So--not surprisingly-- the US Senate cancels scheduled hearings on repealing DADT : WASHINGTON (AFP) – A planned November hearing by the US Senate Armed Services Committee to consider ending a ban on gays serving openly in the US military will be postponed, a spokeswoman indicated Friday. "We do not have a date" for the hearing, said the aide, Tara Andringa. Note to America's LGBQT community: like free lunch, there will be equality tomorrow.

But, you know what? Individual subdivisions of the Catholic Church are entitled to whatever policy positions they like, as long as they get out of the business of taking the government's money. From WaPo : The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington said Wednesday that it will be unable to continue the social service programs it runs for the District if the city doesn't change a proposed same-sex marriage law, a threat that could affect tens of thousands of people the church helps with adoption, homelessness and health care. Under the bill, headed for a D.C. Council vote next month, religious organizations would not be required to perform or make space available for same-sex weddings. But they would have to obey city laws prohibiting discrimination against gay men and lesbians. Fearful that they could be forced, among other things, to extend employee benefits to same-sex married couples, church officials said they would have no choice but to abandon their contracts with the city. T...

Still trying to figure out what this means after they helped bankroll the attack against same-sex marriage in California, but it's progress. From Joe My God : Hours after the LDS Church announced its support Tuesday night of proposed Salt Lake City ordinances aimed at protecting gay and transgender residents from discrimination in housing and employment, the City Council unanimously approved the measures. "The church supports these ordinances," spokesman Michael Otterson told the council, "because they are fair and reasonable and do not do violence to the institution of marriage." They also are consistent with Mormon teachings, he said. "I believe in a church that believes in human dignity, in treating people with respect even when we disagree -- in fact, especially when we disagree." Normally more deliberate, the council opted to vote after dozens of residents in the overflowing crowd expressed their support. "Guaranteeing a right to fair housi...

Notice that they didn't actually discharge him, even though they knew he was gay, until after his second 15-month tour in Iraq. But then they made sure his Honorable Discharge marked him as queer. [h/t Joe My God ]

... Dan Savage makes the killer historical point about the fact that traditional marriage has generally been about women as property, which is apparently the past that opponents of same-sex marriage yearn to recapture. [h/t Joe My God ]

Bankrupt and pleading poor mouth with regard to settling child sexual abuse cases, on 16 July 2009 our Diocese still found $200 to send to Maine for the campaign to overturn same-sex marriage . Look, the Catholic Church is against same-sex marriage. But to discover that in our cash-strapped Diocese the decision was made to send even a nominal amount to a political campaign multiple states away is shameful. From what I understand of the economics of our charities, the Diocese just spent enough on that to have fed an additional hundred or so of Wilmington's poor on Thanksgiving. I guess I should just be happy that we didn't send $50,000-- like the Arch-Diocese of Philadelphia did.

My friend Waldo first introduced me to the term Christianist , and--for a brief time--I thought it was a derogatory term for Christian. Then I realized that the definition was something more like this : one who advocates the reordering of society and government in accordance with fundamentalist Christian interpretations of the Bible. Which explains the following local reaction to the defeat of same-sex marriage in Maine yesterday: Now let’s get back to marriage. Praise GOD! We are still the USA and not the United States of Sodom. We understand that marriage is between a man and woman not some pc fiction. USA equals fundamentalist Biblical principles of the type espoused by evangelists like the late Carl McIntyre [ hero to the same commenter above ], described by First Things' TImothy George as having "a knack for gutter politics," and who was notable for such mainstream ideas as total abstinence from alcohol, a radical apocalyptic eschatology ("he had once spoke...

Given that the Bishop of the Diocese instructed Marc Mutty, his Director of Public Relations, to go on leave from the Church in order to run the anti-same-sex marriage campaign in Maine, while continuing to pay his salary from Church coffers. Funny how that little detail is missing in the latest AP coverage of the story : Marc Mutty, on leave from a job with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland to run the Stand for Marriage campaign, said in a homestretch appeal for donations that the election "is about the future of marriage in Maine, and thus the nation." "It is about whether marriage will continue to be between one man and one woman as God intended and human history has affirmed, or if we will plunge our state into a radical social experiment of 'any two will do,'" he said. The diocese coordinated $550,000 in contributions to the repeal campaign and has criticized Baldacci, a Catholic and former altar boy, for signing the marriage law. In fact, $23,995....

The press release: The Libertarian Party of Washington has endorsed the “Approve” Referendum 71 position. Libertarians believe that people should be treated equally, that we all possess the right to equal protection of the law, as afforded by the 14th Amendment. “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” - 14th Amendment Since the government gives benefits to heterosexual couples, it is imperative that we also extend these benefits to our gay and lesbian citizens as well. “The children of gay and lesbian couples are entitled to equal protection, as well. Discrimination against the gay and lesbian community is also discrimination against their children.” Rachel Hawkridge, Chair of the Libertarian Party of Washington says “It...

This would be funny if it weren't really happening. From Classically Liberal : The conflict over Proposition 8, the anti-marriage equality proposal in California continues in federal court. A legal battle is brewing over the discriminatory nature of Prop 8. The proponents of Prop 8 have their lawyer in court defending the measure. That lawyer, Charles Cooper, claimed that marriage equality would harm children. This is the sort of claim that the anti-equality advocates have been pushing all along. But a court room is not the place for meaningless, political sound bites. And the judge in this case, Vaughn Walker, wasn't falling for a sound bite. Because Cooper had claimed that marriage laws further procreation, and allowing gays to marry would somehow harm procreation, Walker asked: "What is the harm to the procreation purpose you outlined of allowing same-sex couples to get married?" That's a fairly, straight forward question and one that Cooper clearly should have...

I don't often agree with Homegrown Boy or his colleagues at Resolute Determination, but today he's hit it dead on in reference to President Obama's continued waffling and vague promises on gay rights: If the GOP is smart they will nominate someone who maintains what you do in your bed is your business. Unfortunately, I think the sentence fails as prediction due to the first five words.

From Small Govt Times : WASHINGTON — America’s third largest party challenged House and Senate Democrats Monday to fully commit to the equal justice for gay and lesbian Americans by rejecting a proposed hate crimes law and repealing the Defense of Marriage Act and the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy barring military service by “out” gays and lesbians. “Libertarians are the only party committed to equal justice under the law, whether it is protection from violence, marriage equality or the ability of a qualified person to serve in the military,” said Cat Sumner, Libertarian National Committee gay and lesbian policy advisor. “So-called ‘hate crimes’ bills further divide America by creating different classes of victims for the same crime. Instead of dividing the gay and straight communities, we should be treating everyone equally.” “This so-called ‘hate crimes’ bill is just an attempt by Democrat opponents of marriage equality to hold on to gay and lesbian support without actu...

Passing legislation that fights discrimination against gays and lesbians based on sexual orientation was an excellent start. Now Governor Jack Markell has taken a major step forward for American citizens with gender identity issues, including pre-, post-, and non-operative transgendered people. Here is the language from Executive Order Nr. 8 : 2. The work atmosphere in Executive Branch Agencies shall be one that fosters mutual respect and understanding among persons of different gender, race, color, religion, national origin, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression , or military or veteran status. David Anderson is highly of this order, arguing that The governor for the first time wants to give a mental disorder civil rights. I suppose this is an advance for David, as he does not, in the same paragraph, argue that protection for sexual orientation is protection for a mental disorder. Hold that mental disorder thought for a moment. Let's...

Classically Liberal recalls interviewing fundamentalists in the 1970s when Indiana was mooting a law to make homosexuality a felony: Prior to the Rally the Falwellians rallied their troops of religious Neanderthals and had them march through the streets of Indianapolis. I marched with them, tape recorder in hand... That year California, and I guess much of the West, was in a drought. No surprises there. California and the West have experienced droughts for as long as history has been recorded. I mention this because of one couple I interviewed. The woman was standing there in her very long dress (anything above the knees was immodest to them). She had a Bible clutched in her hand and pressed up against her breast. Any one in public, with a Bible clutched in full view, is almost always bad news. And, in a sense, so was she. But she was far more amusing that deadly, though I have no doubt she would have happily joined in a stoning of a homosexual or, in times past, happily provided some ...

... when the State of Massachusetts uses it to challenge the Defense of Marriage Act : Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley (pictured) filed a 32-page lawsuit Wednesday against the U.S. government, seeking federal marriage benefits for 16,000 legally-wed gay and lesbian couples. At issue is the constitutionality of Section 3 the Defense of Marriage Act, recently notoriously defended by the Department of Justice. The suit states that DOMA, termed "overreaching and discriminatory," interferes with the state's "sovereign authority to define and regulate marriage." "We view all married persons equally," Coakley said at a press conference today. The basis for the suit is the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Section 8 of the Constitution. Along with the United States itself, defendants include the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Veterans' Affairs. But when the issue is Montana challenging Fede...

There is, at least from my jaundiced point of view, some hope in the world today, as Delhi's High Court overturns the Indian law declaring same-sex relationships an unnatural act worth ten years imprisonment : Delhi's High Court ruled that the law outlawing homosexual acts was discriminatory and a "violation of fundamental rights". The court said that a statute in Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which defines homosexual acts as "carnal intercourse against the order of nature" and made them illegal, was an "antithesis of the right to equality". The ruling will inevitably be challenged in such a predominantly homophobic society, as evidenced by the statement of a major Indian mullah: The head cleric of Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque, criticised the ruling. "This is absolutely wrong. We will not accept any such law," Ahmed Bukhari told the AFP news agency. What comforts me--and should provide an example for American Christian...

... is why it is not always a good idea to rely completely on the State to safeguard your civil liberties. From Classically Liberal : Lava Hot Springs Park [Idaho] is a government-owned “recreation” center that announced a family discount. It then told a lesbian couple and their children that they don’t count as a real family and won’t get the discount. The park used state marriage laws as the excuse for that. When they got some flack over the unequal policy they announced that they would solve it by stripping all families of discounts. You should note that they are doing this over a few dollars.... What the local Chamber of Commerce said was that they were asked about their views toward “gay and lesbian visitors” and that the Board of the Chamber unanimously agreed that “we want all to know that we hope this isolated incident won’t dissuade visitors from exploring our community and, indeed, the rest of Idaho. The Lave Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce feels that all are welcome in our ...

Of course both Waldo and I are going to hell for this. But at least that means I'll have a drinking buddy with whom I can discuss the French Revolution throughout eternity. Too large to post here, you MUST visit the flow chart overview on the arguments regarding same-sex marriage . Warning: if you are drinking coffee it may come out through your nose. Or else you may simply cry.

With thanks to Waldo , this is the map of Europe with recognized gay marriage in green and civil unions (or their equivalent) in red:

There used to be a derogatory saying about South Carolina: Too small to be a state, but too large to be a penal institution . Ironically, despite an abundance of gracious people in many places, Palmetto State politics and the South Carolina blogosphere continues to descend into a racist, homophobic gutter. The one you've heard about, of course, is GOPer activist Rusy DePass joking about Michelle Obama, gorillas and evolution . Here's one that might have escaped your attention: Daniel J. Cassidy is a member of the South Carolina Advisory Board to the US Commission on Civil Rights. Here you can find him presenting himself as the watchdog over the proper expenditure of Federal funds for tutoring disadvantaged students . So far, so good, right? But Cassidy also publishes a blog called Sunlit Uplands , whose subtitle is Faith, Freedom, Defense of the West, Renewal of the Culture . Let's sample some of Cassiday's blogging choices over the past couple of days, keeping in...