Bush in one move did more for gays then Clinton ever did

Yup that is right. Found out via Gaypatriot.net. President Bush signed into law the Worker, Retiree and Employer Recovery Act of 2008. This makes it mandatory for businesses to roll over retirement benefits to a same-sex partner in the event of the employee’s death.

Why is this more progressive then Clinton? Well lets have a look at what he brought the Gay Community in America. He signed into law the Defense of Marriage Act (known as DOMA) which has two effects:

1. No state (or other political subdivision within the United States) need treat a relationship between persons of the same sex as a marriage, even if the relationship is considered a marriage in another state.
2. The Federal Government may not treat same-sex relationships as marriages for any purpose, even if concluded or recognized by one of the states.

Secondly President Clinton brough us "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" which prohibits anyone who "demonstrate(s) a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts" from serving in the armed forces of the United States, because it "would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.".

So tell me who did more for Gay rights in America? Bush or Clinton?

The English Catholic Church - Moving with the times?

Image by Getty Images via DaylifeAfter the recent did he mention it or didn't he mention speech by the Pope it is good to see that the English Catholic Church is moving with the times according to GCN.ie. Bishops in England have sent out leaflets urging priest not to use 'heterosexist' language in church.

Priest have been told not assume that all Church goers are heterosexual. "Remember that homophobic jokes and asides can be cruel and hurtful - a careless word can mean another experience of rejection and pain,". It is good that part of the Church is waking up to how it talks about part of its congregation.

Of course no everyone is happy with this. Lynette Burrows, a Catholic commentator, describes the move as 'pitiful'. She said it was ridiculous that Church leaders appeared to be ' grovelling' to a secular agenda.

'It is things like this that are enfeebling the Church at the moment - the concentration on things that don't matter and missing the things that do,' she said.

'What is pitiful as well as demeaning is that the Church is running after homosexual opinion but nothing is going to make homosexuals like the Catholic Church.

'This is because the Catholic Church teaches that homosexuality is a disorder and whatever the bishops say will not change that.'

Of course this isn't a secular agenda. This is how the Church reacts to its member. Fair play to the Bishops in my opinion. It is about time the Church addressed it followers on this and actually supported them.

This post actually gives a nice follow in for me to introduce an interesting site for Lesbian and Gay Christians, LGBT Christians. Their aim is to "bring Christ to those who have been alienated by those organisations that claim to be his Church and claim to preach his love and yet through ignorance and misconception preach not love to Gods lesbian, gay and bisexual children" and "seek to create an atmosphere of understanding between those who think that homosexuality has no place in Christs Church and those who think they do"

To quote John 13:35

By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

Do check them out.

Did we get it wrong on the Pope?

Image via WikipediaTallyman as an excellent post pointing out that the mainstream media and many blogs (including me!) got the Pope's message wrong. Now I was working from what was reported in the media considering the Pope's speech was in Latin.

Tallyman points out that there was "nothing new" in the speech but that the Pope was "following some very simplistic, narrow logic". As he points out the "Pope regularly says things like this. This is something that we all understand to be Roman Catholic doctrine. How many gays still attend Church knowing this?". I, like him, know lots!

The most important part in Tallyman's post is when he points out that the Pope "does not single out the gay community in his New Years message." (Emphasis his). In fact he points out the over arching theme of the message which was“Fighting Poverty to build Peace” which is a good idea.

He goes to point out that the Pope mainly called for teaching of abstinence to be considered a way of halting the spread of diseases, such as AIDS, and connects these diseases to poverty. Now while some people disagree with this way of halting the spread of AIDS, it must be admitted that it is one of halting the spread of the disease.

Tallyman concludes with the following

So, in one line the Pope has incensed the Gays, the Greens and certain sections of the media to declare him as inciting hatred. The Pope stuck to Catholic (albeit misguided dogma) in relation to what it deems to be a natural order. It didn’t tell all good Catholics to shun their homosexual neighbours, disown their homosexual children, or rise up in revolt against governments legislating for civil partnership. He asked us to me good Christians, to be mindful of the poor in this festive season and combat corruption and immorality in the name of the poor.

I don’t really see the harm in that.

So this to me seams to be logical, so why then did the Mainstream media take up the Pope's message wrong? Why were we led to believe that he was equating Homosexuality with Climate Change?

While I am no fan of the Pope, I don't think it is right that when he says something, it is misrepresented. As Tallyman puts it "i find any distortion of the Pope’s message by LGBT groups, the media, and those looking for a sound-byte, a bit rich, worrying, and it has to be said, gay." Sentiments I agree with completely.

"Humanity must be saved"

Image via WikipediaFrom the gays??? What? Really? We are responsible for the downturn in humanity? Has the Pope been having chats with Fred Phelps?

I am amazed and disgusted. I find myself in complete agreement with the headline from Froodie's blog "Pope Benedict incites hatred, misunderstanding and probable bullying and violence.".

While I know a lot of Catholics don't agree with the Church on everything but this does not help in anyway. A lot of elderly people do listen to the Pope for advice and guidance and him saying things like this do not help.

It is a step back for the Church in general. I have a lot of respect for individual priests who hold differing views then the Pope, but this will not help those Catholics who are gay and still hold the Church in high regard.

Other blogs have reacted in various ways to this declaration. Iain Dale thinks the Pope should "Just Join the BNP & Have Done With It". Una of Unarocks points out that the Pope is teaching the wrong stuff and should be concentrating on "Love" a very good point! Also she points out

On one hand, i suppose, you can laugh this stuff off- who gives a fuck? Who cares what an old repressed dude in a wine dress says? Surely if you get pissed off by this it legitimises his statement as something worth listening to? Then on the other hand, this is a man with huge power and influence and a massive willing and listening audience who believes ten per cent of the population is evil.

And I agree with her fully on that point!

I love Joe Scanlon's post title on this issue "Plant a Tree - Shoot a fag" which basically could sum up the Pope's speech to some people!

As the papers point out (Irish Indo and UK Times) "The Catholic Church teaches that while homosexuality is not sinful, homosexual acts are". So they think the fact that you are gay is not sin (yay, therefore not a choice) but we can choose to ignore it! Really? You can ignore the fact that you have fallen in LOVE? I don't think so. Having actually experienced true love for another man, it is an overpowering experience (as it is for anyone I would assume straight or gay) that hits you. It cannot be ignored. Yet this "ancient institution" expects us do so. No thank you! There is reason I CHOOSE to no longer to be considered a Catholic. I CHOOSE no longer to be associated with comments such as this or the on earlier this year from a high ranking Vatican Official that called homosexuality "a deviation, an irregularity, a wound".

An issue that most of these posts and my comments so far are on the issue of transgender which the Pope also tosses into the mix. He opposes Gender Theory and said

"That which is often expressed and understood by the term ‘gender’ in the end amounts to the self-emancipation of the human person from creation and from the Creator," the Pope said.

"Human beings want to do everything by themselves, and to control exclusively everything that regards them. But in this way, the human person lives against the truth, against the Creator Spirit."

Wow! Even Iran is more ahead then the Catholic Church on Transgendered issues when it espousing beliefs such as this.

The Church needs to get a grip and move with the times. The Church is losing membership and it wonders why? The Church has to be seen to approach issues with a modern mindset, something it has failed to do since the election of Pope Benedict XVI in 2005.

I wonder what he will complain about next Christmas? Single mothers?

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Palin and Homosexuality

Palin seams to get a lot of bad press lately about her attitudes towards homosexuality, but those of you who pay attention to my google shared items or my friendfeed would have seen that Gaypatriot.com have an excellent post on Palin and her ACTUAL position on homosexuality. The video is below, but do read the original post also.



So, while I disagree with how the whole choice thing comes across, but maybe she does think like Bruce comments, that she means choice to come out. So that is the Presidential Candidate and Vice Presidential with good attitudes towards homosexuality!