Freedom 2 Marry: 12th Annual Week Long Initiative Crosses Blogosphere In Mass Dialouge And Contributions. SJR 15 Rears Its Ugly Head In Hoosier State!

*PLEASE NOTE THIS POST HAS BEEN UPDATED*

This week from Sunday through Saturday there is a cross blog initiative to petition for equal access under the law and the freedom to marry the partner of your choice, not the choice of the select few who assume that they speak not just to God but for him as well. [Queers United]

Now wait a minute, Bishops speak for God over there flock; doesn't that make you a hypocrite?

No because I don't claim to speak for God. That is what we call a messiah complex, or at best schizophrenia. There is a huge difference in being a Shepherd over a flock and a Leader of a political organization with religious overtones and presentation. One is true religion and spiritual practice the other is fundamentalism unleashed in all of its evil furry. I am proud to of had the opportunity for the former and abhor the latter on many different accounts.

As a Libertarian and an Independent Catholic, I believe that neither government nor the Church has the authority to regulate, license or restrict, personal relationships. As a caveat, I also as a Pastor, do not have to marry someone to other persons if I believe they are not ready for that encounter of ritual joining of two or more people and the unfurling of Sacramental grace on their lives together; but I don't have the historical authority to deny the relationship either, and that is where a lot of Pastors have gone cookie over their power structure that was inherited by Politicians contrition to the Church.

If the Pastor had a historical right to deny a relationship, Mary would not have been able to remain with Joseph, and both would have probably been stoned or beaten, by some accounts Joseph was beaten with a whip in Mary's place, because she told her story of meeting an angel and having the Word of God shoved inside of her uterus.

These truths that our Country were founded on are so profound that we have never been able to live up to them; but instead of continuing to press forward every year, we wait for a forty or eighty years and then make one strong push, then spend another twenty years trying to backslide to a more comfortable position. The basic creed and truth of These United States of America is Equality:

• We have never lived up to that ideal or truth;
• We have fought wars with ourselves to enforce it and preserve it;
• We have passed laws to bring it into common practice;

And yet through all of that We The People have still failed to attain it 230 plus years later.

• If we hold a truth to be self evident shouldn't it be visible in action not just words?
• Is it visible in any fashion and we just cant see it through our filters or biases?
• If all men are created equal than how can anybody deny another man's choice as to whom to love?

All humour and query aside, this debate is going to rage on for another decade or more, unless we come to some basic understandings as to what we believe as Americans regardless of religious or political affiliations, because our Country's collective life force, besides being on the line, needs to have the playing field leveled just a bit.

And now a message from our sponsor


Too Gay for TV Carls Jr Ad by randywombats Hat/tip: Wesley @ Swish Embassy

The economy is another place where we have failed to find equality, or at least equal access. Now because of piss poor decisions dating all the way back to almost 100 years we have found ourselves in yet another position of unstable policy, multiple trillion dollar debts, and absolute corruption by the powers that be (both Democrats and Republicans) because once again we failed to live up to what we wrote down over two centuries ago. The particulars are for another debate at another time, I only brought it up to show that the problem is systematic throughout this land not just one issue over here and another issue over there.

When one can be denied their very Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness over being attracted, not even having sex, just being attracted to a person of the same gender, identity or expression, than We as a People have failed to live up to our Country's creed and self evident truths.

So what is the answer?

The measure of an ideal is just that ideal, being able to measure the ideal out into a pragmatic application to the group dynamic will always leave some in dismay; however what we have done in this country is worse, we have allowed particular ideologies to take control of our truths and usurp them for the sake of power and money, and remain baffled when they fail and contagious when they just grab for *channeling Chris Crocker* more, more, more! power and oversight into our daily lives.

The debate on those issues have already shown themselves in the aftermath of Proposition Hate eer Eight in California last November, which comes up for judicial review on the fifth of March at the California State Supreme Court. Over the last several months the Christian and Conservative opposition, to allowing Equal Access Under The Law in California, by overturning a Supreme Court ruling, that allowed 18 thousand same sex couples to marry in less than 6 months with a ballot initiative, was finally dealt a landmark blow when the Courts forced them to release their donor list to the public so that an honest relay of information could take place and the public could find out who (read which Churches) influenced their vote and with how much money.

Get Involved In The Process And Make Your Voice Be Heard!

Statewide, Indiana Equality is reporting that, Indiana Family Institute's Eric Miller, Micah Clark and Company [Website][Veritas Rex] have managed to get House Joint Resolution 7 & 8/Senate Joint Resolution 15 reintroduced in the General Assembly three weeks ago as mainly authored by Representatives Eric Turner and Dave Cheatham and Senator Marlin Stutzman.

In two days on Wednesday, 11th of February, @ 9A the Indiana Senate Judiciary Committee was scheduled to hear testimony from opponents and proponents of the Senate Joint Resolution 15 (SJR-15). The hearing has been temporarily delayed but could still take place. Passage of SJR-15 by this committee will keep this harmful legislation in play. If approved by the electorate, SJR-15 will forever write discrimination into the Indiana Constitution, affecting thousands of Hoosier families.

Call the Indiana Senate switchboard: 1-800-382-9467. Ask the members of the Indiana Senate Judiciary Committee to vote NO on SJR-15. Afterward call your Representative @ 1-800-382-9842 and ask them to do the same on the following pieces of legislation: HJR 7 and 8. Last, enter into the conversation and forward along this information to your friends and family and tell three other people your story and sacrifice for all of us to be free to love any one we choose!

UPDATE: Indiana Equality (17th of February 2009) is reporting that the Indiana Senate Republican Caucus voted not to consider Senate Joint Resolution 15 during the 2009 session of the Indiana General Assembly. Proposals identical to SJR-15, were also introduced in the Indiana House of Representatives. Speaker B. Patrick Bauer has previously announced House Joint Resolutions 7 and 8 would not be considered during the current legislative session.

MANHUNT: Mormon Missionaries & more stocking stuffers. At least he made my toes curl! HIV? It's A Big Deal! & In The Moment returns with new webisodes

MANHUNT has a few recommendations on this Memorial Feast Day of St. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra. It all starts off when one of their new login page cover boy is decked out in holiday lighting. He might look familiar to some, he also appears in the 2009 Men On A Mission Mormon Calendar. <==Can we say, "Deck my halls. and Have a cup of cheer. Woof!" In other news of weird gifts, that only I would put together in one post. Now not only can you have gummi Legos (to help kids avoid choking?) but you can also set up your own dungeon scene, dominatrix and red ass included. Im still waiting to find out if they have a purchase site and a male to male or group set up also.

MANHUNT LINKS: Main Site|Blog|MHCares|

Besides being one of the top gay dating sites, MH also has a strong Community Health Advocacy program in place and encourages the practice within the larger Queer Community. Aside from F6 and a few others MH was one of the primary supporters and partners of Chi Chi LaRue's Safe Sex Is Hot Sex Campaign, which debuted earlier this year.

As Editor of F6, I want to give them and all the other organization mentioned in this post mad props for what they have done and continue to do to prevent the spread of Sexually Transmitted Diseases especially HIV/AIDS within the Family. Locally you can receive testing at the AIDS TASK FORCE on Oxford @ Monroe either by appointment or walk in on Mondays from 3-6P and @ Allen Co. Board Of Health on the 5th Floor of the City County Building, call a day ahead to set up an appointment.





This past summer, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated that approximately 56,300 people were newly infected in 2006. Over half (53%) of these new infections occurred in gay and bisexual men. MANHUNT commemorated World AIDS Day 2008 by joining Public Health Solutions, New York University and In The Life Media to present HIV BIG DEAL, (two videos above) a documentary about this project will air nationally on the webvision series IN THE LIFE. Researchers at New York City-based Public Health Solutions and New York University have collaborated to produce an innovative web-based campaign that tells the story of Josh, a young gay man who meets sex partners online, and deals with issues like online hookups, unprotected sex, disclosing HIV status and getting tested for HIV.

PREVIOUS POSTS @ F6

Not to take away from the current work done by all; but I would be negligent to not remind people of our post back in April regarding the very provocative and well done IN THE MOMENT after school special stylized gay male soap opera series, done earlier this year, by WeHoLife, as well. As announced also on World AIDS Day (see video below) they will begin production of new episodes in January of 2009, which will come out over the course of the next year.

Yeah! My paws are sweating with anticipation, cant wait!

In The Moment, covers the same issues with similar intent as HIV BIG DEAL does but it still carries as well other distinctly social story lines, questions for our Community, and resource information. Which means, that while some plurality exists in one of the story lines, the overall broadcast, and outreach, are still distinct but complimentary. Therefore the promotion of both of these series by all GLBT Organizations should be highly encouraged nationally and the resources utilized locally.

The fight against STDS, HIV/AIDS, and for Responsible Sexual Activity Practices in the larger GLBTIQAS Community must continue for the sake of our Community's survival from this dreadful plague, and if we ever want to be regarded as equal citizens under the law, unfortunately.


Find more videos like this on In The Moment

Mormons come under review and across the Country begin to loose membership over prop 8 support. Prop 8 to be reviewed by the Court in March 2009.

Information in the introduction below is taken from an excerpts of the second and fourth articles cited below. But first here is some coverage from earlier this month by Actor and Model David Moretti, currently known for amongst other things for his serial performance as Reporter Thom Etherton on HERE! TV vampqueer thriller The Lair, which is in its third season of production.



In the last several months before the November election over 18,000 same-sex couples have married since the California Supreme Court struck down a state ban on same-sex marriage. When Prop 8 passed it did not invalidate those marriages but restricted the ability for any further celebrations of civil unions by same sex partners in the State.

The Mormons, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, boasts of a membership topping thirteen million and a missionary force of over five hundred thousand. They donated nearly half, up to $25 million by some estimates, raised by Yes on 8, (in California) canvassed neighborhoods and staffed phone banks. ... Mormons are "uniquely situated to be mobilized into politics," said David Campbell, a political science professor at the University of Notre Dame....

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — California officials will investigate whether the Mormon church accurately described its role in a campaign to ban gay marriage in the state. The California Fair Political Practices Commission said Monday that a complaint by a gay rights group merits further inquiry. Executive director Roman Porter says the decision does not mean any wrongdoing has been determined. Fred Karger, founder of Californians Against Hate, accuses the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints of failing to report the value of work it did to support Proposition 8. A representative from the Salt Lake City-based church could not be reached for comment.
(Source: Google News)

For the sake of full disclosure and unbiased reporting, here is another full story on the same report courtesy of Jessica Ravitz of the Salt Lake Tribune.

What were you thinking?

Peggy Fletcher Stack, last week, recounted the stories told to her, about the aftermath of the Prop 8 support by the CJCLDS, from the Prince family of Wahington D.C.:

Although they live a continent away from California, LDS Church members Gregory and JaLynn Prince, of Washington, D.C., still have felt the backlash from their Church's involvement in the traditional marriage initiative known as Proposition 8.Their daughter, Lauren, a Boston University student, has lost friends over the issue, while their son, an LDS missionary in San Bernardino, Calif., has had a disproportionate number of potential converts cancel appointments. About two weeks ago, during a first-ever class on Mormonism at Wesley Theological Seminary, where the Princes have built bridges for years, students pointedly asked them: "What was your church thinking?" "We are not taking sides on the issue, but the way this was done has hurt our people and the church's image," JaLynn Prince said. "It reminds me of the naive public relations strategy we had regarding the Equal Rights Amendment."
(Source: Salt Lake Tribune)

Prop 8 Strategy Plan originated back in 1997

(Salt Lake City, Utah) The Church of Latter Day Saints began putting together a game plan 10 years ago to ensure same-sex marriage would not become legal, a internal church memo shows. The document, obtained by Salt Lake City ABC affiliate KTVX, was sent by a member of the LDS General Authority to a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, the church’s governing body.

Dated March 4, 1997, the memo mentions a meeting with Gordon B. Hinckley, who was then President of the Church, and quotes Hinckley as saying the Mormons need to “move ahead” with the church’s opposition to same-sex marriage. Hinckley, according to the 11-year old document, suggests joining forces with the Roman Catholic Church. “The public image of the Catholic Church is higher than our Church. In other words, if we get into this, they are the ones with which to join,” the memo quotes him as saying. He also warned in the memo that the Church should not be seen as the lead instigator in the fight against gay marriage.

[...2.5ip....]

In Utah, the Mormon Church says that eight of its temples have been vandalized since the passage of Prop 8 in California.... LGBT rights groups have appealed the outcome of the vote to the state Supreme Court, arguing the initiative process was improperly used in an attempt to undo the constitution’s core commitment to equality for everyone, by eliminating a fundamental right from just one group – lesbian and gay Californians. The groups in their petition to the court also say that Proposition 8 improperly attempts to prevent the courts from exercising their essential constitutional role of protecting the equal protection rights of minorities.
(Source: unknown origin received text through email)

California Supreme Court agrees to hear arguments for the repeal of Prop 8.

The California Supreme Court today denied requests to stay the enforcement or implementation of Proposition 8, and at the same time agreed to decide several issues arising out of the passage of Proposition 8. The court's order, issued in the first three cases that had been filed directly in the state's highest court challenging the validity of Proposition 8, directed the parties to brief and argue three issues:

(1) Is Proposition 8 invalid because it constitutes a revision of, rather than an amendment to, the California Constitution?
(2) Does Proposition 8 violate the separation-of-powers doctrine under the California Constitution?
(3) If Proposition 8 is not unconstitutional, what is its effect, if any, on the marriages of same-sex couples performed before the adoption of Proposition 8?

The court issued its order in three cases filed on behalf of a variety of parties, including same-sex couples who seek to enter into marriage despite the passage of Proposition 8, a same-sex couple who married in California prior to the adoption of Proposition 8, and a number of cities and counties whose officials seek to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Petitioners in each of these cases seek an order directing the relevant state officials to refrain from implementing, enforcing, or applying Proposition 8. In response to the petitions, the Attorney General filed a preliminary opposition, in which he urged the court to assume jurisdiction over these cases to decide the important legal issues presented, but also argued that the court should not stay the operation of Proposition 8 pending the court's resolution of the issues. The proponents of Proposition 8 also responded to the petitions, seeking to intervene as formal parties in the action and also urging the court to accept the cases for decision.

The court's order granted the motion to intervene filed by the proponents of Proposition 8. In its order, the court established an expedited briefing schedule, under which briefing will be completed in January 2009 and oral argument potentially could be held as early as March 2009. Six justices — Chief Justice Ronald M. George, Justice Marvin R. Baxter, Justice Kathryn M. Werdegar, Justice Ming W. Chin, Justice Carlos R. Moreno, and Justice Carol A. Corrigan — signed the court's order, although Justice Moreno indicated that he would grant the requests to stay the operation of Proposition 8 pending the court's resolution of these matters. Justice Joyce L. Kennard would deny these petitions without prejudice to the filing in the Supreme Court of an appropriate action to determine Proposition 8's effect, if any, on the marriages of same-sex couples performed before Proposition 8's adoption.
(Source: Chris Johnson Human Rights Campaign)

On the top of this page you will find a banner for the next collective action on the 10th of December 2008 by the Our Community in solidarity with our siblings in California, Arizona, and Florida, with the theme "A Day Without A Gay" where the San Diego, California based group Equality Action Now is asking all Gays and our allies to strike for one day. There are several other actions planned over the course of the next couple of months. If you know of any other initiatives or actions please email me details or look on the Disclaimers Page for contact information. Here is the short list, with links when available:

Today Equality Food Drive | Dec 10 Day Without A Gay National Strike |
Dec 20 Light The Night Vigil | Jan 10 DOMA National Protest |
Continuing Actions: Postcard To The President |