He's such a silly con.

Jesus was a Capricorn, he ate organic foods.
He believed in love and peace and never wore no shoes.
Long hair, beard and sandals and a funky bunch of friends.
Reckon they'd just nail him up if He come down again.

'Cos everybody's got to have somebody to look down on.
Who they can feel better than at anytime they please.
Someone doin' somethin' dirty, decent folks can frown on.
If you can't find nobody else, then help yourself to me.

So, by publicly expressing a sentiment that everyone already knew he believed in the first place, President Obama has violated the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy of homosexuality in the black church. Before this week, he could leave certain questions unanswered, and allow the black community to see him as the sanctified man they wanted to believe that he was.

By making his position clear, President has removed all ambiguity, like the husband who finally confirms to his wife that he really is having an affair. She might have instinctually picked up on his cheating ways in the past, but was able to live in the comfort of denial. When he finally “fesses up” to his relationship shortcomings, there is little room to deny that he is something other than the person you desire. Lines in the sand have been drawn, ultimatums have been issued, and decisions have to be made. Life is suddenly far more complex than it was before.

I am not sure how the gay marriage debate is going to end for President Obama. Michael Eric Dyson likely added a layer of complexity to the problem by using the term “sexual rednecks” in reference to those who oppose gay marriage. While I personally have no problems with gay marriage myself, the truth is that there is danger in proceeding with the debate without at least showing some degree of respect toward those who have dissenting opinions. Shouting down the opposition and treating them like dummies will only further solidify diverse viewpoints, leading some to hunker down in their own perspective. No amount of MSNBC propaganda can penetrate the psyche of a devout church member who’s believed the same thing for the last 40 years.

The black-liberal divide is now firmly out of the closet. Gay might be the new black for some, and it may really have to be the new black in order to replace votes in the next election. This could get really messy.

My cover-essay on Obama's historic embrace of full gay equality is now online. It isn't just about one interview:

And Obama's own life-story resonates with the same conflicts of identity that many gay people grow up with:

This is the gay experience: the discovery in adulthood of a community not like your own home and the struggle to belong in both places, without displacement, without alienation.

It took 11 years to go from" its wrong and I don't agree with it" to full 100% support. Her comment to me on all of this was simple. She said to me, "its a matter of acceptance. I had to accept it" I have always said there is two parts to coming out, there is what the person coming out has to go through coming out, then the family and friends have to go through their own "coming out". My mom has finished her "coming out" process and I am so proud that she has finally gotten it and fully accepted homosexuality.

An open letter written by a friend of the Owls; Equality, Acceptance, Obama and America's Coming Out
As many of you know the Owls of the Report are activists themselves, today a friend wrote this personal message and we thought it was worth sharing with all of you. We won't comment on who it is because the story is one that so many could easily have lived themselves....
By: The Owl Report

Question: When the same-sex marriage referendum came up in Maine a while ago, a Christian Conservative friend of mine said she was against it because it would have forced her church to perform same-sex marriages.

Is that true?

And, on a related note, is it legal for individual churches (or members of the clergy or even entire denominations) to refuse to perform marriages that they consider miscegenous?

Question: When the same-sex marriage referendum came up in Maine a while ago, a Christian Conservative friend of mine said she was against it because it would have forced her church to perform same-sex marriages.

Is that true? And, on a related note, is it legal for individual churches (or members of the clergy or even entire denominations) to refuse to perform marriages that they consider miscegenous?

This is from George W. Bush's pollster of 2004, Jan van Lohuizen, and is discussed by Andrew Sullivan.

I saw it a couple days ago. Is he suggesting that Republicans and their Party should start "evolving" on this previously easy, yet increasingliy tired, wedge issue?

Robert Marshall, a Virginia delegate wants to block the appointment of an openly gay judge to a general district court because his lifestyle is not recognized by the Virginia ban on same-sex marriage.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/1 ... 16620.html

How often does a related issue come before a judge? Marshall is one of the fanatics that have been pulling the legislatures to the extreme.

Thorne-Begland received 33 votes, and 31 delegates voted against him. He needed a majority of the 100-member House -- 51 votes -- to secure the judgeship.

Thorne-Begland's nomination for a judgeship on the General District Court in Richmond, where he has been a prosecutor for 12 years, had been approved by courts committees in the House and Senate.

But his nomination came under fire late last week, as the Family Foundation and Del. Robert G. Marshall, R-Prince William, stoked fears that the 45-year-old attorney would allow his sexual orientation to influence his judicial decisions.

Republicans cast the 31 votes against Thorne-Begland. Ten Republican delegates abstained and 26 delegates, including a handful of Democrats, did not vote. Eight Republicans voted for Thorne-Begland.