Oops, Wrong Side

Sometimes I hear someone, and my mind reels at the lack of self-awareness. Often times it comes in the form of cognitive dissonance.

Case in point Mat Staver.

As shown in this video posted to YouTube via Right Wing Watch, on Saturday April 25, 2015 Liberty Council founder Mat Staver addressed a march organized by NOM:

As someone who's argued before the United States Supreme Court, I certainly have respect for this court, but I have no respect and cannot respect a lawless decision. This court has not always been right on the issue of marriage. 

In the 1800s it issued the infamous Dred Scott decision, and Justice Taney said, “sorry Dred, no rights for you here at this high court,” because they said blacks were inferior human beings.

How racist and bigoted was that? How contrary to the natural law of God is that decision?

It is no decision worth respecting today, and It was no decision worth respecting then.

In 1927 the famous Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote the infamous words, “three generations of imbeciles are enough.” Saying to Carrie Buck, the Commonwealth Virginia can forcibly sterilize you to get rid of your population, because you have low IQ.

That was a racist bigoted decision flies in the face of the dignity of every person created in the image of God.

No one will defend it now and no one should have defended then.

I say now as we are standing on the precipice this major decision before the United States Supreme Court, these leaders that came together in this marriage pledge, that I hope you sign on it at defendmarriage.org are saying this, “Supreme Court of the United States with all due respect, we warn you, do not cross this line.”

As much as I am an attorney, and I respect the rule of law, I also respect a higher law. And when an earthly law collides with a higher law, we have no choice to obey higher law. We cannot comply Caesar's demands that are in direct conflict with a higher law, and that's what the Doctor Martin Luther King wrote in a letter from a Birmingham jail. There are two kinds of laws just and unjust. You have to obey the just laws, but the unjust laws are no laws at all, and we cannot obey those.

Marriage is the union of a man and a woman. As a policy matter any other union says that God’s design is flawed. As a policy matter any other unions say that boys don't need fathers and girls don't need mothers, and we know that God’s creation the divine architect that infused into the natural created order, knows what's best for the family. Children need mothers and fathers.

This United States Supreme Court, nor any governmental entity, does not have the authority to redefine God’s natural created order of marriage.

Mat, honey, the connection between Dred Scott, Buck v. Bell, and Baker v. Nelson was an unjust denial of the Due Process Clause. Or in other words, Americans are afforded the rights to life, liberty, and property.

In fact, the denial of the 5th Amendment in Dred Scott was a major point for the adoption of the 14th Amendment. It ensured that all people are afforded due process protections by both the States as well as the Federal Government.

I know in 2014 your Liberty University had a first time bar passer rate of 50% in Virginia: so I have a feeling you might not be teaching this, but based on the concept of substantive due process the right to marry is a condition of life, liberty, and property as enumerated in Loving v. Virginia, Zablocki v. Redhail, and Turner v. Safley.

In your own analogy, you are on the wrong side of history. You're not arguing for Dred Scott or Carrie Buck. You're on the side that wants to deny liberty and substantive due process. But thanks for playing and proving why your school is garbage.

If I were a betting man, I would be willing to bet that Mat knows that he is on the wrong side of history, as much of his speech reads nearly perfectly as a pro-LGBT. But quite frankly in the end I don't care.

I am curious though how Mat is going to perform civil disobedience in regards to same-sex marriage.
For civil disobedience, which MLK, Jr. prescribed, the government has to be doing something and your non-compliance is therefore disruptive. For example not paying your taxes. Or sit-ins in Government or public locations.

The only thing I can think that vaguely would qualify, is that Mat won't get married to a dude. Not much of protest there as not getting married affects nothing.

Or perhaps he will get a boyfriend and then won't get married as some sort of fucked-up, bizarro, psycho-sexual protest that only Mat Staver knows about or would makes sense to.

I have heard of people doing weirder things.

The Loophole by Garfunkel and Oates

It's either that or impotent rage. And impotent rage is never attractive.

The very last point I want to touch on is when Mat says, "This United States Supreme Court, nor any governmental entity, does not have the authority to redefine God’s natural created order of marriage."

You do realize that gay people exist, right? And that many of us have kids? And that would be a part of god's order, right? I'm not saying existence is right or wrong, but I am saying that existence is nature. If god didn't want gay people, then why do we exist.

Where do they get off speaking for god. That's pretty fucking arrogant.


Liam '15

Sunday Morning Slander

This just in from the "some people just wanna get sued" file:

Credits for the video belong to sfpublicdefender at Youtube.com.

On January 27, 2015 at the San Francisco Hall of Justice, Deputy Public Defender, Jami Tillotson, was arrested for resisting arrest. That can't be right?

I watched the video again, and yes it has been confirmed that she has been arrested for resisting arrest.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Stupid. stupid. stupid. stupid. No, stupid. No!

Maybe for obstruction, maybe disobeying a lawful police order... Agugh! Even that is mind blowingly stupid.

Ok, police have discretion, right. So let's say, technically, Ms. Tillotson was obstructing justice (I'm not from California, and I am not going to waste my time looking up the Statute.) It would behoove the Police Department to not arrest her without having absolute certainty, because by arresting her in front of her CLIENT in a COURTHOUSE you have deprived her client of their 6th Amendment right and not mention a whole host of privileges that go with it.

Sorry for being lazy before. It would appear that obstruction and resisting arrest are treated by the same Statute.  Here is Cal. Penal Code § 148(a)(1):

Every person who willfully resists, delays, or obstructs any public officer, peace officer, or an emergency medical technician, as defined in Division 2.5 (commencing with Section 1797) of the Health and Safety Code, in the discharge or attempt to discharge any duty of his or her office or employment, when no other punishment is prescribed, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment.

The nonsense phrase of arrested for resting arrest makes more sense... sort of... well not really as this is not obstruction which Black's Law Dictionary defines as:

Interference with the orderly administration of law and justice, as by giving false information to or withholding evidence from a police officer or prosecutor, or by harming or intimidating a witness or juror.

So nope to resist and nope to obstruction.

Furthermore what the fuck where the police doing gathering information at the Courthouse? That's very late to be gathering evidence.

And because the police were wrong, not only are they open to several lawsuits, but any would be evidence would be inadmissible. So great job dic. You'll be promoted to Chief any day now.

Alright I'm bored by this now. So much more to this based off of other articles.


Liam '15

Sunday Morning Slander

.... I just don't know what to write as this story is flat out infuriating. It somehow manage to push out a story about an AG who is "gratified" that a gay couple cannot get divorced, because a court ruled they weren't married by that state's definition of marriage. It also pushed out a story about a former CEO who was booted  from his corporation essentially for not going along with a scheme to drain the company of all of its resources while cutting labor costs and raising prices on consumers.

So yes, this one is special. And from Florida, of course.

Mary Elizabeth Williams of Slate did a fantastic job putting all the information together (in order spare the family any possible further grief I have removed their names):

[...] was only 42 years old when he died last month, after grappling for four years with the rare disease amyloidosis. His family, including his mother [...] wanted him to be remembered at the family church in Florida where she was baptized. But the day before the service, [the mother] was standing at her son’s casket during his wake when she got word from New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Tampa. She says they told her that would be “blasphemous” to proceed with the funeral and that they were canceling it – because [the deceased] was gay.

Just to clarify and not that it really matters; however amyloidosis, which regularly appeared as a possible solution to nearly every disease on the show House, is a autoimmune disorder (or more specifically a group of disorders) that causes an excess build up of certain type of protein in the bone marrow. It can lead to attacks on the heart, kidneys, liver, spleen, nervous system and digestive tract, possibly leading to organ failure and death. Carry on:

New Hope’s pastor, T.W. Jenkins, says he only learned that [the deceased] was gay when congregation members saw a mention of the man’s surviving husband in his obituary — and called Jenkins to complain. [The deceased] and his husband [...] were together for 17 years before they married in Maryland last year.

I struggle to think of anything less classy. I know the tale of Antigone is not Christian in origin, but denying funeral rites is the kind of bullshit that led previous cultures to fear divine wrath. As a man who is not religious, even I understand the thought process which would lead one to believe in divine judgement against someone denying funeral rites. It takes a particularly heartless and terrible human being to refuse a basic level of compassion to the grieving and a utter lack of empathy bordering on psychopathic. From my experience funerals are about the living, not the dead. Respect the feelings of the living. 

And once again, way to go T.W. Jenkins, you stupid, ignorant fuckhead. You have managed to reduce a man's life down to a sexual act, which apparently is his only defining feature. Let's ignore the fact he had been with the love of his life for over 17 years. Let's ignore the obvious grieving of family torn by tragedy. Let's ignore every quality that made him a human being, because he had sex with a man. T.W. Jenkins you are loathsome piece of shit.

I'm tired of this shit. It makes me feel awful writing this. I wish the family well and offer any condolence that I can, which may is no where near enough. 

Liam '14

Sunday Morning Slander

This week was short and I haven't noticed much in the way of news. So I punching down, so to speak, by focusing on this story that appeared on Rawstory.com written by Eric W. Dolan:

Students in a freshman biology class in Atlanta’s Grady High School were shown a PowerPoint presentation that linked evolution to Satan, abortion, divorce, racism, and homosexuality.

The Grady High student newspaper, the Southerner, reported that Anquinette Jones used the PowerPoint presentation to teach the theory of evolution to her students during a freshman biology class last spring.

One slide in the 52-slide presentation included an illustration that shows creationism and evolution as two sides in a war between good and evil. Creationism is shown to be from Christ, while evolution is from Satan. The illustration suggests evolution is the driving force behind euthanasia, homosexuality, pornography, abortion, divorce, and racism — social ills that are all defeated by creationism and Christianity.

My bullshit detector is wobbling a bit right now. I don't think anyone could be this fucking dumb and the primary source is a high school newspaper... so yeah... not to denigrate high school students...

Ok, I found another source, which actually shows and links to the primary sources. Uggh.. The article written by the high school students is actually well written and appears to be factual... uggh.. my faith in humanity is both downgraded by the stupidity of a biology teacher and yet bolstered by great journalism that gives me hope for the future.

So let's march on.

One slide in the 52-slide presentation included an illustration that shows creationism and evolution as two sides in a war between good and evil. Creationism is shown to be from Christ, while evolution is from Satan. The illustration suggests evolution is the driving force behind euthanasia, homosexuality, pornography, abortion, divorce, and racism — social ills that are all defeated by creationism and Christianity.

So... uggh deep breath... find my happy place... slide... Ok, you are trying to get people to accept creationism in the middle of showing why and how evolution works. And to a bunch of 15 year old boys, you say pornography drives evolution. You don't understand 15 year old boys, do you? 15 year old boys are porn-freaks.

In fact in the middle of your presentation one of the students was either watching a porno on their iPhone or drawing naked ladies in their notebook.

But after looking through the slideshow it appears the rest of the material was fairly solid. So unless the teacher undercuts the rest of the slideshow with a stupid verbal rant everything's fine:

Jones told the Southerner that the PowerPoint presentation originated with the Atlanta Public Schools system. But students told the paper that Jones had brought up creationism and criticized evolution in her biology class before.

“She always had random comments about [creationism],” student {Name Redacted} told the Southerner. “If someone would ask if we were going to learn evolution, she was like, ‘No, I don’t teach that.’”

“[I] have gay parents, and [the cartoon] said that evolution caused homosexuality and it implied that to be negative, so I was pretty offended by it,” another student, {Name Redacted}, said.

Happy place... happy place... happy place... Ok think of the positives on the story. Students are demanding accountability from educators.

Students are taking the initiative and become active and engaged in democracy and their future. 

And it seems that the students understand why this circumstance is wrong, or at least some of the students seem to understand why this is wrong.  

Liam '14

Sunday Morning Slander

Warning the following is so stupid you may void your bowels: Enjoy.

This weekend was Twin Cities Pride. Of course since it's pride weekend that means the stupid is out in full force. And this is really fucking stupid.

Thanks to the intrepid reporting of Andy Birkey (who was a part of the Rachel Maddow lawsuit that I analyzed forever ago) at the Twin Cities Daily Planet, we are granted insight into the inter machinations of a local evangelical organization called Trinity Works:

The group says it has about 300 outreach workers scheduled for Pride, and those workers will be based at First Baptist Church on Hennepin Avenue along the Pride parade route.

Its leader Steven Uggen told a group gathered in April at The Well, A Living Church in Robbinsdale, that people will be cured of “HIV or AIDS” at the Pride festivities. Uggen says that by healing those with HIV, it will prove to the LGBT community that they should find Jesus and leave “the lifestyle.”

Please go read the full article.

How to go about this:

A.)     There are reportedly 300 people not only dumb enough to buy this Aids-Denialist bullshit, but they are also willing to participate.

B.)     There are reportedly 300 people who think they can channel God to heal people.

C.)     This organization thinks that the Gayz haz the Aidz.  HIV is a virus you fucking dumb pieces of shit. What the fuck is wrong with you. Do you think that MILLIONS of South Africans chose a sinful life style. You fucking fucks.

D.)     If anyone stops taking their antiretroviral cocktail due to these bottom feeders... ughh so fucking pissed. Mother.. son of... 

There is a phase, "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity," but these assholes are really pushing it.

Liam '14

Hat Tip to Joe.My.God 

Sunday Morning Slander

I have to admit I was kind of struggling this week looking for material for this segment, which for sanity's sake is probably a good thing. But then this morning I saw a video, and I knew then and there I had found the one, my precious douchebag. *Sniffle*

On Thursday around noonish, a bunch of goons from NOM invaded the Capitol steps to tell 'em what they really think.

And then there was Huckleberry Hound Mike Huckabee.

Source. Go visit right wing watch.

I frequently prefer to read an article rather than listen to it, so here is a transcript of what he said:

The President and the Congress are not required to defy natural law.[1] They're not required to redefine marriage.[2] They are required to follow the will of the people, the Constitution, and the law that has given us the greatest nation on earth, a nation that we will lose, if we turn our backs on our origins.[3] There is no doubt in my mind that this country would not exist had it not been for the providential hand of God. I'm also convinced if we reject his hand of blessing we will feel his hand of judgment.[4]

[Break]

And it's time for us as an American people to say to our own government “Enough of you restricting us. Enough of you redefining our institutions.[5] We are not under an obligation to defy God in order to obey you. We are under an obligation to obey God and the law and if necessary to defy an institution that is out of control.”[6]

Ugh, I'm so sick of word salad. That's what I had for dinner last night. Perhaps it's because the video was an excerpt from a longer speech, but little sense making it was.

I will try to break it down into bit size pieces of WTF:

[1] I do not understand what natural law has to do with any of this quite frankly. It's literal a head scratcher due to the way it is worded. Is he trying to say "the President and the Congress are unnecessarily defying natural law"?

[2] Congress and the President are not redefining marriage. To play along with your venacular it's dem court thingys in dem buildins wit dem men folks who haz that there hammer do-hickey dats redefining marriage. The current gay rights movement is seeing it's largest successes through Article III jurisdictions, rather than through the legislative process or administrative law. By the way ain't ya a former governor who really really should know better? Numb-nuts.

[3] "They are required to follow... the Constitution." The judicial system is following the constitution in extending equal protection to all citizens by extending marriage privileges. Also a majority of people are in favor of marriage equality. You were against the tyranny of the minority when it was basically only gays in favor of gay marriage, so let me guess you now will be against the tyranny of the majority/minority. Dumb-ass.

[4] "I'm also convinced if we reject his hand of blessing we will feel his hand of judgment." Congrats Mike you are now as relevant as William Jennings Bryan. Jack-ass.

[5] "And it's time for us as an American people to say to our own government 'Enough of you restricting us.'" Hah hah hahahahahaha aaah haha. Do you hear yourself at all? Dumb-Fuck. Perhaps it's a wrong language thingy. Verstehen Sie, warum das heuchlerisch ist? Homo-Ehe beschränkt nicht die Zivilrechte oder die Freiheit der Mehrheit. Homo-Ehe gibt die Homosexuallen Zivilrechte. Arschloch!

Please don't make me whip out the french.

[6] Huh? I honestly am just perplexed by the rest of the statement. "We are under an obligation to obey God and the law and if necessary to defy an institution that is out of control." So does that mean he is advocating Christianists to not get married? Or defy the government, in which their participation in gay marriages isn't required?  Dick-for-brains.

UPDATE:

I found a longer video:

Liam '14

Sunday Morning Slander

I am in too good of a mood to make this a longer post. The sun's up, the birds are out, and focusing in on dickheads rather than dick seems like a waste.

I was originally going to write a short post about Rob Schlein, the Texas Log Cabin Republican who was fisted on stage introduced ex-gay therapy into the Texas Republican Platform.

[Insert snark here.]

The problem with that story is the statement speaks for itself and therefore can go un-annotated.

So that leaves BJ JB Van Hollen, front guitarist for the world's worst Van Halen tribute-band, Attorney General for Wisconsin. In an article written by Andy Towle at the eponymous blog Towleroad, MMF JB Van Hollen is quoted:

I am very pleased that Judge Crabb has followed the lead of courts across the country, including the United States Supreme Court, and fully stayed her ruling. By staying this ruling, she has confirmed that Wisconsin’s law regarding same-sex marriage remains in full force and effect. The state and all of its agencies and subdivisions must follow and enforce Wisconsin’s marriage law.  County clerks do not have authority under Wisconsin law to issue same-sex marriage licenses.  Judge Crabb’s stay makes this abundantly clear.

Please read the rest of the article, as there is a quote by the always calm, the always gracious, the ever fantastic, Senator Tammy Baldwin.

See Double Anal JB is ecstatic, so that's all that matters.

The reason, Judge Crabb isn't being slandered by myself, is because her hands are tied (it is also better to play it safe so that the 7th Circuit has less to criticize her for; acting rashly now could invite unwarranted criticism into her decision in Wolf v. Walker):

After seeing the expressions of joy on the faces of so many newly wedded couples featured in media reports, I find it difficult to impose a stay on the event that is responsible for eliciting that emotion, even if the stay is only temporary. Same-sex couples have waited many years to receive equal treatment under the law, so it is understandable that they do not want to wait any longer. However, a federal district court is required to follow the guidance provided by the Supreme Court.

60 Counties and 555 marriage licenses, in one week. Tell me that people are not hungry for those rights that are fundamental to the human condition. Tell me that is not a cause for celebration.

JB Van Hollen, you sir are a hypocrite, an asshole, and a bigot. You sir are the only one in this ordeal over-joyed by continuing discrimination. You sir are the only one who could have ended this immediately when offered a chance.You sir refused to defend the law offering minor yet fundamental protection to gay couples, because you sir believe it to violate the constitution. Yet you sir continue to defend a unconstitutional ban on marriage, even after it has been demonstrated by a court of law to be unconstitutional (repeatedly.)

Fuck You Sir!

If one couple is denied hospital visitation rights, or has power of attorney stripped away because they're not a real couple, or is denied tax benefits, or has survivorship property rights taken away, that is on you, you fucking piece of shit.

I made this to bring this post back into a lighthearted mood. The really sad thing is I didn't even have to slander him. He kind of did it to himself.


Liam '14

It Goes Darker Still

Dane County, Wisconsin is home to the capital, Madison.  It is also the home to the flagship university for the Wisconsin System. The population of Madison is 233,209, while 42,595 attend the University, 40,000 attend Madison College, and there are 4,454 instructors between both institutions.  Thus 37 percent of the population is tied to higher learning.

So it is of absolutely no surprise that Madison is liberal.  It was also absolutely not a surprise when the Dane County Clerk began issuing marriage licenses to gay couples the moment Wolf v. Walker was released.

In fact the County Clerk made a statement before the ruling saying this was his office's intent.

But let's see how the AG represented the State after the ruling. This is how it went down according to an article written by Judith Davidoff on June 6th for the Isthmus:

In his motion Friday to Crabb, Van Hollen said the fact that marriage licenses have already been issued to same-sex couples in Wisconsin "is precisely the type of confusion and uncertainty that the State Defendants intended to avoid by requesting a motion to stay."

He also said that the "Milwaukee and Dane County clerks' issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples this weekend creates the non-uniform result that some same-sex couples can marry and others cannot."

Brilliant argument. So if we take DP  JB's arguement to its logical conclusion, all marriages should be halted.
I'm starting to wonder if JO JB graduated from UW Law, or if he made a diploma out of a cut up Cheerios box and some crayons. You decide.

If the court doesn't issue a stay, it looks like BBW JB will be bringing a motion for injunction to the 7th Circuit, because let's face it, MILF JB is always worried about discrimination.

In case you were curious, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals falls under Elena Kagen's jurisdiction.

Anyway. I decided to give Wisconsin a new updated flag.

Congratulations to all the citizens of Wisconsin. Love has won.

Liam '14