“Who would give a law to lovers? Love is unto itself a higher law.”- Boethius, The Consolation of Philosophy, A.D. 524

I was really trying to keep you all updated with everything concerning Prop 8. It turns out that everything is a hell of a lot. I just can’t keep up with it all. I think I’m just going to have to admit defeat with my “l33t” blog reading skills. But, what I can do is point you in the direction of a constant source of information. I seriously recommend Towleroad. I have decided that the writer is a cyborg, or a clone. It’s the only way he can post so much.

There is one specific thing that I wanted to share with you. It’s a great idea. Tomorrow there will be a Nationwide protest. All of the protests are starting at the same time. I’m assuming this is to show unity. You can read all about it, find locations, and any local relevant information at Join the Impact.

I hope everyone who can will participate. Sadly there isn’t one in my city and I won’t be able to make it to the closest one. So I will be lighting my candle, and sending positive thoughts.

Until next time, eventually love will be enough.
autumn

“What this world needs is a new kind of army- an army of the kind.”- Cleveland Amory

Wow, just wow. The DF community, the Buzznet community, and only the Gods know who else have donated enough money to pay back those who bailed Mark and his co-worker out of jail. I am pretty sure, they said the amount was raised in less than 10 hours.

That is just fucking amazing to me. I am so proud of everyone who donated. His estimated amount doesn’t even include those who are mailing checks and money orders. That said, you can still donate to go toward future legal fees. But if that isn’t your cup of tea, why not consider donating to the Human Rights Campaign or The American Civil Liberties Union.

The election built my hope of this country. The aftermath of negativity and the passing of anti-gay propositions tore most of the hope down. But, witnessing this… I can’t even explain. This shows me that we can do what needs to be done. All we need is determination and compassion.

Until next time, I’m offering my hand to anyone who needs it.
autumn

“It is dangerous to be right in matters on which the established authorities are wrong.” ~Voltaire

“You’re not supposed to be so blind with patriotism that you can’t face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who says it.” ~Malcolm X

Ya know I was actually going to avoid talking about the political conventions. There is always a ton of bullshit that surrounds them, and frankly I’m fucking over it. Especially this election year, it definitely seems worse than before.

However, I keep reading about the protests. How they were stopped, raids on protesters, police brutality, how even fucking journalists are being jailed for reporting about said protests. So naturally I am pissed off.

Then I received an email… 3 pagan protesters were arrested yesterday. They were members of the Pagan Cluster. One of whom, Jason, was tasered four times while he was not resisting arrest. You can read more about it on the wild hunt blog, and view the video of Jason’s incident at kare11.com (All links will be found at the bottom of the entry).

I am sickened and disgusted. The police force has been way out of hand in these situations. I do realize that they may be scared and that there is the possibility of rioting. And that they did have a group of people earlier in the week who needed to be legitimately arrested and some force was necessary for that group. Still… they are taking it completely overboard. 295 arrests have been made so far several have been detained for a short while only to be released and not charged (but just long enough to miss their protest time.)

But what pisses me off the most is that more attention is being paid to the Palin baby controversies than any of the above situations. So in turn I’m leaving you all with several links at the bottom of the post to read about this fucking mess.

Until next time… Fuck it I’m moving to Tenby.
autumn

Wild Hunt- Pagan Protesters Arrested

Video of Protester Being Tasered

Media Silent about Police Brutality

Activists Deplore Police Brutality

Youth Beaten at RNC protest

DNC and RNC News Blog

Pre-RNC Police Raids

Police Raid Headquarters of RNC Protesters

Democracy Now Blog

So, the title is a little windy…sue me or get over it.

The United States is a nation of freedoms and democracy where the people are not only free but encouraged to govern themselves. A government �of the people, by the people, for the people,� isn�t that what Lincoln called it in his Gettysburg address? So why then are we not allowed to make our own decisions? Why are city councils deciding we, as consenting adults, are no longer allowed to kill ourselves with our cancer sticks while we feed our alcohol addictions? Why are state Senators telling women they cannot make decisions regarding our own bodies?

This of the people, by the people thing really gets me stirred up. I realize that we can�t put everything to a vote or we�d never do anything in this country but hold elections. But issues that directly affect us, affect our lives, affect our freedoms; issues such as where and when we can smoke, if and how we can abort a pregnancy; should, without question, be put to a public vote. Not only be put to a public vote but the vote should be publicized and made known to everyone of legal voting age. For at least a week, if not longer, before the vote is held it should be plastered all over the local news stations, the newspapers, fliers stapled to telephone poles� That way if you don�t vote, you have no reason to complain about the results and no excuse for not voting.

In this country, people are made to find information on their own. Which is all fine and dandy if you know where to look…or want to take the time to look. But the problem is people either don�t know where to look, don�t want to look, or don�t know they have to look. Governments know this and hide announcements of public issue voting on page 14D where no one bothers to look. That way, they have met the obligation to inform the public but no one ever set a standard of how the public should be informed.

What brought me to this rant? One more U.S. city has enforced a smoking ban as of 10:00am local time on January 11. Louisville, KY has joined the list of smoke free cities. Okay, I am a smoker living in a smoke free city but that�s not the reason it ticks me off. Well, not the whole reason, anyway. When I was in college, the city I was living in at the time implemented a ban. Within a few short months one cocktail waitress (er� �server�) was raped and murdered and another severely beaten on their cigarette breaks at work because they were no longer allowed to smoke inside the bars where they worked. In a city of roughly 100,000 people. Some barkeeps in the area started sending bouncers outside anytime their waitresses left to smoke. Others simply refused to adhere to the ban, stating that they were not putting the welfare of staff and patrons at risk over a ridiculous law they had nothing to do with in the first place.

Ban supporters will say that smokers can quit or smoke in their cars if they are concerned about their safety. But in some cities, smoking in their cars is not even an option. In some cities, government officials are considering (and in others, they already have) widening the jurisdiction of the ban to include public sidewalks, parking lots and�yes, boys and girls, private properties such as cars.

If someone tries to tell me that I cannot sit in my car with my windows rolled up and hotbox myself into an early grave, they are going to be met with a severely unpleasant response. No one asked me if I wanted cigarettes and smoking to be outlawed and if they had they would have heard a loud and resounding, �Hell no!�

To bring the whole rant full circle, how can we conscientiously send military troops to foreign countries to implement democracy, a government where the citizens are free to make their own choices, when our choices and liberties are stripped from us right and left?

No government has the right to tell its citizens when or whom to love. The only queer people are those who don’t love anybody. ~Rita Mae Brown

I could start off this entry by once again apologizing for the lack of updates. If I did I would swear that we still love you, and that it wouldn�t happen again. I would also say something to the effect of it was simply because time got away from us again, and how busy we were. But, I�m not going to apologize. Nope not this time, instead I�m going to say that this is BeShameless 2.0, and that despite the fact that it looks the exact same it�s the second version, damnit. Like the phoenix, we have risen from the ashes of virtual death. We are new, improved, and fucking slamming as always. Ok, now I�m going to stop my bullshitting and mixing my metaphors. No, seriously, I have several things I want to talk about in the coming weeks. I even have a book review to throw in the mix. So get use to seeing my smiling� er, no that�s not right�. get use to seeing my scowling face on a regular basis.

Let�s start off our new fabulousness by talking about Utah. Yes, fuckers, I said Utah. In January, the openly gay senator, Scott McCoy, was planning to sponsor a bill to repeal the ban against sodomy. I wish him luck, mostly because all prior attempts to remove the ban have failed. It even failed after the Supreme Court decided in a 6-3 ruling that they would not convict or punish citizens who practiced sodomy. Despite the ruling on his side, McCoy faces opposition. Senator Buttars stated that he would �fight that all the way.� He also states that, �You can like sodomy, I don’t. I think sodomy is sickening.� It seems to me that he would like sodomy� I mean he already has a stick up his ass.

Poor Buttars, continued to show his myopic, closed minded ways this week. He was relishing in the fact that a bill he and Senator Tilton sponsored has passed the Senate and is on the way for Gov. Jon Hunstman Jr. to sign. This bill will allow schools to ban clubs they believe would threaten �moral well-being� of the children or faculty. The bill would also require parents to sign a consent form allowing children to join clubs, as well as requiring the club to outline the information they will discuss a week in advance so that the principal and parents could review it.

Now, of course we aren�t talking about the chess club here. Buttars has tried several times to stop Gay-Straight Alliances in local schools. He has been quoted as saying Gay-Straight Alliances are �a recruiting tool for gays and are tearing down the moral pillars of society.� Ugh, come on now� we all know Gay-Straight Alliances are to find fag hags. Jeez. Heh, no ok, this isn�t a place for jokes. Seriously Gay-Straight Alliances are very important activities that promote tolerance and understanding. So I say fuck Buttars and Utah. When this goes thru and if the schools shut down your club, take it off school property. Don�t give up or become discouraged. Do it to spite them, but also do it because it�s needed.

Until next time, I�ll be writing letters to Utah,

autumn

]]> http://beshameless.net/archives/2007/02/22/utah-makes-my-head-hurt/feed/ 0 http://beshameless.net/archives/2006/10/20/at-least-now-i-have-an-excuse-to-wear-lycra/ http://beshameless.net/archives/2006/10/20/at-least-now-i-have-an-excuse-to-wear-lycra/#comments Sat, 21 Oct 2006 02:16:34 +0000 autumn http://beshameless.net/archives/2006/10/20/at-least-now-i-have-an-excuse-to-wear-lycra/

“An election is coming.� Universal peace is declared and the foxes have a sincere interest in prolonging the lives of the poultry.”- T.S. Eliot

I was asked the question today why I was so consumed with politics and why I was so interested in the �horrid� news stories that are thrown at us constantly. It shocked me for a moment; until I realized that most people would rather avoid hearing about the bad. They want to hear that it�s all getting better. They want to believe that we all are safe and cozy inside our beds. They delude themselves into thinking that we have the best people possible running our nation and assisting our world.

Now, call me Captain Obvious if you must, but that isn�t and will never be the case. We will never be safe, happy, or cozy. Even if the politicians and American leaders change drastically, we will always have bigots and extremists contradicting the things they claim to stand for; they will continue to degrade anyone who doesn�t follow the same path that they do.

So, why fight, comment, learn, and grieve if it will never change? It�s who I am… I can�t stand to see people hurting and fighting for something that they should have without question. I have to hope that any small changes made will help those that I love. Mostly, I am trying to understand. I�m trying to make sense of it all. Supposedly we are the greatest nation in the world; yet, those that should lead us and try to make us better cut us off at the knees and leave us to bleed?

For example, read some of these quotes. These men and women are our past, present, and (Goddess forbid) our future. They are harsh and disgusting�.

�Not all Muslims may be terrorists, but all terrorists are Muslims.�- Ann Coulter, from her syndicated column on 9-28-2001

�Oh, you�re one of the sodomites. You should only get AIDS and die, you pig. How�s that? Why don�t you see if you can sue me, you pig. You got nothing better than to put me down, you piece of garbage. You have got nothing to do today, go eat a sausage and choke on it.� � Michael Savage, comment made on national television show Savage Nation, 07-05-2003

I know that several of those quoted are wack jobs and few take them seriously. However, several people do take their words to heart. That is what saddens me the most. Needless to ask but, how can I not focus on politics, civil rights, and news stories seriously after that? How can I not try to get my word out and try to educate and communicate with people? So if that means I read a lot of news sites, and talk about it at length that�s ok with me. I�ll continue to be Captain Obvious.

Until next time, I�ll start sewing my super suit,
autumn

�War. Rape. Murder. Poverty. Equal rights for gays. Guess which one the Southern Baptist Convention is protesting?� ~The Value of Families

Heya, kids. Sorry for the lack of updates. Life became insane here again. I know that we�ve said that a lot lately; but honestly, time has just gotten away from us. I looked at the site today and realized that it�s been months almost 2 months since anyone has said a word. I know that you all feel abandoned, but I promise you that�s not the case.

There were quite a few things that I wanted to talk about but they have all moved on to the �uber old news� category. I�ll start paying more attention to the news and all the articles that are e-mailed to me. That way I can give you the story in a timely manner.

There is one thing that I have to share with you all, though. Everyday I drive home from work and enjoy the scenic view. I mean it�s awesome� leaves are dying and falling on the road, it�s still raining like a son of a bitch, and political signs are everywhere. Now, despite that bit of sarcasm, political signs don�t really bother me. I understand that everyone is looking to get their word out before November second. And really, what grabs someone�s attention better that a gigantic fucking red, white, and blue sign the size of a house? Normally I can ignore the signs and get on with my drive. However, there is this one sign that sticks out like a sore thumb to me. It�s neon yellow, which is annoying enough, and it sports the slogan �Virginia for One Marriage. Vote yes for the Virginia Marriage Amendment.�

Every time I see that sign it enrages me. I seriously want to go rip it out of the yard or spray paint the damn thing into a rainbow. Maybe it�s because this is the one issue I�ve always felt strongly about. Maybe, it�s because the majority of my friends are gay and will have to fight and struggle against this stupid fucking amendment. Or, ya know� maybe it�s because I�m a decent fucking human being and I want everyone to be able to express love and be safe and secure in their relationships.

The morbid curiosity in me made me go to the website to check it out. I�m not really sure why I did other than I, apparently, needed something to escalate my rage. I went and looked at their frequently asked questions; there was one in particular that my mouth fell open. I stared at the answer to this question for a good 15 minutes. It dumbfounded me. When asked �Shouldn�t Homosexuals have the right to marry?� part of their answer said, �They claim, falsely, that the right to marry lies in any couple, when in fact it lies in the individual. Not just any conceivable configuration of people have the right to marry because rights belong to individuals – not groups. In reality, homosexuals have the exact same right to marry as we all do. The debate is not about who has access to marriage – we all do. It is about defending what marriage is and always has been.� Ummm� well first off just look at the loads of contradictions there. Secondly, I get what they are saying. They are saying �Sure, fags can marry� if they find a woman and make a big front out of it.�

Of course the rest of the site consisted of repeating itself and saying that by allowing gay men and women to marry would ruin the sanctity of marriage. They needed to protect marriage and the children by voting for this amendment. God damned ignorant, pathetic, myopic assholes

I know I�m preaching to the choir here. If I�m not preaching to the choir maybe you should find a new blog to read. But be that as it may, I�ve ranted long enough. I want to encourage you all to speak out on this subject. If you live in VA or in TN, I want to encourage you to go and vote the 2nd, and for crying out loud vote NO. Actually, if you live in any state that is pushing the marriage amendment, GO VOTE!

Until next, I�m going to go see if Wal-mart has spray paint on sell,
autumn

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” -Martin Luther King Jr.

On March 31, 2006, the long tangle of receiving justice started for one young transgender woman. A federal judge ruled that an employment discrimination suit for Diane Schroer could proceed to trial.

Diane, an Army Veteran, applied for a position at the Library of Congress as the senior terrorism research analyst. Shortly thereafter, Diane was offered the job, and she immediately accepted. However, before starting her new career, she took her future boss to lunch. Diane then explained that she was in the process of transitioning and thought it would be easier if she started work as female. The next day she received a call rescinding the job offer with the explanation that she wasn’t a “good fit” for the job in which she applied.

In June 2005, after hearing her story, the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) filed a suit with the Library of Congress on her behalf. The lawsuit states that the Library of Congress violated Diane’s rights in accordance with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which protects sex discrimination in the work place. The Library of Congress countered by saying that transgendered people are not covered under the aforementioned title. The court has overruled that claim and the case can now proceed to trial.

I applaud this decision and wish only the best for Ms. Schroer. I am thrilled that the judge made the decision to let justice be served. As the case proceeds I will continue to follow this story and hope you, the reader, will do the same.

Please read more of Diane’s story at ACLU- Diane Schroer Ruling
autumn