Scanner : don't ask don't tell

This Week in Gayness: Don't Ask... Just Don't Ask

Brian Fairbanks — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 20:40:00 GMT

Good As You alerted us to Focus on the Family's hilariously awful anti-gay conference in Charlotte. They also put a human face on Jeff Johnston, an "ex-gay" who is obviously not human because it's not possible for anyone to change their sexual orientation.

This guy would be Keith Olbermann's worst person in the world if anyone knew who he was: a gay Minnesota Republican who is against gay rights. Paul Koering will vote against "the Marriage and Family Protection Act, a bill that would make Minnesota's marriage laws gender-neutral, allowing same-sex couples many of the rights currently denied by Minnesota statute."

The roles have been cast and the parents approved of the script. And then a high school principal decided to cancel a student production of Rent due to prostitution and homosexual" content. (There are gay characters, but no prostitution.)

To one Utah Republican, the greatest threat to America is: conspiratorial Chinese economists [no], Osama Bin Laden [no], the gays. 12% of ABC.com readers agree.

A young gay Army vet was killed by another young gay man who appears to have been upset at his own sexuality.

First of all, a guy has to go from being a gay porn star to working at Subway. Worse, he has to endure getting fired from his job at Subway when his previous career choice is discovered. Queers United takes up his case.

While most of the country is still stuck in this ridiculous debate about gay marriage, Massachusetts is trying to implement transgender equality.

And, at last, a straight veteran speaks out in favor of abolishing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and letting gays serve openly.

Homophobic Phelps Clan to Picket/Pick-On High School Students

Enterprising Teenager Amasses Collection of Solicited Nude Photos

This Week in Gayness: The Homophobic Celebrity Ad You Missed

Did Obama Sell Out The Gays?

Scanner Matt — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 17:37:00 GMT

We understand Barack Obama's "team of rivals" cabinet strategy, but why is he giving the stage at his inauguration to a bigot who Scanner Brian has pointed out lately to be a "Christian nutjob" who, "favors assassination"? And may we add, actively hates gay people.

Politico reports Reverend Rick Warren, a key component of California's Prop 8 (or hate) campaign, will be performing the invocation at Obama's inauguration. Off course, this pissed off a lot of people:

“Your invitation to Reverend Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at your inauguration is a genuine blow to LGBT Americans,” the president of Human Rights Campaign, Joe Solomonese, wrote Obama Wednesday. “[W]e feel a deep level of disrespect when one of architects and promoters of an anti-gay agenda is given the prominence and the pulpit of your historic nomination.”

Obama's trying to throw the religious conservatives a bone, but did he have to pick this big fat evangelical dick?

We can only hope someone throws a shoe at Reverend Rick this January.

Also: Obama might be considering closing gays completely out of his cabinet. Wall Street Journal reports.

Related:

VIDEO 'Prop 8 - The Musical' starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, Neil Patrick Harris, Andy Richter, Maya Rudolph, that Girl from 'Scrubs' and MORE!

Presidents Who Smoke: A Photo History

Is this guy the Barack Obama of the GOP? Um, no.

**Bush: "People Voted For Barack Obama Because of Me" No sh*t!**

[image]

VIDEO 'Prop 8 - The Musical' starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, Neil Patrick Harris, Andy Richter, Maya Rudolph, that Girl from 'Scrubs' and MORE!

Scanner Matt — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 15:48:00 GMT

Ever notice whenever celebrities get political (gays, abortion etc... ) the Christian right scoffs at these mere jesters of sodom and gomorrah, but if any one of them finds God, it's like the second coming of Mel Gibson? This is very funny, but where the hell were all these people one month and one day ago?

Video after the jump.

Prop 8 - The Musical, too little too late? Regardless, it is here now and makes its point and makes you laugh... oh, unless you hate gay people that is.

Ready Celebrities.......... Get Politically Satirical!

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Scanner Matt Loves Michiko Kakutani

"Wet, Hot, American Summer"... the Musical?

This Week In Gayness: My Boyfriend Won't Put Out

Brian Fairbanks — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:50:00 GMT

If your Dad is a fervent anti-homosexual zealot, best not to brag to his face about having come from the Pride parade.

What, you thought they'd let gay couples on the revamped "Newlywed Game"?

A woman who worked in the Georgia General Assembly claims to have been fired after telling her boss she was "going to live as a woman."

Guess which reality show host is joining the cast of "The L Word" for Season Six?

According to Michael Ausiello of EW.com's the Ausiello Files (Entertainment Weekly online) Elizabeth Berkley, who flirted with the L word during her Showgirls days, is joining the Showtime hit for a multi-episode arc. [Lesbiatopia]

Today is the day our do-nothing Democratic Congress will finally do something: they're planning to take a peek at "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

Unsurprisingly, the Lesbos of Lesbos island lost their cast against the, um, lesbos of the world. Nice waste of paper, kids.

A Turkish honor killing (aka hate crime), in which a 26-year-old gay man was the victim, shows no signs of any future bright spots: apparently, as is the case in most honor killings, the family left their son's body to rot and the boyfriend has fled the country after warnings from his consulate.

In a Dear Mona column posted today on About.com, one guy asks "Mona" why his boyfriend can say "I still love you" while abstaining from sex and watching a steady stream of porno. Is it a porn addiction or the relationship itself that's the problem? Read the response here.

Do Rape, Don't Tell: Women in U.S. Army More Likely To Get Raped Than Killed

Katie Halper — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 21:00:00 GMT

Can people stop getting their panties all up in a bunch over rape in the U.S. Army? Sheesh! Alternet links to a David Rosen article from Counter Punch on Rape as an Instrument of War. And it must be Congresswoman Jane Harmon's time of month, because she is going OCD over what she refers to as "Rape in the Ranks." So, nobody is doing anything about the 73% increase in the number of rapes of women employed by the army; so the 12 women who have said they were sexually assaulted or raped or gang-raped by fellow KBR employees haven't received that much attention. But I prefer to look at the military rape epidemic glass as half full.

Congresswoman Jane Harmon reports that at a Los Angeles VA Healthcare Center she visited, 41% of female veterans claimed they were victims of sexual assault while in the military, and 29% reported being raped during their military service. But this is actually great news for U.S. service women! As Harmon herself states, "Women serving in the U.S. military are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq."

Here's the happy story:

Rapists in The Ranks

Sexual assaults are frequent, and frequently ignored, in the armed services.

By Jane Harman
March 31, 2008

The stories are shocking in their simplicity and brutality: A female military recruit is pinned down at knifepoint and raped repeatedly in her own barracks. Her attackers hid their faces but she identified them by their uniforms; they were her fellow soldiers. During a routine gynecological exam, a female soldier is attacked and raped by her military physician. Yet another young soldier, still adapting to life in a war zone, is raped by her commanding officer. Afraid for her standing in her unit, she feels she has nowhere to turn.

These are true stories, and, sadly, not isolated incidents. Women serving in the U.S. military are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq.

The scope of the problem was brought into acute focus for me during a visit to the West Los Angeles VA Healthcare Center, where I met with female veterans and their doctors. My jaw dropped when the doctors told me that 41% of female veterans seen at the clinic say they were victims of sexual assault while in the military, and 29% report being raped during their military service. They spoke of their continued terror, feelings of helplessness and the downward spirals many of their lives have since taken.

Numbers reported by the Department of Defense show a sickening pattern. In 2006, 2,947 sexual assaults were reported -- 73% more than in 2004. The DOD's newest report, released this month, indicates that 2,688 reports were made in 2007, but a recent shift from calendar-year reporting to fiscal-year reporting makes comparisons with data from previous years much more difficult.

The Defense Department has made some efforts to manage this epidemic -- most notably in 2005, after the media received anonymous e-mail messages about sexual assaults at the Air Force Academy. The media scrutiny and congressional attention that followed led the DOD to create the Sexual Assault and Response Office. Since its inception, the office has initiated education and training programs, which have improved the reporting of cases of rapes and other sexual assaults. But more must be done to prevent attacks and to increase accountability.

At the heart of this crisis is an apparent inability or unwillingness to prosecute rapists in the ranks. According to DOD statistics, only 181 out of 2,212 subjects investigated for sexual assault in 2007, including 1,259 reports of rape, were referred to courts-martial, the equivalent of a criminal prosecution in the military. Another 218 were handled via nonpunitive administrative action or discharge, and 201 subjects were disciplined through "nonjudicial punishment," which means they may have been confined to quarters, assigned extra duty or received a similar slap on the wrist. In nearly half of the cases investigated, the chain of command took no action; more than a third of the time, that was because of "insufficient evidence."

This is in stark contrast to the civilian trend of prosecuting sexual assault. In California, for example, 44% of reported rapes result in arrests, and 64% of those who are arrested are prosecuted, according to the California Department of Justice.

The DOD must close this gap and remove the obstacles to effective investigation and prosecution. Failure to do so produces two harmful consequences: It deters victims from reporting, and it fails to deter offenders. The absence of rigorous prosecution perpetuates a culture tolerant of sexual assault -- an attitude that says "boys will be boys."

I have raised the issue with Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Although I believe that he is concerned, thus far, the military's response has been underwhelming -- and the apparent lack of urgency is inexcusable.

Congress is not doing much better. Although these sexual assault statistics are readily available, our oversight has failed to come to grips with the magnitude of the crisis. The abhorrent and graphic nature of the reports may make people uncomfortable, but that is no excuse for inaction. Congressional hearings are urgently needed to highlight the failure of existing policies. Most of our servicewomen and men are patriotic, courageous and hardworking people who embody the best of what it means to be an American. The failure to address military sexual assault runs counter to those ideals and shames us all.

Jane Harman (D-Venice) chairs the House Homeland Security subcommittee on intelligence.

Gays On A Plane!

Katie Halper — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 21:24:00 GMT

The Pentagon barred Congresswoman/lesbian Tammy Baldwin from traveling with her domestic partner of 10 years. Because nothing threatens our national security and military intelligence more than Indigo Girls medleys, patchouli and shouts of "Labels are for jars."

Queerty has the story

The United States government’s queer discrimination runs deeper than we thought. Politico reports this morning that the Pentagon attempted to block Tammy Baldwin from traveling with her long time lover, Lauren Azar, with whom she exchanged domestic partner vows in 1998.

While Defense Secretary Robert Gates and his cronies claim Azar doesn’t count as a “spouse,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi came out in full force for Baldwin.

In appealing to Gates, Pelosi aides said their boss was simply asking the defense secretary to follow a precedent established by her predecessor, former Republican Rep. Dennis Hastert of Illinois. Pelosi told Gates that Hastert had allowed Baldwin to take Azar on a previous trip abroad.
Gates, who was apparently unaware of any earlier trips, told the speaker that she was responsible for the House travel rules and had the authority to make an exception, according to officials on and off the Hill. His only requirement was that Pelosi send him a letter authorizing the trip. Pelosi sent such a letter moments after the phone call ended, and Azar was allowed on the plane.

The Department of Defense makes clear to Politico that their decision simply reflects a deal with Pelosi and should not be taken as a precedent. Aren’t they charming?

This wouldn’t be the first time the government treated its gay employees’ differently. Former Romanian Ambassador Michael Guest resigned in protest last year after trying unsuccessfully to amend State Department policy on same-sex couples. While straight partners are granted access to security and language training, their queer counterparts must fend for themselves.

Openly gay Representative Barney Frank blames the Baldwin situation on the current administration, “I think the military was following orders. I think the administration disapproves of same-sex marriage.” It seems to us that the issue goes much deeper than just this administration, but indicates severe flaws in our nation’s political landscape - one that’s clearly skewed toward straight citizens.

If the government wants to shine the light of liberal democracy in places like Iraq, we suggest they do the same here in the States. It’s pretty disheartening that the Department of Defense refuses to include same-sex partners under their spousal guidelines. But, you know, that’s just our homo opinion.

Scanner : don't ask don't tell

This Week in Gayness: Don't Ask... Just Don't Ask

This Week in Gayness: How to Tell Your Boyfriend Is Closeted

Homophobic Phelps Clan to Picket/Pick-On High School Students

Enterprising Teenager Amasses Collection of Solicited Nude Photos

This Week in Gayness: The Homophobic Celebrity Ad You Missed

Did Obama Sell Out The Gays?

VIDEO 'Prop 8 - The Musical' starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, Neil Patrick Harris, Andy Richter, Maya Rudolph, that Girl from 'Scrubs' and MORE!

Presidents Who Smoke: A Photo History

Is this guy the Barack Obama of the GOP? Um, no.

**Bush: "People Voted For Barack Obama Because of Me" No sh*t!**

VIDEO 'Prop 8 - The Musical' starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, Neil Patrick Harris, Andy Richter, Maya Rudolph, that Girl from 'Scrubs' and MORE!

eHarmony, Let The Gays Begin!

Scanner Matt Loves Michiko Kakutani

"Wet, Hot, American Summer"... the Musical?

This Week In Gayness: My Boyfriend Won't Put Out

Do Rape, Don't Tell: Women in U.S. Army More Likely To Get Raped Than Killed

Gays On A Plane!