality could be next. Because of that, they are working on state laws to protect marriage equality. Even though I still think it's too early to predict about Roe v. Wade, you never know. Preparing for the future never hurts.

Last in, first out: Chambersburg prepares to reverse local LGBTQ protections - A calamity which proves why elections are important. Every time.

Caitlyn Jenner retweets transphobic tweet aimed at trans athletes - Caitlyn, girlfriend. Just stop. Please stop.

LGBTQ kids say efforts to pass anti-trans laws is negatively affecting their mental health

This terrible development shouldn't surprise anyone. Nor, unfortunately, should the fact that in spite of all of their constant refrains of wanting to protect children, those pushing these bills really don't give a damn about the children they are truly hurting.

From The Hill:

More than two-thirds of LGBTQ+ youth say recent efforts by states to limit the rights of transgender and nonbinary people have negatively impacted their mental health, according to a poll released Monday by the Trevor Project. States in 2021 enacted a “record-shattering” number of anti-LGBTQ+ policies, making it the worst year in recent history for LGBTQ+ state legislative attacks, according to the Human Rights Campaign. 

 . . . In the Trevor Project’s survey of 820 LGBTQ+ youth aged 13 to 24 years old, 70 percent said they were closely following recent news about issues impacting the transgender community, and two-thirds of LGBTQ+ youth said debates about state laws restricting the rights of transgender people have negatively impacted their mental health. That impact has been more dramatic among transgender and nonbinary youth, with more than 85 percent of that group reporting that their mental health has taken a hit, according to the survey. 

 "These results underscore how recent politics and ongoing crises facing the globe can have a real, negative impact on LGBTQ young people, a group consistently found to be at significantly increased risk for depression, anxiety and attempting suicide because of how they are mistreated and stigmatized in society," Amit Paley, CEO of The Trevor Project, said in a statement.  

 . . . "I see multiple patients daily that are suffering with depression and suicide ideation and suicide attempt and anxiety, and my fear is that if we deny them this evidence-based treatment, we’re only going to see massive more patients come to the emergency room," Jesse Martinez Jr., a doctor of psychiatry at Children’s of Alabama, told Axios in May.

'Fox News guest tells audience to treat COVID with drugs used for transgender health care' & other Tue midday news briefs

Fox News guest tells audience to treat COVID-19 with drugs used for transgender health care​ - These folks are beginning to exhaust the hell out of me. 

Gay Ambassador Rufus Gifford: America’s First Handshake! - More visibility is always a good thing. 

These 27 trans athletes have competed openly in college - Meanwhile, this nonsense about trans athletes having an unfair advantage has yet to be proven. 

Pope Francis Removes Vatican Official Behind Document Barring Blessings for LGBTQ Couples - I'm encouraged. Not impressed, but encouraged.

Youngkin's pro-voter suppression pick once exploited gay son to hide her group's homophobia

Youngkin pick Kay Coles James has history exploiting minority status for conservative causes.

Some people have voiced their disagreement with newly elected Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin picking Kay Coles James, a woman who promoted voter suppression and false voter fraud claims, as his choice for Secretary of the Virginia Commonwealth.

 According to Right Wing Watch:

Until last year, James served as president of the Heritage Foundation, a Trumpist right-wing think tank that has aggressively promoted bogus claims about widespread voter fraud that are used to justify more restrictive voting laws. James has opposed federal voting rights legislation such as the “For the People Act,” which she denounced as a “federal takeover of elections” and a “threat to election integrity.” She claimed last year that “the left’s real agenda isn’t about helping minority voters; it’s about helping themselves: They believe voter fraud favors their candidates, plain and simple.”

Ms. James is a black woman, which may have helped her get the appointment. Granted, I don't know that for sure and it can be seen as an unfair shot to make such an assumption. Still, one shouldn't be so naive to not consider that her ethnicity will be exploited to blunt accusations of racism which generally come up (because they are mostly true) with regards to voter suppression.

Also, when it comes to exploiting minority status, this wouldn't be Ms. James's 'first time at the rodeo,' so to speak. 

In a 2019 interview on Fox News, she attempted to divert from accusations that the Heritage Foundation - which she led at the time - was a homophobic group. She did so by revealing that her son is gay.

 According to Media Matters:

Heritage Foundation President Kay Coles James downplayed the organization’s long anti-LGBTQ history in an appearance with Fox “straight news" anchor Shannon Bream. 

 . . . On May 2, Bream interviewed James about Google’s recent decision to disband its Artificial Intelligence ethics board after Google employees and others protested her inclusion on the board in part because of her and Heritage’s positions against transgender rights. During the interview, James whitewashed her organization’s anti-LGBTQ history and responded to criticism of the organization’s stance on queer issues, saying, “None of which is true, by the way. None of it is true.” She also suggested she could not be a “homophobe” because she has a gay son.

This is what James said:

 . . .Homophobe? I don't think so. You know, I, I, I've never talked about it publicly, but I have a gay son whom I love beyond all measure. And he and his community have welcomed me, have helped me grow, have helped me to understand. There’s no hatred there. That’s my child you are talking about.

Bream did not challenge James about this because of simple bias. 

Media Matters has pointed out that while Shannon Bream pretends to be a journalist, she has used her show as a sounding board for anti-LGBTQ groups and positions. She is especially "known" for inviting anti-transgender groups and spokespeople on her program where all involved routinely smear and misgender trans people. 

If Bream was any type of decent journalist, she would have asked James about the contradiction between her statement about her gay son and the Heritage Foundation's homophobic and transphobic positions.

Bream could have even asked James about the contradiction between her statement  and the tweets which she (James) were sending out at almost the same time about the Equality Act. James claimed that the gay community accepted her and allowed her to grow, but apparently not so much that it prevented  her from amplifying misinformation about laws benefitting the community and particularly her son.

So perhaps my accusations about James's ethnicity being exploited by the Youngkin administration aren't as rude as they seem. If she has no problem exploiting her son's sexual orientation to cover up homophobia, why should she have a problem exploiting her ethnicity with regards to potential  voter suppression accusations?

Even worse, based upon how easily she exploited her son's sexual orientation, LGBTQ Virginians may also have something to fear with regards to her appointment. 

'Amy Schneider becomes first woman to win one million on Jeopardy' & other Mon midday news briefs

Amy Schneider

Amy Schneider Makes History Again Becoming First Woman to Win $1M on Jeopardy!​- Good for her. Keep shining in spite of the haters. 

Meet five trailblazing LGBTQ candidates of 2022 - More of us should run for office. 

Out wrestler Jake Atlas returns to the ring fight against mental health issues - Good for him. I hope it works out. 

Skater Timothy LeDuc Could Make History As First Nonbinary Winter Olympian - Success!

Franklin Graham whines that President Biden is being too mean to Trump

Franklin Graham is only fooling himelf.

The recent attempt to falsely imply that Trump was the true victim of the Jan 6th insurrection  by the Family Research Council's Tony Perkins was bad enough, but I think Franklin Graham came close to topping it on Saturday. 

Graham was furious at President Biden for a speech he made on Thursday castigating Trump for his continued lies about the 2020 election and the Jan 6th insurrection:

 

Graham's pleas should fool no one. At best, they are highly delusional and at worst, cynically calculating. Either way, Graham probably wants people to forget that while Trump was in office, he was probably his most loyal foot soldier. He basically bent over backwards either praising Trump, justifying his lies by sometimes lying himself, and even remaining silent during and after some of Trump's most egregious offenses. There is a litany of tweets which speaks to this. Here are a few:

A true religious counsel of  a world leader wouldn't be so annoyingly accommodating. Graham, on the other hand, weaponized his faith in service for Trump. All of the words of Jesus were obscenely bent and twisted in order to fit as the Gospel of Trump.  And now that this chapter has ended, Graham seems to think that he turn things back to what he probably assumed they were. 

It's not going to happen, no matter how hard Graham tries. He is only fooling himself.

'Gay kiss-a-thon forces amusement park to drop homophobic policy' & other Fri midday news briefs

Gay kiss-a-thon forced Six Flags to drop its homophobic anti-kissing policy​ - I'm not one for direct protests, but good job, y'all! 

Senegal Rejects Draft Bill Toughening Anti-LGBTQ+ Law - It's a really good start. 

6 truths and myths circulating about Lia Thomas, trans athletes and women’s swimming - A much needed article because this situation is far from over and Lia is gonna need us to support her big time. 

Most LGBTQ elders feel lonely. Here's what organizations are doing to help. - Despite what the religious right claims about us, we do grow old just like everyone else and this article is very needed.

Religious right leader Tony Perkins implies that Donald Trump was the real 'victim' of the January 6 insurrection

Family Research Council president Tony Perkins

I'm not surprised by the most recent attempt by the Family Research Council and its president, Tony Perkins, to gaslight about the January 6th insurrection of 2021. I wouldn't necessarily say that I hoped they would but I knew that before the day ended, I would have something from them to write about.

They didn't disappoint as this snippet from the FRC webpage proves:

The rest of the country already celebrated Christmas, but for Democrats, it's today. To them, the anniversary of the January 6th riot marks one of the greatest political gifts ever given -- a terrible stain on our country that Joe Biden's party will forever exploit and distort to keep the outrage about conservatives burning. "Every day is January 6 now," the New York Times had the audacity to declare. And maybe for the far-Left it is. For a struggling and fractured party with no successes to speak of, the constant reminder of 2021's traumatic event seems to be the only thing they can grab to keep their socialist dreams afloat.

 That's not to say that what happened when the mob stormed the Capitol wasn't repugnant. It was. But it was also the culmination of months of frustration, isolation, nationwide lawlessness, and despair, cheered on by (if not orchestrated) by the Left. "This is what inevitably happens when a society lets violent mobs run roughshod through cities and towns and does nothing," John Daniel Davidson warned. And while the vast majority of people on that day weren't there to shatter windows or trash offices, the entire conservative movement is still paying a steep price for those who were. 

 President Biden, desperate to make political hay while the media's sun is shining, railed against the entire Republican Party this morning for its supposed "plot" to topple democracy. They held "a dagger at the throat of America," he accused before making another empty appeal to unity. "I will stand in this breach," Biden claimed, after 12 months of doing nothing to bind the nation's wounds.

Then there was this part about Donald Trump, whose constant lies about a stolen election was the root cause of last year's insurrection:

Mark Meadows, Donald Trump's former chief of staff, could only shake his head at how the date continues to cast a shadow on all the president accomplished. "It is really all about trying to make sure that January 6th defines what President Trump and his entire four years was all about. You and I know that's not the case," he said on "Washington Watch" Wednesday. 

 . . . The Donald Trump he knew wasn't the reckless villain the Left and media make him out to be. "He's got an unbelievable compassionate heart. People don't realize that in [private], when there [are] no cameras rolling, things touch him in a way and he does something about it -- whether it's writing personal checks, whether it's making calls to people that have suffered loss. He loves this country and does that in a way that profoundly impacted me."

Is it just me or are these bozos implying that Donald Trump was the actual 'victim' of last year's insurrection at the Capitol?

Try as I might, I simply can't get angry at Perkins or FRC.  It's what I have learned to expect from their brand of 'religion.' No doubt there is a segment of the population who will absolutely believe the drivel they spew, but what about standards? What about honesty? Perkins and FRC seem to be so intent on exploiting their supporters that they ignore the rest of us who aren't fooled by their capitulations. And they are definitely ignoring the God they claim to serve.

Do Perkins or FRC really think that their lies and brazen deceptions are okay with Him?

The vision in my mind right now when thinking of Perkins and FRC are rows of elderly black women in their Sunday best (fanciest hats included) all shaking their heads while simultaneously muttering "fix it, Jesus."

In other words, what I feel is embarrassment for Perkins, FRC, and anyone who supports them. But I also feel that its rather apt in a Shakespearean sort way. Fans of the Bard  remember that one of his characters, Lady Macbeth, was doomed to sleepwalking madness because of her part in brutal murders.

In that same spirit,  Perkins and FRC seemed to be doomed to  have to kiss Donald Trump's ass. Even when he is no longer president.

Related post -  For LGBTQ Community, the Movement Behind Jan 6 is an Existential Threat

'Meet the mountaineer flying the trans Pride flag on the world's highest peaks' & other Thur midday news briefs

Meet the mountaineer flying the trans Pride flag on the world’s highest peaks - Have a dream. Pursue your dream. Fulfill your dream.

Gay right-wing troll Andy Ngo targeted wheelchair user, resulting in attacks & death threats​ - Some of our own are looking to cause ugliness.

Intersex civil rights legislation killed after fails to advance - Keep trying. Keep pushing.

LGBTQ symbols damaged, again, at Pearl River High School - Here we go again.

UFC fighter Sean Strickland says a gay son would mean that he failed as a man

UFC fighter Sean Strickland

Some of us have yet to get used to this being 2022 but already we are reminded about the need for LGBTQ visibility and especially the benefits of LGBTQ celebrities coming out.

And it's all thanks to an unbelievably insensitive and rather stupid comment by UFC fighter Sean Strickland in December:

According to the webpage Queerty - and as you can see in the above tweet, Strickland was answering a fan's question. The attention I pay to the homophobia of his comment does not any in way diminish the same degree of eyerolling I commit when it comes to his comment about women. Queerty points out that his comments received a lot of backlash. The site shows that Strickland has a 'knack' for saying stupid and ugly things.

But still, what the hell!!? 

With so many LGBTQ kids going through trauma partly because of their justified fears of coming out to their parents, Strickland is setting an awful example. And spare me the oncoming digs about him being a UFC fighter and the hackneyed lines about him supposedly a being 'punch-drunk meathead.' Strickland's type of ignorance goes beyond UFC. It is worldwide and it is ugly.  Just like when Dave Chappelle came out with his transphobic ugliness and folks were quick to diminish the anger of those he attacked, some will also be quick to claim that  backlash to Strickland's comments is 'cancel culture.'

It is 'cancel culture,' but not to people like Strickland.  Comments like his amplify and reinforce ignorant attitudes and ugly mindsets which leads to the diminishing of the mental and physical health of our children.  Comments like Strickland's strip our babies of their self-worth and security, dragging them down to the path of being thrown out of their homes, physical violence, psychological instability, and worse. LGBTQ kids are the ones being cancelled, not people like Strickland.

And it is a depressingly simple reason why I support LGBTQ celebrities publicly coming out. Some folks see it as a tiresome trend, repeatedly done to death. Perhaps they have a point. But a much better and much more crucial point is maybe newly coming out celebrities  are standing in the gap for kids whose parents should know better and should be better, but steadily refuses to act better.

'Lil Nas X calls out the music industry's treatment of queer artists' & other Wed midday news briefs

Lil Nas X

Lil Nas X Calls Out the Music Industry's Treatment of Queer Artists​ - Be careful Lil Nas, but speak that truth loud.

Netflix launches 'The Gay Agenda,' podcast celebrating LGBTQ community - Oh really? Well that's nice. But you gonna have to do some more to make up for the Dave Chappelle thing. 

15 Celebs Who Came Out As Trans or Nonbinary in 2021 - Yes this is a big deal. A big ole wonderful, glorious big deal (I'm aware that I said 'big' twice)

‘I’d been set up’: the LGBTQ Kenyans ‘catfished’ for money via dating apps - Good Lord . . .

Anti-LGBTQ evangelical Tony Perkins attempts to soft pedal lies about 2020 election and the January 6 insurrection

Family Research Council president Tony Perkins

It shouldn't surprise anyone that anti-LGBTQ hate group the Family Research Council and its president, Tony Perkins, is participating in Republican lies about the 2020 election and the January 6 insurrection which was the direct result of those lies.

But unlike other Republicans, FRC and Perkins aren't outright spinning the lie that the 2020 election was 'stolen' or that the January 6 insurrection is being falsely 'overhyped' by the media. Instead, the group has chosen to walk a thin line and play the passive-aggressive game, as witnessed by a portion of some nonsense found on its webpage. Via this drivel, Perkins and FRC are attacking Associated Press writer Nicholas Riccardi. They are angry at Riccardi for writing a very good article on how the GOP is exploiting Trump's stolen election lie in order to grab the power to control future elections. 

This passage from the FRC piece caught my attention:

The riot at the U.S. Capitol -- a year ago this week -- has provided all the ammunition the media needs to smear anyone working to erase the doubts about the fairness of U.S. elections. In the 12 months since that unruly mob, Democrats have rushed to paint every conservative trying to safeguard elections with the broad brush of treason. "They're laying the groundwork," former Democratic operative Mark Brewer claims in the AP piece, "for a slow-motion insurrection." How? By trying to ensure that everyone's vote is sacred? 

 It's a ludicrous claim -- and yet the AP, in one of the greatest affronts to journalism, is passing it off as fact. To suggest that people who are changing the laws -- or using the process to reinforce the laws that already exist -- are trying to overthrow the government isn't just biased reporting, it's dangerous reporting. Taking the earnest efforts of citizens and wrapping them in a loaded term like "insurrection" is like the AP taking a pitchfork to democracy.

And then there was this passage:

What 2020 taught us is that there are major vulnerabilities in our election system -- many of which were exploited, thanks to COVID. And anyone who doubts that these issues exist can check out Heritage's new election integrity scorecard and read the detailed ratings of every state. "[We look at it] from the standpoint of do they protect security and integrity? And you'll find, boy, there [are] a lot of states around the country that have serious problems in their election systems."

It's stuff like this by Perkins and FRC which is as dangerous as the firebrand nonsense spewed by Trump and his most rabid supporters. Probably more dangerous. It's concern trolling at its worse; psychological manipulation created to sow doubt about a situation in which there should be no doubt.

'National movement seeking to ban LGBTQ books, online materials from school libraries trying to gain traction in Georgia' & other Tue midday news briefs.

Movement would ban LGBTQ books, online materials from school libraries - Oh it's on now, bi!tches. And at the beginning of a new year when I'm just ready for a good fight.

Conservatives flip out as Amy Schneider becomes top female earner in Jeopardy! history​ - Be mad. Stay mad. LOL 

'Jeopardy!' champion responds to transphobic Twitter trolls - And Amy is the epitome of class. 

South Carolina Man Convicted of Sodomy Sues Over Sex Offender Status - And I hope he wins. Just a mess. 

Lesbian moms get hateful Christmas card from neighbor seething over their Pride flags - Speaking of messes, the card was simply unhinged. Joe the Rapist?

Video: Top 20 Betty White Moments

 Let's ease into 2022 by honoring a legend. So many things have been said about Betty White since her passing on December 31 at the age of 99. She was one of those rare celebrities who everyone liked. Her loving nature, immense talent, and extreme longevity will always be remembered.  But most importantly is that her career was all about making us laugh, which she was remarkably good at. The world is so much better because she was here. I can only hope that people will say that about me  after I'm gone. It is a desire that I think we all share.

'Transphobic author trying to get two teachers fired for supporting LGBTQ students' & other Thur midday news briefs

Discredited, transphobic author Abigail Shrier goes the extra mile to make life hell for LGBTQ kids.

Anti-trans author is petitioning to have two teachers fired for supporting LGBTQ students. - That vulgar Abigail Shrier is going too far with this mess. If she succeeds, it would send an ugly message to teachers supporting LGBTQ students. To say nothing of the attempt to strip our kids of the allies they would need in schools. 

 Who is Abigail Shrier? - My mother raised me right so I won't publicly give my opinion of who/what I think she is, but these past postings should give you the info you need: 

Podcaster Joe Rogan & right-wing author team up to equate trans people with a cult and 'demonic possession' 

Anti-transgender book called out for numerous errors months before author testified in front of Senate committee

YouTube allowing discredited anti-trans author and Prager U to fundraise off encouraging parents to reject their transgender children 

Transphobic author Abigail Shrier reveals her true face with tweet about serial killer 

 In other news: 

LGBTQ youth in the South report poor mental health, study says - Probably because of people like Miss Thang above giving them all sorts of hell. 

21 most popular LGBTQ news stories of 2021 - As we do with every year, LGBTQ folks rocked 2021.

Repost: Once Upon A Time When Homophobia Was Less Subtle

Editor's note - In light of all of the nonsense going on with school districts attempting to censor books dealing with sexuality and gender, it's important to realize what it's all about. Those behind these actions may claim they are attempting to protect the children, but that's what they always say .It's their eternal mantra. 

The post below was published last year, but it is still relevant. Nursed in the mind of every liar attempting to render LGBTQ people invisible because of  'the children'  are hysterically bad notions about LGBTQ lives. Even if they don't publicly admit it. Also, while these images may seem comical, it's important to remember the present day damage done by those who believe them to be fact.

 . . . I thought I would take a jaunt through the history of homophobic images via a publication I have used on many occasions.

Homosexuality: Legitimate, Alternate Deathstyle was created and published in the mid 1980s by a man named Dick Hafer. As you can see below, it spotlit all of the anti-LGBTQ stereotypes of the day and presented them as facts. And as you can also see by the second image, several noted public figures at the time (including a Congressman who died this year), endorsed it as fact. There really is no need to refute this booklet because it basically refutes itself.  But it's important for that things like it be remembered for two reason:

1. It is a wonderful, albeit nauseatingly foul, historical resource on homophobia in the United States.

2. If you took a look at the images, you would see that the religious right/anti-LGBTQ industry are saying pretty much the same things about our community as this book, but with more subtlety and less shock.  It's not that hard to go from "homosexuality is a dangerous lifestyle" to "Christians need religious liberty to protect their rights from the homosexual agenda."

(Click on the images to make them larger)

Finally,  my favorite image from this book:

Editor's note - I own a copy of  Deathstyle  but you can here and here to see excerpts from it.